Car Insurance Answers

Is Their Cheap Auto Insurance For People Who Had Car Accidents?

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 19:00:31 +0000

If you own a car, you know that a fender bender can definitely up your car insurance rates. This is because the more accidents you have, the more of a risk you become. Car insurance companies lose money when their clients get into accidents. After all, the company has to pay for the repairs and maybe even for the repairs of the other car in addition to possible medical bills. Thus, if a person has had a few car accidents, it signals that this may again happen. Thus, to protect their interests, an insurance company will often ask people to pay slightly higher monthly rates or premiums. However, there is hope for folks who want cheap car insurance but have had a few car accidents. The following are some tips for how to find affordable car insurance.

The first thing you need to do is compare the rates different companies have to offer. This way, you can see what different plans offer in the way of coverage and how they compare price-wise. Take the time to use a price comparison website when conducting this research. After entering in some basic information about your car and your driving record, you can then hit a button and soon see a list of companies and their estimates. From here, you can then choose which companies look the most promising.

If you want to lower your car insurance rates, take the time to inquire about any discounts for which you may qualify. You can receive discounts for attending defensive driving courses or for being referred to a company by a friend or family member. There are discounts for students, for senior citizens, and even for things like the number of safety features included in a car. Once you know what a company has to offer in regards to discounts, you can work on lowering your car insurance. Discounts can really help you if you’ve had a few car accidents and want to find affordable plans.

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What Can Increase Your Car Insurance Premiums?

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:00:20 +0000

Drivers make monthly payments for car insurance, known as their premium. You pay this every month, even if you never have an accident and never use your insurance. Having lower premiums lowers the total cost of driving, so it’s important to know what things might increase your premiums.

Accidents Increase Car Insurance Premiums

The biggest, most obvious factor that increases car insurance premiums is the number of accidents you’ve had. Premiums may be increased for five years after the accident occurs, which can cost quite a bit of money. Light “fender-benders” may increase your insurance premium, even if there was little damage and no one was hurt.

Use and Location

If you increase the number of miles you drive every year, that could increase car insurance premiums. Insurance companies figure that the more you drive, the more likely you are to get into an accident. Moving to a more populated area or to an area with a higher crime rate can also increase your premiums.

Credit History Impacts Insurance Premiums

Your credit history does impact your car insurance premium, even though it may not be directly related to your abilities as a driver. Insurance companies look at credit history to gauge your level of responsibility. If you’ve been late on or missed payment, companies will view you as a riskier prospect and will likely increase premiums.

Type of Car – Both New and Old

Newer and more expensive cars have higher insurance premiums. But somewhat counterintuitively, older cars also have higher premiums. Insurance companies look at the costs associated with repairing a car after an accident. If it’s difficult to find parts for an older car then repair expenses will be higher, so they’ll likely require higher premiums to offset that extra cost. Additionally, if an older car is a “classic,” it’s more likely to be stolen, which also results in higher premiums.

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What Farm Bureau Auto Insurance Discount Do I Get If My Child Takes Drivers Ed?

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 23:00:49 +0000

Adding a child to an insurance policy can cause previously declining rates to skyrocket overnight. Depending on insurance carrier, type of car and state of residence, the annual price of a policy could increase by hundreds or thousands with the listing of a teenager as an authorized driver. By completing drivers ed, however, a child can trigger a Farm Bureau Auto Insurance discount of up to 10%.

Farm Bureau Auto Insurance Discounts Vary by State

Just as insurance rates vary by location, insurance discounts are also location-dependent. Regulatory laws can impact the types of discounts that are mandatory, permitted or prohibited from state to state. Only a licensed agent can determine which Farm Bureau Auto Insurance discounts will apply to a particular policy. Discounts for drivers ed may be dependent on the child’s performance in the course, the type of course or the age of the teen aged driver.

Other Discounts Are Available

If a Farm Bureau Auto Insurance discount is not available on a particular policy for a child completing drivers education, other discounts are often available. If the teenage child being added to the policy is a high school or college student, discounts for good grades might be available. Discounts for older drivers are available as well, including discounts for defensive driving courses or combining home and auto insurance on the same policy are common among most insurers in most states.

Contact an Agent to Learn About All Possible Discounts

No one can provide one-size-fits-all advice about Farm Bureau Auto Insurance discounts because every insurance policy is different. By contacting an agent, the insurance client can guarantee that they are aware of all of the possible discounts on any given policy. Sometimes, multiple discounts can be applied to the same policy, further lowering the premium that will be due on an annual basis. Finding the right discount can counterbalance the cost of adding a child to an auto policy.

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Finding the Car with the Best Insurance Rate

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 19:00:00 +0000

The car with the best insurance rates fluctuates from year to year depending on the ages of the cars, their likely drivers, and how much they are likely to cost the insurance company to repair should the be in an accident. Therefore, there is no hard and fast answer to the question of which car is the cheapest to ensure, and even when there is a particular year or model that is unusually inexpensive to insure, different insurance companies will still have different rates.

How Do Insurance Companies Determine A Car’s Rates?

Although insurance companies are typically insuring a car, as opposed to a driver or group of drivers, the listed drivers are still one of the largest determining factors in how much a car is going to cost to insure. Teenage drivers, for instance, are always more expensive to insure in comparison to all but the most wreck or ticket happy adults. The elderly used to be among the cheapest to insure, no matter the vehicle, but that has been slowly changing as insurance companies have begun to change their views on that group of drivers.

But Don’t They Base Insurance Rates On The Car, Too?

The type of car that is insured can have either a negligible, or huge effect on the total cost of the insurance premium. Extremely expensive cars, for one, will always raise rates on any comprehensive insurance policy since the insurance company will have to pay to have that car repaired should the driver wreck it, or should an uninsured driver hit it. Adding a high risk driver to an expensive vehicle can lead to astronomical insurance rates and, in some cases, insurance companies may actually deny coverage. Generally this only happens when the driver is high risk due to tickets or accidents, but different insurance companies’ policies differ on the matter. SUVs also carry a fairly high premium due to their high risk of rollover, especially when combined with younger drivers.

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My Friend Wrecked My Car, and They Have No Insurance!

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 15:00:50 +0000

No one jumps for joy when a friend asks to borrow their car. Many people will flat out refuse, but there are those who feel either obligated for some reason or just plain nice enough to let them take it down to the store for some snacks or whatnot. But then comes the call. The friend has wrecked your car. What’s worse, they don’t even own a car, so you’re pretty sure they don’t have insurance. Now what?

They May Be Covered on Your Insurance

Luckily for you, though they don’t exactly emblazon it in bold letters across the front of the liability card, most insurance policies cover anyone who temporarily drives the vehicle in addition to those drivers listed. Now, exactly what “temporarily” means is largely up to your particular state and insurance company to define, but odds are pretty good that your insurance will at least cover the damage to the other party’s car. If your car has a lien on it, the policy likely covers damages to it as well, though there will probably be a deductible. Hopefully the friend is good for that deductible, which can be up to $500 or more, depending on your policy.

But if They Are Not Covered

If the driver of your car is not covered by your insurance policy or, worse, you actually have insurance at all, then you are going to have a problem. Although a court of law can assign the blame to the driver of the vehicle, in many cases, the responsibility will default to its owner. As long as no one was injured in the wreck, it is unlikely that criminal charges will be pressed, though it is very likely that the owners of the other vehicle, be they a bank or the other driver, will attempt to sue you. Even if the owner of the vehicle does not sue, likely because they have comprehensive insurance that covers their own car, you can bet their insurance company will still come after you.

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What If When You Get In A Car Wreck And The Other Person Has No Insurance?

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 23:00:43 +0000

No one wants to think about having an auto accident – it can affect nearly every aspect of your life, including your personal finances. This is why most people carry auto insurance – it provides protection against financial ruin if an accident occurs. You may wonder, though, what happens if you get in a car wreck, and the other person has no insurance.

The Best Case – You Have Uninsured Motorist Coverage

If you purchased uninsured motorist coverage when you started your policy, you may have little to worry about. Uninsured motorist coverage pays for your expenses if you get in a car wreck and the other person has no insurance. Like liability coverage, there are two elements to uninsured motorist coverage. Uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage pays for your medical expenses, while uninsured motorist property damage pays for your car and personal property. These coverages will pay up to the limits you chose when you started your policy. As long as you carry high limits, your expenses will be taken care of by your own insurance company.

The Worst Case – The Other Person Has No Insurance, and You Have No Uninsured Motorist Coverage

If you do not carry uninsured motorist coverage, and you are in a car wreck caused by a driver with no insurance, your insurance policy will not pay for your medical expenses – in this case, you will need to rely on your health insurance to take care of your medical bills. Your car will also not be paid for unless you carry collision coverage. If you cannot pay for your expenses through health insurance or collision coverage, you can opt to sue the other driver for your damages. Typically, though, if a driver cannot afford car insurance, it is unlikely that he or she will have the money to pay your expenses, even if you win the case.

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What Happens If Your Automobile Insurance Expires?

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 19:00:38 +0000

If your car’s insurance expires, you need to fix this before it’s too late. If you don’t, then you put yourself and your car at risk. When your car’s insurance expires, it means that you and your vehicle are no longer covered by a company. Thus, if you get into an accident, the bills will not be paid by your company. What this means is that you will be held personally responsible for all bills that occur as the result of an accident. The following are just some of the things that can happen if your automobile insurance expires.

If your car insurance expires, you may lose coverage. This is not something to take lightly. If you no longer have car insurance, then you place both your car and your body at risk. After all, if you get into an accident, there will be no car insurance company to come to your rescue. You will have to pay for not only your car’s repair bills but also any medical bills you may have to deal with. Not only this, but if you are involved in a collision with another car, you may have to pay for their bills too or face legal action. Car insurance protects you from these things. Thus, you need to make sure that you keep your policy up-to-date and are aware of when its expiration date is.

Additionally, in many places, it is illegal to be without car insurance. Thus, if your policy expires and you do not renew it or find another plan as soon as possible, you risk having to pay some major fines and being in some legal trouble. Some car insurance companies offer automatic renewal options. If you like your company and policy, you should definitely consider investing in this. This way, you will never have to worry about your car being uninsured, and you can rest assured that you will be covered in the event of an accident.

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Liability or Full Coverage for the Teen Driver?

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 15:00:11 +0000

So your teenager finally has a license and, not only that, their first car! Of course, being the smart parent that you are, you purchased your new driver a cheap, high mileage vehicle so that you would not have to pay an arm and a leg for insurance and, if the teen ends up not being the best driver in the world, they will not be wrecking the expensive family hauler. Now, though, it is time to look at car insurance for the young driver, and you need to know what type of car insurance would be best.

Just Liability Insurance?

There are a few different schools of thinking here. On the one hand, many people do not see a point in paying for anything other than the cheapest possible insurance policy on an older vehicle with a high risk driver such as a teen. This makes sense considering within a few years, you could have easily paid for the vehicle all over again if you opted for full coverage. There is also the attraction of saving money in the short run, especially when the parents are unsure if the teen is going to be reliable in their maintenance and safe driving of the vehicle.

Or Full Coverage on the Cheap?

On the other hand, many people do not have the cash on hand to purchase another car should that one be destroyed by someone with no insurance, or some sort of natural calamity, such as a flood or animal in the road, let alone if the new driver ends up being reliable but makes a costly mistake. Paying the extra bit a month for full coverage, which is always cheaper on an older, cheaper car, will ensure that even the car is totally destroyed, there will be a check in the mail with which to begin rebuilding. Low deductible comprehensive insurance comes in especially handy when something disastrous happens soon after obtaining the vehicle, as an extra twenty or thirty dollars a month could mean a paycheck for a few thousand dollars, minus deductible, from the insurance company as opposed to a scrap heap to sell to the junkyard.

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What is a Good Driver Discount on Auto Insurance?

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 23:00:09 +0000

Good drivers represent less of a risk for auto insurance companies. People with clean driving records are less likely to get into accidents in the future, so insurance companies may offer them a good driver discount on their monthly insurance premiums. People should note, however, that every insurance company has its own definition of a “good driver.”

How Much You’ll Save

Insurance companies offer their discounts based on different scales. Some offer a 2% discount for every year you don’t have an accident, with a maximum discount of 20%. Others judge over three or five-year driving periods, offering a certain discount for three years of safe driving and a higher discount for five years. Generally, discounts max out at 20%.

How to Qualify for a Good Driver Discount

Qualifying for a good driver discount can get complicated. In short: qualifications vary by company. Insurance companies look at your driving record, naturally, but they may also look at other factors like your job, where you live, credit history, age, marital status, gender, among many other factors.

When to Request a Discount

If you’ve had your license for at least three years, have no more than one violation point, have not been involved in any accident in the past seven years, and have not been convicted of a DUI or DWI, you may qualify for a good driver discount. Check with your insurance company about their process for being considered.

If You Don’t Qualify

Even if you don’t qualify for a good driver discount, being a good driver still pays off. All of the same factors used to award good driver discounts go into calculating your monthly premium. The better you drive, the lower your costs, even without the discount. And if you drive responsibly, eventually you will likely qualify for the discount.

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What Is A Car Insurance Deductible?

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 19:00:43 +0000

Simply put, a car insurance deductible is the amount you must pay out-of-pocket on a claim. From there, however, things get murky. You will find that you can get policies with high, low, or even no deductibles. These options directly affect the ongoing cost of the car insurance itself, and therefore must given serious consideration.

Low- or no-deductible car insurance policies:

Low- and no-deductible policies don’t require the insured to pay much out of their own pocket. The downside to these is that the premiums on the policy are higher than if the insured chooses a higher deductible. Despite this, many people choose these policies. This is because a low car insurance deductible means that, in case of an accident or other claim, the insured won’t have to suddenly shell out a lot of money.

High-deductible car insurance policies:

High-deductible policies mean, as may be expected, that the insured has to pay a large amount of money out of their own pocket before the insurance starts to cover costs. The good side is that the premiums, or the insurance’s base cost, is usually lower. This makes high-deductible policies popular with young people or others who don’t have a lot of money to invest in insurance. There is a risk of being hit with big bills if an accident happens, but since many people drive without ever getting into a wreck or having another claim, it is seen as an acceptable risk in light of the ongoing cost savings of having a high car insurance deductible.

Conclusion:

The car insurance deductible directly affects the ongoing cost of a policy, but the risks and benefits associated with the options must be carefully thought out. The best option for you is the one that takes both your risks and potential cost savings into consideration.

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