Monday, February 22, 2010

What Cars Have The Best Car Insurance Rates?

By Amy Nutt

When consumers shop for a car, they dont usually consider if the type of car they buy will affect their insurance rates. The type of car you buy actually plays a part in whether you pay a high or low premium. If you are looking to acquire a reasonably priced insurance policy with your new car, it is important to know what cars have the best rates.

The nonprofit public service organization, The Highway Loss Data Institute, (HLDI) is a group that assesses vehicles for the insurance industry to find out which cars are a high risk. By high risk, they mean cars that are most likely to be stolen, involved in an accident as the result of a collision, and have a high number of injury claims filed. When assessing the risk of theft, the organization will look at such as aspects as the number of doors a car has as well as the color of the car.

The HLDI has found that "four door cars have a 93% less chance of having a claim related to theft than 2-door cars of the same make and model." As well, a report by the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) found that "cars that have the least claims filed for theft include the Buick LeSabre, Volvo V70 Station Wagon, and the Mercury Grand Marquis."

According to HLDI, the lowest injury claims filed are large vehicles such as large cars, pickup trucks, and sport utility vehicles (SUVs). Many car retailers report that the following cars are the least expensive to insure:

- Chrysler PT Cruiser 4dr Wagon - Jeep Liberty Sport 4WD 4dr SUV - Saturn L300 1 4dr Sedan - Volvo S40 4dr Sedan - Saab 38600 Linear 2.3t 4dr SportWagon - Buick Century Special Edition 4dr Sedan - GMC Safari SLE AWD 3dr Minivan - Dodge Caravan SE 4dr Minivan - Saturn ION 1 4dr Sedan - Pontiac Sunfire 2dr Coupe

Vehicles that are among the least expensive for collision claims include:

- GMC Safari 4-wheel drive - GMC Yukon XL 1500 4-wheel drive - Ford Excursion 2-wheel drive - GMC 2500

Vehicle Models with some of the least expensive injury claims include:

- GMC Sierra 2500 2-wheel and 4 wheel drives - Chevrolet Silverado - GMC Yukon XL 1500 4-wheel - Chevy Tahoe 2-wheel

A few of the Top 2009 Safety Pick Cars as published by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety include:

- Large Cars: Acura RL, Audi A6, Cadillac CTS, Ford Taurus, Hyundai Genesis - 4-door models built after 11/08, Lincoln MKS, Mercury Sable, Toyota Avalon, Volvo S80 - Midsize Cars: Acura TL, Acura TSX, Audi A3, Audi A4, BMW 3 series 4-door models, Ford Fusion 2009-10 models with ESC (optional in 2009, standard in 2010) - Honda Accord 4-door models, Lincoln MKZ 2010 models, Subaru Legacy, Volkswagen CC - Small Cars: Honda Civic 4-door models (except Si) with optional ESC, Mitsubishi Lancer with optional ESC, Scion xB, - Subaru Impreza, Toyota Corolla with optional ESC, Volkswagen Rabbit 4-door models, Volkswagen Jetta, Volkswagen Passat

When determining insurance premiums, car insurance companies will look at a cars make, model, safety record, and rate of theft. Knowing these statistics will help you choose the best car with the best insurance rate.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

No More High Auto Insurance Rates


Risk is the name of the game when it comes to insurance. When you apply for a policy, the insurer, is evaluating whether you are a good or bad risk. The bigger risk there is of having to pay out money on your policy, the more they are going to charge you.

As much as you might dislike paying for auto insurance, you have the ability to pay less by understanding how the process works and how it can be manipulated. There are a few different strategies that can be used to do just this.

When we discuss risk, what are we really talking about? Fear. As in the fear an insurance company has that it will have to pay out on the policy you are buying. Fear is risk. The more risky a bet you are, the more nervous the insurer. This means the key is to lower the risk artificially.

The rule of KISS is a perfect one. KISS stands for Keep It Simple Stupid. This is the aim of our first step. With it, we are going to focus on something known as the deductible for the car insurance policy. Most come with three options - $250, $500 and $1,000.

If you want to cut your insurance premiums, try raising your deductible rate. An increase from $250 to $1,000 will save you a huge amount. Why? This change pretty much eliminates all the small claims you might make. That lowers the payout risk.

Another method for cutting your insurance premiums is to eliminate coverage you dont need. Your car insurance is actually a collection of coverages. Each has a cost so lowering even one can make a world of difference in your premium rates.

If your car needs to be repaired or replaced, you must have comprehensive coverage in your insurance. That being said, you only need as much as your car is worth. If you have a $5,000 car, you should not be paying for $50,000 in comprehensive coverage. Adjust it and your rates will plummet.

Do you have health insurance through your job? If so, why are you paying for medical coverage on your car insurance? Do you enjoy paying twice for the same thing?! You should not. Check to see if your policies overlap. They almost always do. By eliminating your auto insurance version, you can save big bucks.

Most people just pay what they are told to when it comes to their insurance. This is particularly true when it comes to car insurance. This is really a mistake. Know what is in the proposed policy and eliminate what you don't need. Doing so will save you money this year and ever year after that.

You are nobodies fool. The car insurance industry makes money by seeking out the unwary. Do not be one of these peope. There is no plausible reason to throw away money on insurance coverages you do not need, so don't do it.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

For Cheap Auto Insurance




It is good to know how long it takes for a claim to be processed and when you can expect to receive payment. You want to choose cheap auto insurance but you still want to have a good insurance policy. You should not get a cheap insurance policy if it is bad insurance no matter how inexpensive the cost.

Many insurance companies will offer discounts to help increase their market share. Many times discounts are available for those that have participated in a defensive driver-training program or if you have a good driving record. Additionally many times there are discounts if you have safety devices or anti theft devices in your vehicle. Almost all companies offer low mileage discounts.

If you have never had any car accidents or tickets then you may want to increase your deductible. The only time you pay a deductible is when an accident occurs. A higher deductible will dramatically decrease your insurance premium each year and the money you save can be quite substantial.

If you have an older car then you can drop the comprehensive or collision coverage on your policy to decrease your auto insurance. Before doing this you need to determine the value of your car and how the cost of collision and comprehensive coverage compares to the car value. If your car has a value of $2,000 and your deductible is $2,000 then having coverage will not actually help anything. If you are having difficulties finding cheap auto insurance then you should check online. There you should be able to find auto insurance that matches your budget and coverage.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Car Insurance on Women Advantage


Men, being bore aggressive and risky drivers often induce their can into heavier damage. Ladies are more prone to minor scratches, little bumps here and there and some don't ever involve other cars but rather immobile objects like walls and posts.

Ladies car insurance can be found from any normal car insurance companies or other companies which focus on women's policies. It is always good to compare between other companies and policies as their prices will most likely vary.

Even just browsing through the internet, you will be able to see a couple of sites which compare various insurances. This is good for us buyers because we can make very good and sound decisions.

Ladies, as statistics show often drive fewer miles as compared to men and are less likely to get into car accidents. This gives them the advantage when haggling for premiums, and in most cases will get discounts or freebies. Also with them driving fewer miles as compared to men, their cars are more often than not in better condition.

As with general neatness, ladies are more organized and clean as compared to men. Their cars tend to be cleaner and this results to a longer life for the car resulting in less repairs and cheaper bills.

Only a lady can apply for this type of insurance by the way.They get all sorts of discounts and bonuses just because they are regarded as such. Overall, insurance companies consider them as less risky to engage business with.

Women are less likely to file large monetary complaints against their insurance company since they do get into serious accidents less. In return, they are offered discounts by the insurance company.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Differentiating Business Usage and Personal Usage




When a business chooses to get a car insurance policy, they need to look at a few things. First, they need to address who will be on the policy. For example, in a personal policy, you have the responsibility of your family. Your family is a lot less liable than your business, even if you have a teenager. The best thing a business can do is retrieve the applicants driving record before they hire them on as an employee. By doing this, you are ensuring your insurance premiums to not skyrocket as well as the fact that you would even be able to add them on.

The way the business policy works is to allow the business owner to decide what is most plausible for their business practices. For instance, you would want to carry additional coverage if you were transporting expensive materials or delivering important items. In a personal policy, you will not have to worry about that. This is one distinction between personal vs. business car insurance.

The use for business and the use for personal can sometimes get confusing. This is why it is imperative that you use some kind of tracker. In more recent times, many people turn to a computerized log do keep track of miles and gas. This helps keep the lines between personal and business clear.

Some people feel their use for business reasons does not weigh in enough to matter. In these cases, a personal policy is appropriate and they need to work that out with the insurer. A personal policy is often times less expensive than a business policy; however, the personal car insurance policy will go up. This is because you have increased risk because it is being used more. In any case, it is extremely important that you inform them as soon as possible. Failure to do so will forfeit your chances at a claim if they find it was for business use.

As stated above, you rate will increase because your usage has increased. Understand the usage for business is anything that is defined out of your daily use. In other words, driving to a conference is business use. This even applies if they reimburse you for miles and gas. If you transport goods or deliver items, you are using your personal vehicle for business use and it has to be documented. Sometimes we do not view things as business use because we consistently do them without even thinking. . Always keep everything in check because there are certain ramifications for not complying.

Whichever road you find yourself on, do not be caught without appropriate coverage. There are many different ways you can get the best deal for your situation so it is advised to talk with a car insurance agent.