Are you a victim of overpriced car insurance? Trust us when we tell you you are not the only one feeling buyer’s remorse.
Big-name insurance companies like Allstate, Progressive and GEICO all promote huge savings with ad campaigns and it is difficult to ignore the flashy ads and do the work needed to find the best deal.
You need to compare rates quite often due to the fact that insurance rates are variable and change quite frequently. If you had the lowest rates on 850 coverage a year ago you may be paying too much now. Forget anything you know (or think you know) about car insurance because you’re about to learn the tricks you need to know to properly buy coverages while reducing your premium.
Car Insurance Comparison Rates
There are several ways to shop for car insurance, but one way is easier and takes less work. You can waste hours talking to agents in your area, or you could use online quoting to get the quickest rates.
Most of the best insurance companies enroll in a system that allows shoppers to only type in their quote data once, and at least one company provides a quote based on the submitted data. This system prevents you from having to do repetitive form submissions for every car insurance company.
To enter your information into the quoting system, click to open in new window.
The one disadvantage to pricing coverage this way is you cannot specify the companies to receive prices from. If you wish to select specific providers to receive pricing from, we have a listing of car insurance companies in your area. Click here for list of insurance companies.
It’s up to you how you get prices quotes, just ensure you are comparing the exact same information for every quote you compare. If each company quotes higher or lower deductibles it’s impossible to determine the best price for your Volvo 850. Just a small difference in coverage limits can mean a large discrepancy in price. Keep in mind that having more price comparisons will improve the odds of getting the best rates.
These discounts can lower your rates
Companies offering auto insurance don’t necessarily list all their discounts very well, so the following is a list of both well-publicized and the more hidden car insurance savings.
- Multiple Cars – Having all your vehicles on one policy can get a discount on all vehicles.
- Safety Course Discount – Taking part in a course in driver safety can save you 5% or more depending on where you live.
- Pay Upfront and Save – If you pay your bill all at once instead of paying each month you could save 5% or more.
- Good Student – A discount for being a good student can get you a discount of up to 25%. This discount can apply until age 25.
- Seat Belts Save – Buckling up and requiring all passengers to use a seat belt could save 15% off your medical payments premium.
It’s important to understand that most of the big mark downs will not be given to all coverage premiums. The majority will only reduce individual premiums such as physical damage coverage or medical payments. Just because you may think you could get a free car insurance policy, you won’t be that lucky.
Elements that influence Volvo 850 rates
It’s important that you understand the rating factors that play a part in calculating your car insurance rates. Having a good understanding of what determines base rates helps enable you to make changes that can help you get much lower annual insurance costs.
Shown below are some of the factors that factor into your rates.
- You might want pay the small claims yourself – Car insurance companies provide lower rates to policyholders who do not rely on their insurance for small claims. If you tend to file frequent claims, you can definitely plan on either a policy non-renewal or much higher rates. Car insurance is designed for the bigger claims that can’t be paid out-of-pocket.
- What type of vehicle do you drive? – The performance of the vehicle you are insuring makes a substantial difference in determining your rates. Since the Volvo 850 falls in the sedan class, insurance will be about the same than the average rate where you live. Low performance passenger vehicles generally receive the lowest base rates, but the final cost of insurance is determined by many other factors.
- Where you live can impact rates – Living in a small town can save you money when insuring your vehicles. Less people living in that area means reduced accidents and a lower car theft rate. Urban drivers regularly have traffic congestion and longer commutes to work. Higher commute times means higher likelihood of an accident.
- Your job and insurance rates – Did you know your occupation can influence how much you pay for car insurance? Careers like real estate brokers, social workers and dentists are shown to have the highest average rates because of stressful work requirements and long work days. Other occupations such as scientists, historians and performers pay the least on 850 coverage.
- Safer cars cost less to insure – Cars with high safety ratings are cheaper to insure. Safe vehicles have better occupant injury protection and fewer injuries means lower claim amounts and thus lower rates. If your Volvo 850 scored better than an “acceptable” rating on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety website or four stars on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website you are probably receiving a discount.
Do car insurance companies bend the truth?
Companies like State Farm, GEICO and Progressive constantly bombard you with television and radio advertisements. All the ads make an identical promise of big savings if you switch your policy. How can each company make almost identical claims?
Insurance companies can use profiling for the right customer they prefer to insure. For example, a driver they prefer might be over the age of 40, is a homeowner, and has great credit. Any driver that hits that “sweet spot” will qualify for the lowest rates and as a result will probably save when switching.
Potential customers who don’t meet the requirements will be charged higher rates which leads to business going elsewhere. The ads state “people who switch” not “everybody who quotes” save that kind of money. This is how insurance companies can confidently advertise the way they do. That is why drivers must get quotes from several different companies. Because you never know the company that will fit your personal profile best.
Do the work, save more money
You just learned some good ideas how to reduce Volvo 850 insurance prices online. The most important thing to understand is the more rate comparisons you have, the better your chances of lowering your rates. Drivers may discover the most savings is with an unexpected company. Smaller companies may cover specific market segments cheaper than their larger competitors like Progressive and GEICO.
As you shop your coverage around, never reduce coverage to reduce premium. Too many times, someone sacrificed full coverage and discovered at claim time that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. Your focus should be to buy the best coverage you can find at an affordable rate.
