It’s astonishing, but about 70% of customers have remained with the same car insurance company for well over three years, and almost half have never shopped around. Baltimore consumers can save almost 55% each year by just comparing quotes, but most just don’t grasp the big savings they would realize if they replace their high priced policy.
The most effective way to find the cheapest price for car insurance rates is to compare prices annually from different companies who provide auto insurance in Baltimore. Rates can be compared by following these steps.
First, get an understanding of what is in your policy and the things you can change to keep rates in check. Many things that drive up the price such as traffic tickets, fender benders, and your credit history can be controlled by being financially responsible and driving safely. Later in this article we will cover more details to lower rates and find more discounts that you may not know about.
Second, compare prices from independent agents, exclusive agents, and direct companies. Direct and exclusive agents can only quote rates from one company like GEICO or Farmers Insurance, while independent agents can provide rate quotes for a wide range of insurance providers. View insurance agents
Third, compare the quotes to your current policy premium and determine if cheaper G8 coverage is available in Baltimore. If you find better rates and buy the policy, make sure there is no lapse between the expiration of your current policy and the new one.
Fourth, provide written notification to your current company of your intention to cancel your current policy. Submit payment and a completed application to your new carrier. Be sure to safely store the certificate of insurance in an easily accessible location.
A good tip to remember is to try to compare the same liability limits and deductibles on every price quote and and to look at as many carriers as you can. This guarantees an accurate price comparison and plenty of rates choose from.
These discounts can lower your car insurance quotes
Some insurers don’t necessarily list every available discount in a way that’s easy to find, so the list below contains both well-publicized and the more hidden credits that may apply to you. If you don’t get every credit you qualify for, you are just wasting money.
- Distant Student – Kids who are enrolled in a college that is more than 100 miles from Baltimore and do not take a car to college could qualify for this discount.
- Discounts for Government Workers – Simply working for the federal government could qualify for a slight premium decrease with select insurance companies.
- Discount for New Cars – Insuring a vehicle that is new can save up to 30% because newer vehicles have to meet stringent safety requirements.
- Paperwork-free – A handful of car insurance companies will give you a small discount shop Baltimore auto insurance online.
- Accident-Free Discounts – Claim-free drivers are rewarded with significantly better rates on Baltimore auto insurance quote when compared with drivers who are more careless.
- No Charge for an Accident – This isn’t a discount exactly, but certain companies will forgive one accident without raising rates if you are claim-free prior to being involved in the accident.
You can save money using discounts, but most discount credits are not given to the whole policy. Some only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like liability, collision or medical payments. So when it seems like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, it just doesn’t work that way.
Popular car insurance companies and their offered discounts include:
- Mercury Insurance discounts include type of vehicle, good driver, accident-free, low natural disaster claims, anti-theft, age of vehicle, and location of vehicle.
- Farmers Insurance offers discounts including distant student, good student, youthful driver, multi-car, electronic funds transfer, early shopping, and business and professional.
- Farm Bureau may have discounts that include safe driver, renewal discount, 55 and retired, good student, multi-vehicle, multi-policy, and youthful driver.
- State Farm policyholders can earn discounts including student away at school, anti-theft, defensive driving training, safe vehicle, and Steer Clear safe driver discount.
- Allstate offers discounts for teenSMART discount, multi-policy, good student, resident student, and anti-lock brakes.
- GEICO has discounts for seat belt use, emergency military deployment, daytime running lights, anti-lock brakes, and five-year accident-free.
If you need lower rates, check with every prospective company what discounts are available to you. A few discounts may not apply in Baltimore. To see a list of providers that offer the discounts shown above in Baltimore, follow this link.
It’s important to know that comparing a wide range of rates will enable you to find a better price.
The companies shown below offer price comparisons in Maryland. If multiple companies are listed, it’s highly recommended you visit several of them in order to find the lowest rates.
What Determines Pontiac G8 Insurance Rates?
Lots of things are used in the calculation when you get a price on insurance. Some of the criteria are obvious such as your driving history, but some are less apparent such as your marital status or your vehicle rating. An important part of buying insurance is that you know the different types of things that go into determining the level of your policy premiums. When you know what positively or negatively controls the rates you pay, this empowers consumers to make smart changes that will entitle you to lower rates.
The items below are some of the most rate-impacting factors utilized by car insurance companies to help set rates.
- Never have policy lapses – Going without insurance is a guaranteed way to increase your rates. Not only will rates go up, not being able to provide proof of insurance could result in fines or a revoked license.
- Vocation stress can affect premiums – Did you know that where you work can have an impact on rates? Occupations like lawyers, social workers, and emergency personnel usually pay higher rates than the rest of us attributed to intense work requirements and long work days. Conversely, occupations like farmers, historians and the unemployed receive lower rates.
- Physical damage deductibles – Comprehensive and collision coverage deductibles represent how much money you are willing to pay out-of-pocket before a claim is paid by your company. Physical damage coverage, also known as collision and other-than-collision, is used to repair damage to your car. Some examples of claims that would be covered could be collision with another vehicle, hail damage, and damage caused by road hazards. The more of the claim you are required to pay out-of-pocket, the less money you will pay for insurance.
- Bundle policies with the same company – Most major companies give a discount to buyers who buy several policies from them. It’s known as a multi-policy discount. Discounts can be ten or even up to twenty percent in some cases. If you currently are using one company, you may still want to compare other Baltimore G8 insurance rates to make sure you are getting the best deal. You may still be able to save money by buying from different companies
- Long commutes cost more – The more miles you rack up on your Pontiac in a year the more you will pay for insurance. The majority of insurers apply a rate based on how the vehicle is used. Autos that are left in the garage can be on a lower rate level than vehicles that are driven to work every day. Ask your agent if your vehicle rating properly reflects annual mileage, because it can save money. A policy that improperly rates your G8 can result in significantly higher rates.
Compare rates but still have a local neighborhood Baltimore car insurance agent
Many people would rather go talk to an agent and that is recommended in a lot of cases The best thing about comparing insurance prices online is that you can obtain cheaper auto insurance rates and also buy local. Buying insurance from local insurance agencies is especially important in Baltimore.
To help locate an agent, after submitting this short form, the coverage information is submitted to local insurance agents in Baltimore that can give you free Baltimore auto insurance quotes for your business. You never need to visit any agencies since rate quotes are delivered directly to you. You can find the lowest rates AND a local agent. If you need to get a comparison quote from a specific car insurance provider, just navigate to their website and submit a quote form there.
The different types of auto insurance agents
If you want to use a local Baltimore insurance agent, it helps to know the two different agency structures from which to choose. Baltimore agents can be described as either exclusive agents or independent agents.
Independent Insurance Agents
Independent agencies often have affiliation with several companies and that is an advantage because they can write policies through lots of different companies enabling the ability to shop coverage around. If they find a lower price, your policy is moved internally which is easy for the insured. When comparing car insurance prices, we highly recommend that you include rate quotes from several independent insurance agents to maximize your price options.
Listed below is a partial list of independent insurance agencies in Baltimore that can give you competitive price quotes.
Lambert Insurance Inc
1826 Woodlawn Dr # 6 – Baltimore, MD 21207 – (410) 265-7850 – View Map
Kirby Insurance Agency, Inc.
14 W Saratoga St #100 – Baltimore, MD 21201 – (410) 837-2320 – View Map
Ugele Insurance
408 E 25th St – Baltimore, MD 21218 – (410) 366-6566 – View Map
Exclusive Insurance Agents
These agents generally can only insure with one company and some examples include State Farm, Allstate, or Farmers Insurance. Exclusive agents are unable to give you multiple price quotes so they are skilled at selling on more than just price. Exclusive agents are well schooled on their products and sales techniques which helps offset the inability to provide other markets.
Shown below are exclusive agents in Baltimore that are able to give price quotes.
Cyndi Kuhn – State Farm Insurance Agent
6100 Eastern Ave – Baltimore, MD 21224 – (410) 633-5000 – View Map
Mindy Andreychek – State Farm Insurance Agent
8502 Harford Rd Ste B – Baltimore, MD 21234 – (410) 668-7600 – View Map
John C Bugg III – State Farm Insurance Agent
6711 Belair Rd – Baltimore, MD 21206 – (410) 661-4949 – View Map
Deciding on an car insurance agent requires you to look at more than just a cheap quote. You should also get answers to these questions.
- Are they full-time agents?
- Is the coverage adequate for your vehicle?
- Are they primarily personal or commercial lines agents in Baltimore?
- Who are their largest clients?
- Are they involved in claim handling?
If you feel you receive good responses to any questions you have as well as a price you’re happy with, you may have found a car insurance agent that is reputable and can properly insure your vehicles.
Insurance just makes sense
Even though Baltimore G8 insurance rates can get expensive, maintaining insurance may be mandatory for several reasons.
- The majority of states have minimum mandated liability insurance limits which means state laws require a minimum amount of liability protection in order to drive the car. In Maryland these limits are 30/60/15 which means you must have $30,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $60,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $15,000 of property damage coverage.
- If your vehicle has a lienholder, almost every bank will make it mandatory that you carry insurance to guarantee loan repayment. If the policy lapses, the bank may buy a policy for your Pontiac at an extremely high rate and force you to reimburse them for it.
- Insurance protects your Pontiac and your assets. It also can pay for hospital and medical expenses for you, your passengers, and anyone else injured in an accident. Liability insurance, one of your policy coverages, will also pay to defend you if you are named as a defendant in an auto accident. If you receive damage to your vehicle caused by a storm or accident, comprehensive and collision coverage will pay to repair the damage.
The benefits of having insurance are without a doubt worth the cost, especially if you ever need it. According to a 2015 survey, the average American driver is wasting up to $825 a year so you should quote rates at least once a year to ensure rates are inline.
Keep this in mind when shopping around
Budget-conscious Pontiac G8 insurance is available both online as well as from insurance agents, and you should compare rates from both to have the best selection. Some insurance providers may not offer rate quotes online and most of the time these smaller companies sell through independent agencies.
You just learned a lot of information how to shop for Pontiac G8 insurance online. The key thing to remember is the more price quotes you have, the better likelihood of getting the cheapest Pontiac G8 rate quotes. Consumers could even find that the biggest savings come from a small mutual company. Smaller companies may often insure only within specific states and give better rates as compared to the big name companies such as State Farm or Progressive.
Additional car insurance information is located at the links below
- Higher speed limits cause more fatalities (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
- Who Has Affordable Baltimore Car Insurance Rates for 17 Year Olds? (FAQ)
- Who Has the Cheapest Auto Insurance Quotes for Retired Military in Baltimore? (FAQ)
- How Much is Auto Insurance for Handicapped Drivers in Baltimore? (FAQ)
- What Insurance is Cheapest for Used Cars in Baltimore? (FAQ)
- How Much are Baltimore Auto Insurance Rates for Drivers with Bad Credit? (FAQ)
- Eight Auto Insurance Myths (Insurance Information Institute)
- Collision Coverage (Liberty Mutual)
- Preventing Carjacking and Theft (Insurance Information Institute)