Quick Guide to Finding a Joliet Car Insurance Agent

When trying to find a good Joliet agent, it’s recommended you start your search by getting online comparison quotes rather than looking in the yellowpages. You need a good professional insurance agent, and also decent rates too.

Since consumers have many companies to choose from, it can be challenging to locate the lowest cost insurer.

Quote online, buy local

Professional agents can point out coverage gaps and give you someone to call. The biggest benefit of price shopping on the web is the fact that you can find lower rates and still have an agent to talk to.

To find an agent, once you fill out this short form, the quote information gets sent to agents in your area who will battle for your business. You won’t need to leave your computer as quotes are delivered to the email address you provide. How cool is that?!

Selecting an auto insurance agent should depend on more than just a low price. Any agent should have no problem answering these questions:

• What will you get paid if your car is a total loss? How is that amount determined?
• If you have an accident, are you able to get your vehicle repaired at the shop of your choice?
• What insurance company do they write the most business with?
• Do they carry Errors and Omissions coverage?
• Do they feel the quoted coverages are adequate?

The difference between Joliet car insurance agents

If you’re trying to find local Joliet agents, there are a couple of different agency structures to choose from. Joliet agents can either be independent or captive. Both properly insure your vehicles, but it’s worth learning how they differ since it can impact your selection of an agent.

Captive Agents

Captive insurance agents can only write with one company like American Family, Liberty Mutual and AAA. These agents are unable to shop your coverage around so keep that in mind. Captive agents are very knowledgeable on the products they sell which helps them sell insurance even at higher premiums.

Listed below is a short list of captive agencies in Joliet who may provide you with price quote information.

State Farm Insurance – 600 Theodore St # 3 – Joliet, IL 60435 – (815) 727-9512
Allstate Insurance – 1106 W Jefferson St – Joliet, IL 60435 – (815) 725-3600
American Family Insurance – 1616 W Jefferson St # Ll – Joliet, IL 60435 – (815) 744-4141
Farmers Insurance Group – 401 Timberline Dr – Joliet, IL 60431 – (815) 744-1890

Independent Agents

Independent agencies are not employed by any specific company so they can insure your vehicles with multiple insurance companies enabling the ability to shop coverage around. If you are not satisfied with one company, the agent simply finds a different carrier and that require little work on your part.

When comparison shopping, it’s recommended you contact multiple independent agents to ensure the widest selection of prices.

Below are independent insurance agents in Joliet that can give you comparison quotes.

Dyer Agency – 656 Glenwood Ave – Joliet, IL 60435 – (815) 723-2559
Accurate Auto Insurance – 215 S Larkin Ave – Joliet, IL 60436 – (815) 744-0077
Chizmark and Larson Agency – 615 Kungs Way – Joliet, IL 60435 – (815) 725-6527
United American Insurance Co – 2317 W Jefferson St # 204 – Joliet, IL 60435 – (815) 725-8409
Dow Moore Matsock Agency – 1429 Plainfield Rd – Joliet, IL 60435 – (815) 729-9800

For a complete listing of licensed insurance agents in Joliet, please click here.

After receiving satisfactory answers to any questions you have and locked in a price quote, chances are good that you have found an auto insurance agent that is a good match to provide auto insurance coverage.

Can you save money by buying online?

Auto insurance agents are perfect for certain consumers, but you can also find affordable Illinois auto insurance direct over the internet. Some specific companies who sell through the agent channel also permit you to get a quote and buy online, so that should be considered.

If you’re concerned about not getting proper coverage when shopping online, this really isn’t an issue. Auto insurance companies that require consumers to choose their own coverages all provide contact methods for answering any questions you have.

Will auto insurance cost less online? That is a tough question to answer because there are a lot of things that determine your policy premium. Some people think that buying car insurance online saves the commission normally paid to an agent. But in reality, there are high advertising and marketing costs so the rates may be similar to buying from an agent.

The only way to know if prices are better online or from an agent is to compare price quotes from both. Lots of times people will get different prices from the same insurance company from their agents and their website. But you won’t know where the best price is unless you get rate quotes each way.

For more information

Even more information can be read at the Illinois Department of Insurance website. Illinois drivers can find a variety of consumer forms, learn about insurance regulations, view agent and company licensing information, and find disaster information.

Other useful links include Wikipedia and this resource to find Joliet, IL insurance agents.

Affordable insurance is out there

As you restructure your insurance plan, it’s not a good idea to reduce needed coverages to save money. In many instances, an insured dropped physical damage coverage only to regret at claim time that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. Your focus should be to get the best coverage possible at a price you can afford while still protecting your assets.

Insureds switch companies for a number of reasons such as unfair underwriting practices, delays in responding to claim requests, not issuing a premium refund and even lack of trust in their agent. No matter why you want to switch, switching companies can be pretty painless.