Top 7 Ways You Can Buy Auto Insurance for Less in Bristol

Having to pay for overpriced auto insurance can empty your bank account and make it impossible to make ends meet. Doing a price comparison is free, only takes a few minutes, and is a good way to reduce premiums and put more money in your pocket.

Having so many auto insurance companies to choose from, it can be hard to pick the right insurance company.

Shopping for the cheapest auto insurance in Bristol is not that difficult. In a nutshell, anyone who is required by state law to have auto insurance should be able to find better rates. But Virginia vehicle owners benefit from understanding how companies market on the web and take advantage of how the system works.

How to Buy Bristol Auto Insurance Online

Effectively comparing auto insurance prices can be exhausting if you don’t know the best way to get rate quotes. You can spend your afternoon talking to insurance agencies in Bristol, or you can utilize the internet to get the quickest rates.

Most of the larger companies belong to a marketplace where insurance shoppers complete one form, and every company can provide price quotes determined by their information. This system prevents you from having to do quote requests for each company you want a rate for. To enter your information into the quoting system, click here to start a free quote.

The one downside to doing it this way is you cannot specify the insurers you will receive quotes from. So if you want to choose individual companies to compare, we have assembled a list of the cheapest auto insurance companies in Virginia. Click here to view list.

Whichever method you choose, be sure to compare identical information for every company. If your comparisons have mixed coverages then you won’t be able to determine which rate is truly the best in Bristol. Quoting even small variations in insurance coverages could mean much higher rates. And when quoting auto insurance, remember that more quotes helps locate the best price.

Cut your premium with these seven discounts

The price of auto insurance can be rather high, but companies offer discounts that can drop the cost substantially. Some trigger automatically when you purchase, but less common discounts must be asked for before you will receive the discount.

• Multiple Cars – Having all your vehicles on the same auto insurance policy could earn a price break for each car.
• Senior Citizens – If you qualify as a senior citizen, you can possibly qualify for a small decrease in premiums.
• Save with a New Car – Buying coverage on a new vehicle can cost up to 25% less compared to insuring an older model.
• Good Students Pay Less – This discount can earn a discount of 20% or more. The good student discount can last up until you turn 25.
• Seat Belt Usage – Requiring all passengers to wear their seat belts could cut 10% or more off your medical payments premium.
• Homeowners Discount – Being a homeowner may earn you a small savings because of the fact that having a home demonstrates responsibility.
• Accident Forgiveness – Certain companies will forgive one accident before your rates go up as long as you don’t have any claims for a certain period of time.

As a disclaimer on discounts, most discounts do not apply to the entire policy premium. Most only cut the cost of specific coverages such as liability, collision or medical payments. Just because it seems like all the discounts add up to a free policy, auto insurance companies aren’t that generous. Any amount of discount will help reduce the cost of coverage.

For a list of providers with the best auto insurance discounts in Virginia, click here.

Coverages available on your auto insurance policy

Having a good grasp of your auto insurance policy can help you determine appropriate coverage for your vehicles. The coverage terms in a policy can be confusing and coverage can change by endorsement. These are typical coverage types offered by auto insurance companies.

Coverage for medical expenses

Coverage for medical payments and/or PIP reimburse you for bills such as nursing services, surgery and pain medications. They can be used to fill the gap from your health insurance plan or if you lack health insurance entirely. It covers both the driver and occupants as well as getting struck while a pedestrian. Personal injury protection coverage is only offered in select states and may carry a deductible

Liability insurance

This protects you from damage or injury you incur to other’s property or people by causing an accident. Split limit liability has three limits of coverage: bodily injury per person, bodily injury per accident and property damage. You might see liability limits of 50/100/50 which stand for a limit of $50,000 per injured person, $100,000 for the entire accident, and a total limit of $50,000 for damage to vehicles and property. Another option is one limit called combined single limit (CSL) that pays claims from the same limit without having the split limit caps.

Liability insurance covers claims like emergency aid, repair bills for other people’s vehicles, funeral expenses and medical expenses. How much coverage you buy is a decision to put some thought into, but buy as large an amount as possible. Virginia state law requires minimum liability limits of 25,000/50,000/20,000 but it’s recommended drivers buy better liability coverage.

Collision insurance

Collision coverage covers damage to your vehicle caused by collision with an object or car. You have to pay a deductible and then insurance will cover the remainder.

Collision coverage pays for things like backing into a parked car, driving through your garage door and crashing into a ditch. Collision is rather expensive coverage, so consider dropping it from vehicles that are 8 years or older. Another option is to raise the deductible to bring the cost down.

Coverage for uninsured or underinsured drivers

This provides protection when the “other guys” do not carry enough liability coverage. Covered losses include hospital bills for your injuries as well as damage to your vehicle.

Because many people carry very low liability coverage limits (25/50/20 in Virginia), their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage should not be overlooked. Frequently these limits are set the same as your liablity limits.

Comprehensive auto insurance

This coverage pays to fix your vehicle from damage from a wide range of events other than collision. You first have to pay a deductible then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.

Comprehensive coverage protects against things such as falling objects, damage from a tornado or hurricane, vandalism, hitting a bird and damage from getting keyed. The maximum payout a auto insurance company will pay at claim time is the market value of your vehicle, so if your deductible is as high as the vehicle’s value it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.

Virginia auto insurance information

More information can be found on the website for the Virginia Bureau of Insurance found here. Consumers can view a list of available companies, learn about specific coverages, file complaints about a company, and find out which companies have the most complaints.

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