Easiest Way to Shop for Car Insurance in California
Reader’s Question:
Seems like my search for car insurance here in California is such a tiring experience. What is the easiest way for me to shop for my coverage?
Carlo
Fresno, CA
The easiest way to look for your car insurance coverage in California is by going online. This process can definitely save you money, which, of course, what everyone wants. If you go online, you can save a lot of your time if you get multiple California car insurance quotes from a comparison quotes Website. You can simply submit your information at one Website and they will forward your information to various car insurance providers.
Once those car insurance providers get your details, they would provide you California car insurance quotes. This would let you look at the quotes side by side and select a quote that you think is the best for your situation. When you have chosen a car insurance provider, they would get further information from you. During this time, they would provide you a fixed quote for your car insurance. If you strongly think that you already have the best quote for you, you have to grab it at once because it might not be available anymore after a certain period and you need to apply for car insurance once more if the time runs out.
By the use of the Internet, you will realize that it’s the easiest way to search for the most affordable car insurance that you are eligible for. By acquiring an online car insurance quote, you would be able to save time, money and do away with the hassle of spending hours on the phone just to get the best deal.
Types of California Vehicle Insurance
Reader’s Question:
I have a new car and within days I will be shopping for an insurance policy for it. What are the various types of California vehicle insurance that I can choose from?
Sam
Los Angeles, CA
You have a lot of car insurance choices to pick from. Your choice of California vehicle insurance depends on the needs of your vehicle or your budget. If you have enough money to spend, you might want to get a comprehensive vehicle insurance. This is the most expensive but the most complete type of vehicle insurance in California. Simply put, it protects your vehicle against all types of damages- from collisions, theft, or property damage. You will have no worries about the expenses your car will incur when it gets involved in an accident if you avail of comprehensive vehicle insurance.
Another type of California vehicle insurance you can avail is bodily injury liability. This will pay for damages and medical expenses of a person who gets injured as a result of an accident which was your fault. You can also get a property damage insurance which pays for the expenses of a property that was damaged due to an accident you are at fault.
Which Vehicle Makes Are More Expensive To Insure?
Your car insurance premium should be on your mind before, during, and after you have bought your vehicle from the car lot. Before hand, you need to check quotes, during you need to make sure you choose the right car, and after you need to get your coverage from the best car insurance company.
When you are buying a car, you will need to get comprehensive and collision car insurance coverage, and the latter of those two coverage options is more expensive the more likely your car is to be vandalized or stolen. Every insurance company bases its premiums on its own claims records, and you will only be able to get an idea of what each company will charge you by getting instant online car insurance quotes. However, if you look at this list of most stolen cars on a nationwide basis, then you’ll also have an idea of what kind of car you should avoid. Some of them are unexpected.
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Toyota Camry
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Honda Accord
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Honda Civic
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Chevrolet Full Size C/K Pickup
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Ford F-150
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Jeep Cherokee
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Oldsmobile Cutlass
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Dodge Caravan
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Ford Taurus
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Toyota Corolla
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Chrysler Neon
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Nissan Sentra
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Chevrolet Caprice
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Ford Explorer
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Chevrolet Cavalier
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Chevrolet Blazer
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Plymouth Voyager
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Pontiac Grand Am
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Ford Escort
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Acura Integra
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Dodge Ram
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Nissan Maxima
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Ford Mustang
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Buick LeSabre
Surprisingly, my ugly old Oldsmobile is on that list, which goes to show that car thieves will steal anything. However, even if you aren’t going shopping and already own one of these oft stolen cars, you can still get a good car insurance quote by adding some extra protection to your car. The National Insurance Crime Bureau says that the best way to go in terms of protecting your car and getting a good comprehensive car insurance quote is to put your anti theft measures on in layers, instead of just equipping one anti theft device.
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First layer: Don’t be dumb.
Some people think that it’s okay to leave the car on and the key in the ignition if they’re just running into the store for a minute and will be able to see the car the entire time, but this is not much protection. I read a story recently about a woman that did this, and someone stole the car, which had her one year old in it, and only brought it back because he didn’t want to be charged for kidnapping. First of all, no, don’t use your kids as anti theft devices. But also don’t leave your keys in the car. By the time you notice someone is in your car and run out into the parking lot, the car will be gone.
You also should make sure that, if possible, you park in well lit areas where there are a lot of people. It’s better to go to the store to do your shopping when it’s busy rather than in the middle of the night.
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Layer two: The deterrent.
Now, even if you are practicing common sense, there is still a chance that your car will get stolen. While deterrents usually won’t get you a good insurance rate, they are still a necessary component in your layered protection.
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Alarms and sirens.
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Wheel or brake lock or collar
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Tire lock
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Decal
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Layer three: Disenablers.
If they have no fear of the deterrents and manage to get into the vehicle itself, this type of anti theft device will make sure they are unable to hotwire your vehicle, or at least have a very difficult time of it. This type of device will get you a car insurance discount with most companies.
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Kill switch
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Disablers
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Smart keys
If you want to get the best car insurance discount with this type of anti theft device, then you need to get an active one. An active anti theft device is always active, whereas a passive one has to be activated by you every time that you leave the car.
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Layer four: Finding it.
If the thief is especially persistent and experienced, and somehow manages to bypass all of the other protections on your vehicle, then you will need a way to get your car back. Most stolen cars are not recovered, and police have to act very fast to get to the car before it is taken to the chop shop or across the border.
A tracking device can help you make sure that your car is recovered. It sends a signal to police so that they can find the find the car.
What Affects your Car Insurance Premium
Most people in the U.S. are pretty busy with their lives, between family, friends, work, and sometimes school, that they don’t have the time to shop around for a new car insurance policy every six months. For these people, it is not any less necessary for them to get the best insurance premium, so if they must, they can restrict their shopping around to when they have a life changing event instead of doing it by the calendar.
- If you move.
In most of the country, zip codes can have a big effect on your auto insurance premium, but with car insurance the effect is not as huge thanks to a California auto insurance law passed to make the location a small factor in the auto insurance premium. The reason it is a factor at all is mostly due to the amount of cars stolen in the area, and the law was passed because the policy had a negative affect mostly on low income and minority drivers.
However, even though your zip code does not say as much for your insurance score as before, it does affect it. When you move to a new zip code, you need to shop around for a better car insurance premium. In any case, you should at least see a change in the premium from your current company.
- If you buy a car.
Before you buy a car, you should check the insurance quotes to make sure it is the best choice in make and model. However, if you’re already certain of what car you want to get, you should still shop around to see what the quotes are from other companies in the area.
Car insurance companies base their rates for collision and comprehensive car insurance coverage on the number of claims they have gotten for those coverages in company, so one company might have seen more claims for your car than another. It’s best to go with the company that has had the best history with your new vehicle, and you can find out which one this is by getting several insurance quotes.
- If you get hitched.
They say that when you get married, two people become one, so naturally they will have a different insurance rate together than they would apart. Men profit the most out of this, seeing their rates decrease a good deal when they tie the knot, but so long as neither partner is very high risk, both will benefit from the union.
- If you get a new job.
Not only do many insurance companies give you discounts on your car insurance for the degree that you hold, but you can also get one based on what you do. For example, if you are a teacher or an engineer or a military service member, then you can get a discount on your insurance premium.
- If you stop working altogether.
When you retire, you are usually just between being in the cheapest car insurance demographic, and one of the most expensive. Being between fifty five and seventy, you are in a group of the safest drivers and will thus get the lowest rates. However, after seventy, your rates will go up. Many car insurance companies offer discounts to retired people, but you can get the best deal by buying your insurance policy through AARP. Whatever the case, it is best to shop around.
- If you’re just fed up.
You may have a liked a car insurance company for awhile, and then just got sick of paying the high rates and finding few available discounts. While there is a limited number of excuses not to shop around, there’s certainly no limit to reasons to do so.
Things To Consider Before Selecting a California Auto Insurance
There are several things that you need to be aware of when you are going into the battle for California auto insurance. Here is a list that will make you aware of what to expect and what to demand.
- Your name is .0001%.
California auto insurance providers, like car insurance companies everywhere, deal in statistics. When they see you, that is what they see, not a living breathing person. Therefore, no matter how many protestations you make that you are the most angelic and able driver in the world, if you are part of a demographic (or if your car is) that files a lot of claims, you are high risk as well. There are a number of things that can push you either way on the risk spectrum, from your job to your car, so it’s something you have to get used to.
- One is not like the other.
Not all California auto insurance companies are the same, which is why it is necessary to shop around.
- Price isn’t everything.
While getting a great insurance quote is ideal, it is also important for you to have a bunch of other things from your insurance company. First of all, you will need good rates, but also good service and an easy claims process. You will need to look at several aspects of a company before you decide that it’s the one.
- Rise above it.
In California auto insurance, you have to have a minimum coverage of $35,000 self insured, and $40,000 if you go through a insurance company. However, most of the time these tiny amounts will not help you when push comes to shove. Think about what you need and consider upping your liability insurance coverage.
- Get paid.
Every California auto insurance company offers discounts, but so many people just ignore them. According to several studies, Americans spend $500 billion more on car insurance than they would have spent if they had gotten discounts that they are eligible for.
- Tell the difference.
Many auto insurance providers will try to get off by repairing your car with aftermarket parts when you file a claim with them. While these are just as safe as other parts, if you don’t get the parts from the original manufacturer then your vehicle will lose value.
- Look out.
Your insurance company is there to serve you, but that doesn’t mean they will be all enthusiastic about it once the time comes for them to do so. It is your responsibility to fight for the money that you deserve.
- Think ahead.
Don’t wait until the last minute to read your auto insurance policy as you are waiting for the firemen to pry you out of your wrecked car. If you know what you need to do in the claims process ahead of time, then you don’t have to worry about it when you’re stressed and possibly injured from a collision.
The High Price of Auto Insurance in California
The more people that are born, the more traffic there is, and the more necessary having auto insurance in California among all of the crazy insured or uninsured drivers become necessary. In order to get a good price on your car insurance in CA, though, you must have a safe car. And car safety is determined most often through safety crash tests. It’s important to understand what these crash tests mean when determining which car to buy, and the test results from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety have been a large force behind the movement of manufacturers to making safer and safer cars.
Car crash tests determine how safe a car is, and those how low your auto insurance will be, by adhering to several different manners of testing.
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Crash test dummies.
Everybody has seen the commercial with the yellow mannequins, claiming that the car in question is the safest around. These are more than just over sized dolls, though. As a matter of fact, they are very high tech and can react in much the same way people do and sense things. The IIHS examines the mannequins to determine how safe a car is against injuries and death. A vehicle that is safe in this area will get you a good rate on personal injury protection auto insurance.
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Parts of the whole.
The IIHS also tests to see how the vehicle works in a crash, such as how its wheels skid and how its air bags deploy. These results can be used to determine how well a certain car protects against rollovers and other losses of control, as well as the bumper’s strength. Good results in this area can get you a discount for your collision auto insurance.
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Speed and angle.
IIHS doesn’t test just one kind of crash, but crashes the cars at different speeds as well as different angles. Side impact crashes are different from front impact crashes.
If My Friend Wrecks My Car Will My Insurance Policy Cover It?
Reader question:
What happens when a friend takes my car out and wrecks it? Will my car insurance claim be denied?
Max in Fresno California
Thank you for your question, Max.
It really depends on the circumstances of his borrowing the car and wrecking it. These days, car insurance policies are very extended. For example, even if their names are not on your California car insurance policy, other family members in your house will be covered if they drive your car. Another group of people that will be covered under your policy is pretty much anyone to whom you give permission to drive it, or has a decent reason to believe that you would have given them permission.
This can be kind of troubling sometimes. For example, when you didn’t give someone permission then at times it is very hard to prove that this is the case, especially if they are a good friend or relative. I would never let my brother drive my car, but if he did somehow and got into a car accident, then my car insurance company would consider it to have been consented to. This means that his at fault crash would affect my auto insurance premium in the future. If they find that I did not give my consent, or wouldn’t have if asked, then while the damages to the vehicle will be covered, the driver will not be and my future premiums will not be affected.
So, yes, if your friend takes your car out for a spin and gets into an accident, then your car insurance policy will cover their injuries as well as the damage to your car. You still need to be the one to file a claim, though, and pay your deductibles. All of the responsibility for that sort of thing depends on you, since they have not signed your policy and everything is required from you.
Now, if your friend wrecks your car, then your own insurance policy will be the first to kick in. However, if they have their own policy, then once your own insurance coverage runs out, it will kick in as well.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.
Information on Long Beach California Car Insurance Policy
Here’s some random information about your Long Beach California car insurance policy that I think you should keep in mind when getting your coverage.
- If it’s in your car, but not part of your car, then it isn’t covered.
My friend used to take his stereo around with him when he went driving because the radio from his car had gotten stolen. If, in turn, the car got stolen, then the stereo which had set him back a couple hundred dollars would be gone forever, unless he had renter’s or homeowner’s insurance. Your North Long Beach CA car insurance policy covers things that are part of your car, but nothing inside of them.
- When you get a broker, discuss the fee.
Some people decide to get their car insurance through a broker, because the broker can often help them in choosing a car insurance company so that they don’t have to waste a lot of time looking on their own. Whenever you do this, make sure to decide on a broker’s fee upfront, because the brokers do not deal with the state and therefore if you don’t have it in writing, you will be in trouble.
- If you’re okay, they’re okay.
If you have an insurance policy, then the members of your household are covered by it, even if they are not named on your policy and do not drive the car frequently. Also, if you give a friend or relative permission to drive your vehicle, then they are also covered by your car insurance policy. It is not always necessary for you to give permission, just for them to be sure that you would have consented to them driving the car if asked.
For the record, household is defined as relatives, not roommates. If someone is driving your car frequently, then they need to be on your policy or you could risk having your claim denied.
I Want Cheaper California Automobile Insurance!
I used to think of my California automobile insurance premium bill as an expendable sort of thing. That is to say, when I was broke and paying it would leave me with about twenty bucks left over, I chose not to pay it. A lot of people think this way, especially people who have never gotten into a car accident or been pulled over by a police officer. This is why I felt that way as well, but as you can see, two no insurance tickets later, it didn’t do me any good. However, there’s more bad to it than just the tickets.
I’m lucky, because after I had let my insurance lapse a few times, my car insurance company still let me renew my policy and didn’t charge me anymore. However, most insurance companies aren’t like this, and missing a payment will not only end you with a canceled policy, but you might also find that in the future car insurance companies are somewhat reluctant to take you on as a policy holder, and if they do they might charge you more. The reason for this is because they find that people who let their insurance lapse are not only unreliable customers, but have a higher rate of claim filings.
California automobile insurance law will say when your car insurance policy can and cannot be dropped. Most of the time, companies only have strict reasons for why they may cancel or choose not to renew your policy. In some cases, if you don’t have the payment in by the date it’s due, your policy will be canceled, and sticking it in the mailbox on that date doesn’t count. Usually, though, you will be able to have a grace period of about fifteen days after you fail to make a payment during which you can continue your policy by making the payment.
Should You Lie To Your California Car Insurance Agent For a Better Rate?
Reader question:
Is it okay to lie about certain things in order to get a good auto insurance quote in California?
Mary
Thank you for your question, Mary.
Like they say, if you tell a white lie, it will turn into another white lie, and before you know it down the line, you will have an entire system of lies that you will need to control and remember. It’s never an idea to lie, especially when money is involved. While it is true that many people get away with it, many more get caught, and when you get caught out telling a lie it often ends up costing you more than you saved.
- Represent, don’t misrepresent.
Normally, car insurance companies have sixty days after they have given you your CA auto insurance quote and you have bought a policy in which they will be able to cancel your policy without any problems. This period gives them to research your insurance background, look at your CLUE report, credit history, and so on so that they can make sure that you are someone they want to insure.
However, if you misrepresent your information, then you can have your policy canceled anytime. For example, if you lie about a previous insurance cancellation, then if your car insurance company that had canceled you does not report it right away, your new car insurance company might not find out about this cancellation during the sixty days that they during which they are looking for your information. After the initial sixty days, though, car insurance companies will usually look at your information again after they have given you your six month CA auto insurance quote, so if they find it then you might not have your policy renewed because of the bad information.
At times, lying to your car insurance company can get you in even more trouble. For example, while members of your household are covered on your policy, if your teenager is driving your car regulalry and you hadn’t added him to the policy to get a higher CA auto insurance quote, then if he gets into a car accident you might have your claim denied.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.
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