1. SHOP AROUND FOR THE BEST RATES
Prices change from time to time. Just because you were given a competitive auto insurance rate three years ago doesn’t mean it is still competitive. Insurance companies change rates often and some classes of drivers experience rate hikes while others experience rate decreases. It pays to shop around for auto insurance rates every few years, but make sure not to shop by price alone. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is switching auto insurance companies for price alone and find out after a claim, the real reason why the rates were so low is because of coverage exclusions and limitations. 2. COMPARE INSURANCE RATES BEFORE YOU BUY A NEW CAR Before you buy a new or used car, check insurance rates. Insurance companies base insurance rates on type of car, price of car, cost to repair, safety record, and likelihood of theft. Cars with good safety records, lower cost to repair, standard safety features like airbags and anti-lock brakes, and standard anti-theft features have an overall lower insurance cost. 3. RAISE YOUR DEDUCTIBLES The deductible is what you pay before the insurance company pays. By having higher deductibles you can lower your auto insurance rates from 10% to 40%. By raising your deductible from $200 to $1000 you can lower your comprehensive and collision rates up to 40%. 4. REDUCE COVERAGE ON CARS OLDER THAN 10 YEARS Remove comprehensive and collision coverage on cars older than 10 years. Insuring older cars may not be worth the insurance premiums it cost. If your car is worth less than the cost of comprehensive and collision insurance, you are wasting your money. Check the value of your car online at www.kbb.com 5. BUY AUTO INSURANCE AND HOME INSURANCE FROM THE SAME COMPANY If you combine both your auto and home insurance with the same company you can save a bundle. Clients with multiple policies are more profitable for insurance companies than clients with only auto insurance. Insurance companies give deep discounts on both policies to attract these profitable multi-line clients. Typically auto insurance discounts are up to 30% and home insurance discounts up to 40%. Insurance companies will also add additional discounts for life insurance and renters insurance. 6. KEEP A GOOD CREDIT HISTORY Credit history has a big impact on auto and home insurance rates. Most insurance companies use credit history as a rating factor in determining insurance costs. Studies have proven that people that maintain a good credit history have fewer and less severe claims. Based on these studies, insurance companies use credit as an auto insurance rating factor. A good credit history can result in substantial savings in insurance costs. To protect your credit always pay bills on time, keep credit balances as low as possible, check your credit for free on a regular basis at www.annualcreditreport.com , and use credit repair to correct any errors. If your credit needs repairing, check out www.lexingtonlaw.com 7. USE LOW MILEAGE AND SAFE DRIVER DISCOUNTS Most companies give discounts based on driving habits. In order to qualify for these safe driver discounts, insurance companies will track and record your driving habits for a period of time. Based on this data, auto insurance discounts can range from 5% to 40% off of the standard rates. 8. GROUP INSURANCE DISCOUNTS Some insurance companies offer group insurance discounts for employees of companies, members of employer groups, fraternities, credit unions, labor unions, alumni associations, sports associations and other groups. 9. SEEK OUT OTHER DISCOUNTS Insurance companies offer discounts to clients who have a clean driving record with no tickets or accidents in the past three years, good student discounts for youthful drivers who maintain a B average in school, occasional drivers who are students away at college, multiple car discounts if you insure more than one car in the same household, and life insurance multi-line policy discounts 10. REVIEW CURRENT POLICY COVERAGES ANNUALLY Things change over time, make sure you and your agent regularly review your policy and make sure it meets your current needs. An annual policy review is the best way to make sure you are receiving all of the discounts you are eligible for and to make sure you are properly covered.
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Rod Hanks
Rod has owned The Hanks Group, a Leading Nationwide Insurance agency since 1999. We help families and business owners protect their most valuable assets with a broad range of insurance products. We believe that finding the right auto, home, life and commercial insurance for our clients Starting out with 1 employee in a small office in East Dallas, The Hanks Group has grown to be one of the largest Nationwide Insurance Agencies in the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex, with offices in Dallas and Fort Worth. Rod is always available to answer any questions about insurance or business at 214-275-8372 Archives
October 2018
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