Best Ways to Save on San Diego, CA Auto Insurance

If you are new to online price comparisons, you can easily be baffled due to the large number of online companies competing for your business.

It’s shocking but nearly 70% of customers have been with the same company for four years or more, and practically 40% of insurance customers have never compared rate quotes at all. The average driver in San Diego could cut their rates by almost $469 a year just by comparing rates, but they don’t understand how simple it is to compare rates online.

It’s important to do price comparisons quite often because prices change regularly. Even if you think you had the lowest rates on insurance six months ago a different company probably has better rate quotes today. You can find a lot of misleading information regarding insurance on the internet, but I’m going to show you some of the best techniques to lower your insurance premiums.

The majority of larger companies provide coverage price quotes directly from their websites. Comparing prices online is fairly straightforward as you just type in your coverage information into a form. Once entered, their rating system gets reports for credit and driving violations and returns a price quote.

This helps simplify price comparisons, and it is important to perform this step if you are searching for a lower rate.

To save time and find out how much you’re overpaying now, compare rate quotes from the providers shown below. If you currently have coverage, we recommend you enter coverages and limits just like they are on your policy. This ensures you are getting an apples-to-apples comparison based on similar coverages.

The companies shown below are our best choices to provide comparison quotes in California. If the list has multiple companies, we recommend you visit two to three different companies to get the most affordable price.

Data rating is based on single female driver age 30, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $250 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, multi-vehicle, claim-free, homeowner, and multi-policy. Estimates do not factor in specific location which can alter rates greatly.

Liability-only rates compared to full coverage

The example below shows the comparison of Kia Optima insurance rates with full physical damage coverage compared to only buying liability only. The rate quotes are based on a clean driving record, no at-fault accidents, $250 deductibles, married female driver, and no policy discounts are applied.

Kia Optima rates are for example purposes only. To get rates for your specific vehicle, click here.

When to stop paying for full coverage

There is no set guideline to delete physical damage coverage on your policy, but there is a general guideline you can use. If the annual cost of coverage is 10% or more of the vehicle’s replacement cost less your deductible, then you might want to think about dropping full coverage.

For example, let’s say your Kia Optima settlement value is $6,000 and you have $1,000 deductibles. If your vehicle is destroyed, the most you would get paid by your company is $5,000 after you pay the deductible. If premiums are more than $500 a year for full coverage, then you might want to consider buying only liability coverage.

There are some scenarios where dropping physical damage coverage is not advised. If you have an outstanding loan on your vehicle, you have to maintain full coverage in order to keep the loan. Also, if your finances do not allow you to purchase a different vehicle if your current one is totaled, you should maintain full coverage.

Rate comparison of male drivers versus female drivers

The example below shows the comparison of car insurance costs for male and female drivers in San Diego. The premium estimates are based on no claims or driving violations, comprehensive and collision coverage, $250 deductibles, drivers are single, and no other discounts are factored in on a Ford Escape Limited.

Ford Escape rates are for example purposes only. To get rate quotes for your specific vehicle, click here.

Why insurance is not optional

Despite the potentially high cost of insurance, paying for insurance serves several important purposes.

• Just about all states have mandatory insurance requirements which means it is punishable by state law to not carry specific limits of liability protection if you don’t want to risk a ticket. In California these limits are 15/30/5 which means you must have $15,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $30,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $5,000 of property damage coverage.
• If your vehicle has a loan, it’s most likely the lender will require that you buy full coverage to ensure loan repayment if the vehicle is totalled. If you cancel or allow the policy to lapse, the lender will be forced to insure your vehicle for a lot more money and make you pay the higher price.
• Insurance preserves both your vehicle and your personal assets. It will also cover hospital and medical expenses for not only you but also any passengers injured in an accident. As part of your policy, liability insurance also covers all legal expenses up to the policy limit if you are sued as the result of an accident. If your vehicle gets damaged, comprehensive (other-than-collision) and collision coverage will cover the damage repairs after a deductible is paid.

The benefits of having insurance outweigh the cost, especially with large liability claims. Despite what companies tell you, the average driver overpays more than $700 annually so it’s very important to do a rate comparison at least once a year to ensure rates are inline.

San Diego insurance discounts

Insuring your vehicles can cost a lot, but you may be missing some discounts that you may not even know about. Some discounts apply automatically at the time of quoting, but lesser-known reductions have to be asked about in order for you to get them. If you’re not getting every credit available, you may be paying too high a price.

• ABS and Traction Control Discounts – Cars and trucks with ABS braking systems or traction control can stop better under adverse conditions and earn discounts up to 10%.
• Save over 55 – Drivers over the age of 55 may qualify for a discount up to 10%.
• Low Mileage Discounts – Low mileage vehicles could qualify for substantially lower insurance rates.
• Sign Online – A few larger online companies will provide an incentive for signing up online.
• Payment Discounts – By paying your policy upfront rather than spreading payments over time you can avoid monthly service charges.
• Student Driver Training – Cut your cost by having your teen driver enroll and complete driver’s education in high school.
• Renewal Discounts – Select larger companies give a discount for switching to them before your current expiration date. Ten percent is about the average savings.

A quick disclaimer, many deductions do not apply to the overall cost of the policy. Most only cut the cost of specific coverages such as liability and collision coverage. Just because you may think having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, you aren’t that lucky.

A few companies that may include these benefits may include but are not limited to:

• 21st Century
• Progressive
• State Farm
• Nationwide
• Esurance
• The Hartford

Before you buy a policy, ask every insurance company the best way to save money. Savings might not be available to policyholders in San Diego. For a list of insurance companies that offer many of these discounts in California, click this link.

Compare prices but work with a local neighborhood San Diego car insurance agent

Many people still prefer to talk to a local agent and that is recommended in a lot of cases A good thing about comparing rates online is you can get cheap insurance rates but still work with a licensed agent. And providing support for local agents is important especially in San Diego.

For easy comparison, once you complete this quick form, your coverage information is immediately sent to agents in your area that provide free San Diego auto insurance quotes for your coverage. There is no reason to leave your house due to the fact that quote results will go to the email address you provide. You can find lower rates without a big time investment. In the event you want to get a price quote from a specific company, don’t hesitate to go to their quote page and give them your coverage information.

If you are searching for a local San Diego insurance agent, you need to know there are two different types of agents and how they can quote your rates. Insurance agencies can be described as either exclusive or independent agents depending on their company appointments.

Independent Agents (or Brokers)

Independent agencies often have many company appointments so as a result can place your coverage with many different companies and find the cheapest insurance rates. If they find a lower price, the business is moved internally and you don’t have to switch agencies.

If you are comparing rate quotes, you will want to get some free quotes from a couple of independent agencies to get the best comparison. Most have the option of insuring with additional companies that you may not be familiar with which may provide better rates.

Shown below is a partial list of independent insurance agents in San Diego who may provide comparison quotes.

• Nationwide Insurance: Keith Jackson Insurance Agency Inc
  1081 Camino del Rio S Ste 210 – San Diego, CA 92108 – (916) 742-6995 – View Map
• Kostyo Insurance Agency
  4456 Vandever Ave #10 – San Diego, CA 92120 – (619) 325-3600 – View Map
• ARROWHEAD General Insurance Agency, Inc.
  701 B St #2100 – San Diego, CA 92101 – (619) 744-5000 – View Map

More San Diego agents

Exclusive Insurance Agents

Exclusive agents generally can only insure with one company like Allstate, Farmers Insurance, State Farm, and AAA. These agents are unable to provide prices from multiple companies so always compare other rates. These agents are usually well trained on their products and sales techniques which aids in selling service over price. Some insured continue to buy from exclusive agents partially due to the prominent brand name rather than having the cheapest rates.

Listed below are exclusive insurance agents in San Diego willing to provide comparison quotes.

• State Farm: Tom Latsko
  8680 Navajo Rd #214 – San Diego, CA 92119 – (619) 462-5701 – View Map
• Lazaro Neto – State Farm Insurance Agent
  4444 El Cajon Blvd #13 – San Diego, CA 92115 – (619) 229-6799 – View Map
• Lisa Keith – State Farm Insurance Agent
  1635 Rosecrans St b – San Diego, CA 92106 – (619) 694-4788 – View Map

More San Diego agents

Choosing the best insurance agent should depend on more than just the premium amount. Here are some questions you should ask.

• Do they offer claims assistance after hours?
• How often do they review coverages?
• Do they offer accident forgiveness?
• How many years of experience in personal auto insurance do they have?
• Does the agent help file claims?
• Will you get a loaner vehicle if you car is being repaired?

After getting positive responses to all your questions as well as a price you’re happy with, you have narrowed it down to an insurance agent that meets your needs to insure your vehicles. Just understand that you are entitled to cancel a policy at any time so never assume you are locked into any specific agency for the full policy term.

Claim statistics by make and model

What are the chances of a claim? The next tables outline the good and bad vehicle models for the overall chance of filing claims for each type of coverage listed.

Cheaper insurance rates are possible

Low-cost insurance in San Diego can be purchased on the web and from local insurance agents, so you should be comparing quotes from both to have the best selection. A few companies do not offer online rate quotes and many times these smaller providers prefer to sell through independent agencies.

In this article, we covered a lot of information how to shop for insurance online. The key concept to understand is the more quotes you get, the higher the chance of saving money. Consumers could even find that the lowest car insurance rates are with a small local company.

When buying insurance coverage, do not buy less coverage just to save a little money. There are a lot of situations where an accident victim reduced collision coverage to discover at claim time that the few dollars in savings costed them thousands. The goal is to get the best coverage possible at the lowest possible cost, but don’t skip important coverages to save money.

To learn more, feel free to browse these articles:

• Learn About Car Insurance (GEICO)
• Who Has Affordable San Diego Auto Insurance for a School Permit? (FAQ)
• How Much are Auto Insurance Rates for a Dodge Grand Caravan in San Diego? (FAQ)
• How Much is Auto Insurance for a Nissan Versa in San Diego? (FAQ)
• Who Has Cheap Auto Insurance for a Honda CR-V in San Diego? (FAQ)
• Who Has Affordable San Diego Car Insurance Quotes for Retired Military? (FAQ)
• Shopping for a Safe Car (Insurance Information Institute)
• Alcohol Impaired Driving FAQ (iihs.org)
• Winter Driving (Insurance Information Institute)