It’s an obvious statement that insurance companies don’t want policyholders to shop around. People who do rate comparisons are likely to buy a different policy because they stand a good chance of getting low-cost coverage. Surprisingly, a recent survey revealed that people who routinely shopped for cheaper coverage saved as much as $3,450 over four years compared to policyholders who never shopped around for cheaper prices.
If finding the lowest rates on Chevy Sonic insurance is the reason you’re reading this, then having a grasp of how to choose a company and compare insurance premiums can make it easier to shop your coverage around.
To save the most money, the best way to find better pricing on Chevy Sonic insurance is to do a yearly price comparison from providers who sell insurance in Chula Vista. Rate comparisons can be done by following these steps.
Step 1: Learn about the coverage provided by your policy and the things you can control to keep rates low. Many policy risk factors that result in higher rates like traffic tickets, fender benders, and a not-so-good credit rating can be improved by paying attention to minor details.
Step 2: Get rate quotes from exclusive agents, independent agents, and direct providers. Direct companies and exclusive agencies can only quote rates from a single company like GEICO or State Farm, while independent agents can provide prices from multiple insurance companies.
Step 3: Compare the quotes to the price on your current policy to see if cheaper Sonic coverage is available in Chula Vista. If you find better rates and change companies, make sure there is no coverage gap between policies.
Step 4: Provide written notification to your current company of your intent to cancel your current policy. Submit any necessary down payment along with the completed application for your new coverage. Once received, put the new certificate of insurance in an easily accessible location.
One tip to remember is to try to compare the same physical damage deductibles and liability limits on each quote request and and to look at as many companies as feasibly possible. This enables a fair price comparison and and a good selection of different prices.
If you have coverage now or need a new policy, use these tips to lower your rates without sacrificing coverage. Buying the cheapest auto insurance in Chula Vista can be much easier if you know how to start. Drivers just have to understand the quickest method to get comparison rates over the internet.
Lower Your Chula Vista Insurance Costs
A large part of saving on car insurance is knowing some of the things that aid in calculating the level of your policy premiums. If you have some idea of what determines base rates, this helps enable you to make changes that could help you find lower premium levels. Lots of things are taken into consideration when premium rates are determined. Some are pretty understandable like your driving record, but other criteria are not as apparent like your continuous coverage or your vehicle rating.
How many miles do you drive? – Driving a lot of miles in a year the higher your rate. The majority of insurers rate vehicles determined by how the vehicle is used. Cars and trucks that do not get driven very much receive better premium rates as compared to vehicles used primarily for driving to work. It’s a smart idea to ensure your policy reflects the correct usage for each vehicle. Improper usage on your Sonic is just wasting money.
Stay claim-free and save – If you are a frequent claim filer, you should expect either policy cancellation or increased premiums. Companies in California give the best rates to people who file claims infrequently. Your car insurance is intended for major claims that would cause financial hardship.
Responsible drivers pay the best rates – Drivers who don’t get tickets pay less for auto insurance than their less careful counterparts. Only having one ticket can increase rates forty percent or more. Drivers with serious violations such as reckless driving or DUI may find they need to submit a SR-22 form with the DMV in their state in order to legally drive.
Lower premiums for safer cars – Cars with five star safety ratings tend to have better insurance rates. Vehicles engineered for safety reduce injuries and better occupant protection translates into savings for insurance companies and cheaper rates on your policy. If your Chevy Sonic scored better than an “acceptable” rating on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety website or four stars on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website it may cost less to insure.
Marriage discount – Being married may earn you lower rates when buying car insurance. Marriage translates into being more mature and insurance companies like that being married results in fewer claims.
Car features can affect car insurance rates – Purchasing a vehicle with an alarm system can help lower your premiums. Systems that thwart thieves such as vehicle immobilizer systems, General Motors OnStar and LoJack tracking systems all help prevent car theft.
Allowing your car insurance to lapse raises car insurance rates – Having a gap between insurance policy dates is a quick way to pay more for car insurance. In addition to paying higher rates, being ticketed for driving with no insurance will get you a fine, jail time, or a revoked license.
Chevy Sonic claim statistics – Companies analyze claim trends for every vehicle to help determine costs. Models that statistically have a trend towards higher claims will have higher premium rates. The next table shows the insurance loss data for Chevy Sonic vehicles.
For each policy coverage, the loss probability for all vehicles, as an average, is equal to 100. Values that are below 100 indicate a favorable loss history, while percentage numbers above 100 indicate a higher chance of having a claim or statistically larger claims.
| Specific Chevrolet Model | Collision | Property Damage | Comp | Personal Injury | Medical Payment | Bodily Injury |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chevrolet Sonic | 104 | 132 | 91 | 167 | 189 | 159 |
Statistics from IIHS.org for 2013-2015 Model Years
Insurance rates and discounts
Car insurance companies don’t list every discount available in a way that’s easy to find, so the list below contains both the well known and also the more inconspicuous discounts that you may qualify for.
- Multi-Vehicle Discounts – Drivers who insure primary and secondary vehicles on one policy can get a discount on all vehicles.
- Active Service Discounts – Being deployed with a military unit could qualify you for better insurance rates.
- Discount for Passive Restraints – Vehicles with factory air bags or automatic seat belts may earn rate discounts of 20 to 30 percent.
- Employee of Federal Government – Active or retired federal employment may reduce rates when you quote Chula Vista auto insurance with select insurance companies.
- Accident-Free Discounts – Drivers with accident-free driving histories can save substantially in comparison with insureds who have frequent claims or accidents.
- Discounts for Cautious Drivers – Safe drivers may receive a discount up to 45% as compared to drivers with claims.
- Multiple Policy Discount – If you insure your home and vehicles with the same company you could save at least 10% off all policies.
- Driver Safety – Taking part in a class that teaches defensive driver techniques can save you 5% or more and easily pay for the cost of the class.
A quick disclaimer, most of the big mark downs will not be given to the overall cost of the policy. Some only apply to individual premiums such as liability, collision or medical payments. Just because you may think having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, nobody gets a free ride.
To see companies that offer the discounts shown above in Chula Vista, click this link.
California auto insurance companies ranked
Selecting a highly-rated auto insurance provider can be challenging considering how many companies are available to choose from in California. The company rank data in the lists below could help you pick which car insurance providers to look at purchasing from.
| Company | Value | Customer Service | Claims | Customer Satisfaction | A.M Best Rating | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USAA | 98 | 100 | 100 | 94% | A++ | 98.6 |
| American Family | 98 | 89 | 100 | 86% | A | 95.4 |
| AAA of Southern California | 91 | 94 | 97 | 92% | A+ | 94.1 |
| State Farm | 88 | 93 | 96 | 90% | A++ | 92.4 |
| The Hartford | 94 | 92 | 90 | 89% | A+ | 91.7 |
| AAA Insurance | 88 | 89 | 95 | 91% | A | 91.2 |
| GEICO | 84 | 93 | 93 | 89% | A++ | 90.3 |
| The General | 89 | 91 | 89 | 88% | A- | 90 |
| Titan Insurance | 90 | 87 | 91 | 95% | A+ | 89.6 |
| Progressive | 84 | 91 | 93 | 87% | A+ | 89.5 |
| Mercury Insurance | 88 | 91 | 90 | 85% | A+ | 89.4 |
| Allstate | 85 | 90 | 92 | 88% | A+ | 89.3 |
| Nationwide | 87 | 88 | 84 | 90% | A+ | 88.7 |
| Liberty Mutual | 84 | 87 | 93 | 88% | A | 88.5 |
| 21st Century | 85 | 86 | 87 | 88% | A | 86.7 |
| Esurance | 85 | 80 | 95 | 87% | A+ | 85.9 |
| Safeco | 85 | 85 | 85 | 86% | A | 85.8 |
| Travelers | 80 | 87 | 87 | 83% | A++ | 85.2 |
| Farmers Insurance | 78 | 87 | 88 | 79% | A | 84.3 |
| Compare Rates Now Go | ||||||
Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies
Affordable car insurance is out there
There are still a few companies who may not offer the ability to get a quote online and most of the time these smaller companies prefer to sell through independent agents. Cheaper Chevy Sonic insurance in Chula Vista is attainable online and with local Chula Vista insurance agents, so you should compare both in order to have the best chance of saving money.
In this article, we presented a lot of ways to lower your Chevy Sonic insurance rates in Chula Vista. The key concept to understand is the more price quotes you have, the higher the chance of saving money. You may even find the lowest rates come from some of the lesser-known companies. These companies can often provide lower auto insurance rates in certain areas as compared to the big name companies such as Progressive or GEICO.
As you restructure your insurance plan, don’t be tempted to buy less coverage just to save a little money. There are a lot of situations where an insured dropped comprehensive coverage or liability limits only to find out that the few dollars in savings costed them thousands. Your objective should be to buy the best coverage you can find for the lowest cost, but don’t skip important coverages to save money.
Other learning opportunities
- New Honda safety features benefit drivers of all ages (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
- Who Has Cheap Car Insurance Rates for Low Credit Scores in Chula Vista? (FAQ)
- Who Has the Cheapest Auto Insurance for College Students in Chula Vista? (FAQ)
- How Much are Auto Insurance Quotes for Lyft Drivers in Chula Vista? (FAQ)
- How Much are Auto Insurance Rates for a Honda CR-V in Chula Vista? (FAQ)
- Who Has Cheap Chula Vista Auto Insurance Quotes for Good Drivers? (FAQ)
- Avoiding Deer Collisions (Insurance Information Institute)
- No-Fault Auto Insurance Statistics (Insurance Information Institute)
- Booster Seat Ratings (iihs.org)
- Five Mistakes to Avoid (Insurance Information Institute)