Tired of not being able to afford each month for car insurance? You are in the same boat as many other Texas consumers.
Many car insurance companies compete to insure your vehicles, so it can be very hard to choose a provider to get the best price available.
It’s a good idea to price shop coverage quite often because insurance rates change frequently. If you had the lowest rates for Civic coverage two years ago there may be better deals available now. Starting now, ignore everything you know about car insurance because we’re going to show you the easiest way to save money, get proper coverage and the best rates.
Comprehensive Car Insurance Comparison in Texas
The are a couple different ways to get quotes from local in Texascar insurance companies. The best method to find the cheapest Honda Civic insurance rates consists of shopping online. This can be done in several different ways.
Probably the best way to find low rates would be an industry-wide quote request form (click to open form in new window). This easy form keeps you from doing separate forms for every car insurance company. One quote request will get you price quotes from multiple low-cost companies.
A more time consuming way to obtain and compare quotes online consists of going to the website for each individual company to complete a price quote. For example, let’s assume you want to compare rates from GEICO, Allstate and Progressive. To find out each rate you need to take the time to go to each site to enter your coverage information, which is why the first method is quicker. For a list of links to companies insuring cars in your area, click here.
The least efficient way to get comparison rates to and from local insurance agencies. The internet can eliminate the need for a local agent unless you prefer the professional advice of a local agent. Drivers can obtain prices from the web but buy from a local insurance agent.
Which method you use is up to you, but ensure you’re using apples-to-apples information with each company. If you compare higher or lower deductibles it’s not possible to find the best deal for your Honda Civic. Slightly different insurance coverages can make a big difference in price. Just keep in mind that obtaining a wide range of quotes gives you a better chance of getting better pricing.
Save $411 a year. For real?
Allstate, GEICO and Progressive consistently run ads on television and other media. All the companies make the same claim about savings if you change to their company. How can each company make almost identical claims? This is how they do it.
Different companies are able to cherry pick for the driver that is profitable for them. A good example of a desirable insured might be profiled as over the age of 40, has no prior claims, and has a high credit rating. A customer getting a price quote who meets those qualifications gets the lowest rates and most likely will save quite a bit of money when switching.
Potential insureds who do not match the requirements will be charged a higher premium which usually ends up with business not being written. The ad wording is “drivers who switch” not “people who quote” save that much money. That’s why insurance companies can advertise the way they do.
That is why it is so important to quote coverage with many companies. Because you never know which car insurance company will provide you with the cheapest rates.
Pay less by taking advantage of these 5 discounts
Insuring your vehicles can cost a lot, but you may find discounts to cut the cost considerably. Larger premium reductions will be automatically applied at the time of purchase, but less common discounts must be specifically requested before they will apply.
- New Car Discount – Putting insurance coverage on a new car can be considerably cheaper since new cars are generally safer.
- Defensive Driving Course – Completing a defensive driving course could cut 5% off your bill if you qualify.
- Passive Restraints – Factory air bags may earn rate discounts of more than 20%.
- Seat Belt Usage – Using a seat belt and requiring all passengers to use their safety belts could cut 10% or more off your PIP or medical payments premium.
- Student in College – Kids in college who live away from home without a vehicle on campus can receive lower rates.
It’s important to note that many deductions do not apply to the overall cost of the policy. Most cut specific coverage prices like liability, collision or medical payments. So when the math indicates all those discounts means the company will pay you, companies don’t profit that way. Any qualifying discounts will cut the cost of coverage.
To see a list of companies with discount car insurance rates in Texas, click here.
Buying car insurance locally
A small number of people would prefer to buy from a local agent and that is OK! The biggest benefit of comparing rates online is you may find lower rates but also keep your business local. Supporting local insurance agencies is important particularly if you live in a smaller city or town.
Once you complete this quick form, your insurance coverage information is emailed to insurance agents who will battle for your coverage. There is no reason to visit any agencies as quotes are delivered straight to your inbox. You can find the lowest rates AND a local agent.
Best auto insurance agent in Texas
When searching for a good Texas insurance agent, there are a couple of different agency structures that differ in how they can insure your vehicles. Agents are classified as either captive or independent (non-captive).
Independent Insurance Agents
Independent agencies are not required to write business for one company so they can insure your vehicles with multiple insurance companies enabling the ability to shop coverage around. To move your coverage to a new company, they simply move the coverage in-house and you don’t have to find a new agent.
When comparing rates, it’s a good idea to include at a minimum one independent agency for maximum quote selection.
Captive Insurance Agents
These agents can only write with one company and examples are Farmers Insurance, American Family, State Farm and Allstate. They usually cannot give you multiple price quotes so keep that in mind. They receive extensive training on the products they sell which helps them compete with independent agents.
For a complete listing of agencies in Texas, click here.
Picking a car insurance agent should depend on more than just a cheap price. Here are some questions to ask:
- Which members of your family are coverage by the policy?
- Does the agency provide any after hours assistance?
- How much will you save each year by using a higher deductible?
- What are the financial ratings for the companies they represent?
- How long have they worked with personal auto insurance coverage?
- Do they have advanced training designations such as CPCU, AAI, AIC, or CIC?
- Is the agency involved in supporting local community causes?
Upon getting good answers to all your questions as well as a affordable price, chances are good that you have found an auto insurance agent that will provide car insurance coverage. Just keep in mind you can always cancel your policy whenever you wish so never feel that you’re stuck with any specific agency with no way to switch.
Coverage specifics
Understanding the coverages of a car insurance policy helps when choosing appropriate coverage for your vehicles. The terms used in a policy can be confusing and even agents have difficulty translating policy wording. These are the normal coverages found on most car insurance policies.
Auto liability insurance – Liability coverage provides protection from damage or injury you incur to a person or their property. Liability coverage has three limits: bodily injury for each person injured, bodily injury for the entire accident and a property damage limit. As an example, you may have policy limits of 100/300/100 that means you have a limit of $100,000 per injured person, a limit of $300,000 in injury protection per accident, and a limit of $100,000 paid for damaged property. Alternatively, you may have a combined single limit or CSL that pays claims from the same limit without having the split limit caps.
Liability can pay for claims like attorney fees, structural damage, emergency aid, repair bills for other people’s vehicles and court costs. The amount of liability coverage you purchase is a personal decision, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase as large an amount as possible. Texas requires minimum liability limits of 30,000/60,000/25,000 but you should consider buying more liability than the minimum.
Collision coverage – This coverage will pay to fix damage to your Civic from colliding with another vehicle or an object, but not an animal. You will need to pay your deductible then your collision coverage will kick in.
Collision insurance covers claims such as sustaining damage from a pot hole, hitting a mailbox, driving through your garage door and colliding with a tree. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so consider removing coverage from vehicles that are 8 years or older. You can also bump up the deductible to save money on collision insurance.
Comprehensive insurance – Comprehensive insurance coverage will pay to fix damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. You first have to pay a deductible and the remainder of the damage will be paid by comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive can pay for claims such as damage from flooding, falling objects, damage from a tornado or hurricane and rock chips in glass. The maximum amount a car insurance company will pay at claim time is the market value of your vehicle, so if the vehicle is not worth much it’s not worth carrying full coverage.
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM) – This protects you and your vehicle from other drivers when they do not carry enough liability coverage. It can pay for medical payments for you and your occupants as well as damage to your Honda Civic.
Since many Texas drivers have only the minimum liability required by law (30/60/25 in Texas), their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. So UM/UIM coverage is a good idea. Frequently your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverages are set the same as your liablity limits.
Med pay and Personal Injury Protection (PIP) – Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and medical payments coverage reimburse you for expenses for surgery, X-ray expenses, nursing services and doctor visits. The coverages can be used in conjunction with a health insurance policy or if you are not covered by health insurance. Coverage applies to you and your occupants as well as being hit by a car walking across the street. Personal injury protection coverage is not an option in every state but can be used in place of medical payments coverage
One last thing
Budget-conscious Honda Civic insurance can be sourced online in addition to many Texas insurance agents, and you should be comparing both to have the best rate selection. Some car insurance companies do not provide the ability to get a quote online and many times these regional insurance providers only sell through independent insurance agents.
When shopping online for car insurance, you should never skimp on critical coverages to save a buck or two. There are a lot of situations where consumers will sacrifice comprehensive coverage or liability limits only to discover later that the savings was not a smart move. The proper strategy is to purchase a proper amount of coverage at an affordable rate while still protecting your assets.
We just showed you many ideas to shop for Honda Civic insurance online. The most important thing to understand is the more providers you compare, the better your chances of lowering your rates. Consumers could even find that the lowest rates come from some of the smallest insurance companies. Some small companies may have significantly lower rates on certain market segments than their larger competitors like Allstate, GEICO and Progressive.
Texas car insurance information
Much more information about car insurance in Texas is located on the website for the Texas Department of Insurance found here. Texas consumers can read consumer alerts, view a list of available companies, learn about insurance regulations, and get help finding coverage.
Other informative sites include Auto Insurance 101 and this resource for insurance agents in Texas.