It’s an obvious statement that auto insurance companies want to prevent you from shopping around. Drivers who shop around at least once a year will probably switch insurance companies because of the good chance of getting low-cost coverage. A recent study showed that drivers who compared prices once a year saved over $850 each year compared to other drivers who never shopped around for better prices.
If saving the most money on Ford Freestyle insurance in Baltimore is your objective, then having a grasp of the best ways to shop for insurance can save time and make the process easier.
The best way to get discount car insurance rates in Baltimore is to compare quotes annually from different companies in Maryland.
Step 1: Try to learn a little about coverages and the steps you can take to prevent expensive coverage. Many rating criteria that result in higher prices such as distracted driving and a substandard credit history can be eliminated by making minor changes in your lifestyle.
Step 2: Quote rates from direct carriers, independent agents, and exclusive agents. Exclusive and direct companies can only give rate quotes from one company like GEICO or Farmers Insurance, while independent agents can provide price quotes for many different companies.
Step 3: Compare the new rates to your current policy premium to see if you can save by switching companies. If you can save some money and change companies, ensure coverage does not lapse between policies.
Step 4: Provide proper notification to your current company to cancel your existing policy and submit the completed application along with a down payment to your new carrier. As soon as coverage is bound, put the new certificate verifying coverage along with your vehicle registration.
The key thing to remember is to compare the same coverage limits and deductibles on every price quote and and to get price estimates from every company you can. This helps ensure a fair rate comparison and a good representation of prices.
All major car insurance companies give pricing directly from their websites. Getting Ford Freestyle insurance prices online is quite easy as you simply enter your coverage information into a form. After you submit the form the quote system will order your credit score and driving record and generates pricing information based on these factors.
Getting online rate quotes for Ford Freestyle insurance in Baltimore makes it easy to compare insurance prices and it is important to perform this step if you want to find a lower rate.
In order to compare rates using this form now, compare rates now from the companies shown below. To compare your current rates, we recommend you type in deductibles and limits as close as possible to your current policy. Doing this assures you will receive an apples-to-apples comparison for the exact same coverage.
The companies shown below are ready to provide quotes in Maryland. To find the best car insurance in Baltimore, we suggest you compare several of them to get a more complete price comparison.
Insurance is an important decision
Despite the potentially high cost of Ford Freestyle insurance, paying for insurance may be required and benefits you in several ways.
- Almost all states have mandatory liability insurance requirements which means the state requires specific limits of liability protection in order to drive the car. In Maryland these limits are 30/60/15 which means you must have $30,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $60,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $15,000 of property damage coverage.
- If you have a lien on your vehicle, almost all lenders will stipulate that you have insurance to guarantee their interest in the vehicle. If the policy lapses, the lender will be forced to insure your Ford at a more expensive rate and require you to reimburse them for it.
- Insurance safeguards both your vehicle and your assets. Insurance will pay for medical bills for you, any passengers, and anyone injured in an accident. Liability insurance, one of your policy coverages, will also pay for a defense attorney in the event you are sued. If damage is caused by hail or an accident, collision and comprehensive coverages will pay to repair the damage minus the deductible amount.
The benefits of buying insurance definitely exceed the price paid, particularly if you ever have a claim. Today the average American driver is overpaying over $750 every year so shop around once a year at a minimum to ensure rates are inline.
Insurance rates and discounts
Buying insurance is not cheap, but there’s a good chance there are discounts to help bring down the price. Some discounts will apply at the time of purchase, but a few must be specifically requested before you get the savings. If you check and find you aren’t receiving every discount available, you are paying more than you should be.
- Multi-car Discount – Drivers who insure multiple cars or trucks on one policy can get a discount on all vehicles.
- Passive Restraint Discount – Factory options such as air bags or motorized seat belts could see savings of 20% or more.
- Employee of Federal Government – Having worked for a branch of the government may reduce rates when you quote Baltimore auto insurance but check with your company.
- Save over 55 – Seniors may receive reduced rates.
- Life Insurance – Not every insurance company offers life insurance, but if they do you may earn a break if you buy life insurance.
- Military Deployment Discount – Being deployed in the military can result in better rates.
- Defensive Driver – Successfully completing a driver safety class could cut 5% off your bill and easily pay for the cost of the class.
A little disclaimer on discounts, most of the big mark downs will not be given to the entire cost. Most only cut the price of certain insurance coverages like liability, collision or medical payments. So even though you would think all the discounts add up to a free policy, companies don’t profit that way.
To choose insurance companies who offer discounts in Maryland, follow this link.
Insurance quotes from neighborhood Baltimore auto insurance agents
Some consumers just prefer to get advice from a local agent. A nice benefit of getting online price quotes is that you can obtain the best rates and still buy from a local agent.
Once you complete this short form, your insurance coverage information is instantly submitted to insurance agents in Baltimore who will give you quotes to get your business. There is no reason to do any legwork since price quotes are sent to your email. You can get cheaper insurance rates and an insurance agent to talk to. If for some reason you want to get a price quote from a specific insurance provider, feel free to go to their quote page to submit a rate quote request.
Finding the right provider should include more criteria than just the premium amount. You should also get answers to these questions.
- How long has the business existed?
- Is the agent and/or agency licensed to do business in Maryland?
- Are claim adjusters local or do you have to take your car somewhere else?
- If you have an accident, will your rates go up?
- Does the quote include credit and driving reports?
- Will they take your side in the event of a claim?
Auto insurance specifics
Learning about specific coverages of a auto insurance policy aids in choosing which coverages you need and the correct deductibles and limits. Policy terminology can be difficult to understand and reading a policy is terribly boring.
Comprehensive protection
This coverage will pay to fix damage from a wide range of events other than collision. You first must pay your deductible then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive coverage pays for things such as hitting a bird, damage from flooding and damage from a tornado or hurricane. The most you’ll receive from a claim is the market value of your vehicle, so if your deductible is as high as the vehicle’s value consider removing comprehensive coverage.
Liability insurance
This will cover damage or injury you incur to other people or property by causing an accident. It protects you against claims from other people, and doesn’t cover damage sustained by your vehicle in an accident.
Coverage consists of three different limits, bodily injury for each person injured, bodily injury for the entire accident and a property damage limit. You commonly see policy limits of 30/60/15 which means $30,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, a limit of $60,000 in injury protection per accident, and a limit of $15,000 paid for damaged property.
Liability can pay for things such as repair bills for other people’s vehicles, pain and suffering and emergency aid. How much liability coverage do you need? That is up to you, but buy as large an amount as possible. Maryland requires drivers to carry at least 30/60/15 but you should consider buying higher limits.
The next chart shows why buying low liability limits may not be enough coverage.
Collision protection
Collision coverage will pay to fix damage to your Freestyle caused by collision with an object or car. You have to pay a deductible and then insurance will cover the remainder.
Collision insurance covers claims such as driving through your garage door, crashing into a building, hitting a parking meter and rolling your car. This coverage can be expensive, so analyze the benefit of dropping coverage from vehicles that are 8 years or older. Another option is to bump up the deductible on your Freestyle to get cheaper collision coverage.
Uninsured or underinsured coverage
This provides protection from other drivers when they do not carry enough liability coverage. This coverage pays for medical payments for you and your occupants as well as your vehicle’s damage.
Because many people have only the minimum liability required by law (which is 30/60/15), it only takes a small accident to exceed their coverage. So UM/UIM coverage is very important.
Medical expense coverage
Medical payments and Personal Injury Protection insurance reimburse you for immediate expenses like hospital visits, pain medications, funeral costs, X-ray expenses and prosthetic devices. The coverages can be utilized in addition to your health insurance plan or if there is no health insurance coverage. Coverage applies to all vehicle occupants and will also cover being hit by a car walking across the street. Personal injury protection coverage is not universally available but it provides additional coverages not offered by medical payments coverage
You can find cheap coverage
We just covered a lot of ways to lower your Ford Freestyle insurance prices in Baltimore. It’s most important to understand that the more companies you get rates for, the better likelihood of getting affordable Ford Freestyle insurance quotes. Consumers could even find that the lowest prices are with some of the lesser-known companies.
As you go through the steps to switch your coverage, it’s a bad idea to skimp on coverage in order to save money. In many cases, consumers will sacrifice comprehensive coverage or liability limits only to find out that it was a big error on their part. The goal is to get the best coverage possible at the best possible price, but do not skimp to save money.
People change insurance companies for a number of reasons such as policy non-renewal, high rates after DUI convictions, delays in paying claims or unfair underwriting practices. Regardless of your reason for switching companies, finding a new car insurance company is pretty easy and you might even save some money in the process.
To learn more, link through to the resources below:
- Vehicle Size and Weight FAQ (iihs.org)
- Who Has Cheap Auto Insurance for Uninsured Drivers in Baltimore? (FAQ)
- Who Has Affordable Baltimore Car Insurance Rates for 17 Year Olds? (FAQ)
- How Much are Baltimore Car Insurance Quotes for a Dodge Journey? (FAQ)
- Who Has the Cheapest Auto Insurance Rates for Government Employees in Baltimore? (FAQ)
- How Much are Car Insurance Quotes for Ride Shares in Baltimore? (FAQ)
- Who Has Cheap Car Insurance Rates for a Hyundai Elantra in Baltimore? (FAQ)
- How Much are Baltimore Auto Insurance Quotes for Drivers with a DUI? (FAQ)
- Bodily Injury Coverage (Liberty Mutual)
- Cellphones, Texting and Driving (iihs.org)
- Things to Know Before you Cancel Insurance (Allstate)
- New head restraint design cuts injuries (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)