Reader’s Question:

What do I need to consider when purchasing car insurance?

Jim

Arlington, VA

Car insurance coverage needs differ depending on your situation.

Always consider your financial and personal situation (marriage, home-buying, parenthood, etc.) to know appropriate liability limits. The more you have to lose, the more protection you will need. To lower your car insurance rate premiumraise your deductibles, .

Go through the checklist and read our articles to get more tips:

• What coverage does the law require you to buy?
• What coverage does your lienholder or bank require you to buy?
• Understanding on how a loss will be paid for each auto insurance coverage.
• Understanding the various options for each coverage (limits,exclusions and deductibles).
• Think about value because best auto insurance may not be the cheapest.

Tags: auto insurance premium, automobile, car insurance rate, cheap auto insurance

Reader’s Question:

I live at 38104 Memphis, Tennessee and I currently have 2 car insurance policies. If I move to another address in TN, will I get cheaper car insurance rate quote? I appreciate your help.

Dana

Memphis TN

Are you planning to leave sooner? I just moved out too and it was more than a handful!

For most car insurance companies in Memphis that own a website, online transactions would also be possible. Most sites would require you to plug in your zip code on a relevant space like the one you see on this page. You will then be routed to a rates comparison chart for car insurers in Tennessee.

This is very relevant and helpful for you since you will get to compare rates without having to hop from one insurer to another in Memphis. Most database online though will not give exact address rates comparison as rates are generally clustered per zip code.

I encourage you to try comparing right now by entering your zip in this page and try to see if you will get cheaper insurance rates for the address you are planning to move to in TN. What matters here is for you to get a good quotes databank so you can choose your insurer in Memphis, TN well.

Enjoy shopping online for cheap car insurance quote in TN!

Tags: auto insurance online, car insurance quotes, car insurance rate

Reader’s Question:

Is it harder to insure SUV’s?

Kyle

New York, NY

Thanks for asking, Kyle.

If you have one, then this might come as bad news to you. SUVs are magnets for high insurance rates! That’s an added burden to having a higher ticket price at dealership and costing a mint to fill up. SUVs cost 10-20% more to insure as compared to regular cars.
Want to know the reason why? It’s really because more often, SUVs can cause more damage to other vehicles during accidents. Such will cause the payout rates for the insurance companies which will definitely increase liability premiums.

Regardless if you are a safe and careful driver, SUVs will have fared much better than their counterparts in most accidents. SUVs feel safer, though it doesn’t really follow that it is safer. About 12% of vehicles on US roads are SUVs because of this. Even if, SUVs can also pose some inherent dangers which include hazards such as greater potential to flip during high-speed turns, collisions, or when avoiding accidents. The center of gravity for SUVs is less balanced which makes them top-heavy since they sit higher off the ground. Roll over accidents are very costly in terms of vehicle repairs and personal medical expense which make them charge higher for SUV auto insurance premiums.

Aside from that, car thieves mostly covet for SUVs which can be very costly for replacement claims! In other words, SUVs are high-risk vehicles for auto insurance companies which will lead them to charge car insurance premiums higher than the other car types.

Reader’s Question:

My son’s dad and I are divorced, and his father gave his old vehicle to our son. When my son starts driving and if he insures the vehicle, do I need to include him on my policy? We live in Delaware.

Jane

Wilmington, DE

Ultimately, you will need to speak to your insurance provider in Delaware. Generally, most insurance providers want to know who resides in your household. From there most insurance providers will want you to either list that individual as either ‘eligible’ to operate a vehicle or ‘excluded’ from driving. Anyone listed on your policy as ‘eligible’ to drive, will be covered by your insurance carrier to drive the car(s) on your policy. If that individual is specifically ‘excluded,’ your insurance carrier will not provide coverage to that individual if s/he drives your car(s) listed on your policy. If you ‘exclude’ your son from driving your car(s) on your insurance policy, your insurance provider may require you provide proof your son has his own policy in force.

Reader’s Question:

I bought a vehicle in my name, and I need a car insurance for it. My license has been revoked. Can I still insure my vehicle in someone else’s name? Or, can I insure it under my name? I live in Florida.

Remy

Cape Coral, FL

Even though your driver’s license is revoked, few insurance providers will permit you to insure your car in Florida.

I know some insurance companies that will allow it, but they will require you to provide them proof of it’s reinstatement within thirty days from your policy’s inception date. Or, they will terminate your insurance policy.

There are also insurance providers that will permit someone else to insure your car in their name, even if that person has no insurable interest in your car. Those insurers are limited and they do require the car owner to be added as a motorist on the policy. Under certain circumstances you can be added on the policy, but you would be excluded and not covered under the insurance policy terms. You will have to call for underwriter authorization.

Reader’s Question:

Is insurance cheaper on a 5 speed manual or automatic transmission?

Paul

Portland, Maine (ME)

It will really depend upon the type of vehicle and rating system of an insurer however in general a 5 speed vehicle is cheaper to purchase than an automatic vehicle, and therefore it will normally cost less to insure for that fact.

Any part of a liability insurance rate that uses the car in the factoring, would take into account the number of occurrences, but the transmission type is not a factor. Any portion of the physical damage (comprehensive and collision coverages) insurance rate would use the value, but it does not look at the fact that the car is an automatic or 5-speed car.

One example is this: The Corvette and Porsche would be more to insure not because of the manual transmission but due to the sports car classification. Plus, high end sports car come with much higher repair costs than the Camry.

Reader’s Question:

Is it true that every individual with a valid Driver’s License will automatically be covered with some sort of auto insurance?

Sam

Minneapolis, MN

To be covered by a auto insurance, a person must buy a car insurance policy through a licensed insurance company or be added to an existing auto insurance policy. In most states you need to show proof of insurance to obtain a license, while in some states you need at least the minimum state required insurance to register your car.

Insurance companies’ guidelines and state laws can differ but we know of no situation where by just getting a valid driver’s license you are automatically covered by auto insurance.

If you live in a household that already has auto insurance on cars, you might be covered under that insurance policy once you have received a driver’s license, but in some cases the policyholder would need to let their insurance company know and add you to the policy in order for you to be covered properly by the car insurance policy.

Reader’s Question;

I am just wondering if parking ticket affect insurance rates as well?

Brad

Louisville, KY

A parking ticket may or may not affect your car insurance rates depending on how your specific insurance provider assigns points to such violations. There are insurance carriers that will not increase rates because of a single parking ticket however if there are multiple ones or unpaid tickets that lead to a driver’s license suspension your rates would generally be affected.

You should contact your insurance carrier regarding their rating system with your insurance agent or you can contact your state’s insurance regulatory body and check about your company’s rates that are filed with them.

Reader’s Question:

Do I need to buy an insurance before I purchase a used vehicle in South Carolina?

Samuel

Columbia, SC

If this is your first car in South Carolina then you need to obtain auto insurance before taking over the ownership of a used car in most states. If you already have car insurance and are replacing a car on your current insurance policy then the coverage might insure your “new” used automobile for a couple of days. You will need to contact your state’s DMV and insurance company though to verify.

Before buying a new or used car in South Carolina, contact your insurance carrier to let them know about the vehicle you might buy. They should be able to provide you a quote of what it will cost to add the car to your insurance policy, which can assist you budget for your auto purchase. Your insurance carrier can then let you know when you should contact and add the car so it will be covered.

Reader question:

I have to do SR22 DMV filing for my brand new car. What kind of coverage do I need?

Melvin

Thanks for your question, Melvin.

When you buy a new car, you will typically need more coverage with your SR22 DMV filing than usual. Rather than just buying liability coverage–or no fault coverage on top of that, if you live in a state that requires it–you also have to purchase comprehensive and collision insurance.

These are not options. Your contract will require that you purchase these types of coverage, which means that your SR22 DMV filing will also cost more. If you want to save some of that cost, you can cut your premium down by raising the deductible on both of these coverages. I keep my deductible at $1000, but some companies allow you to go higher. Whatever the case, if you only have a $500 deductible, you will probably be paying too much for insurance coverage.

A more expensive deductible might seem like a burden, but I handle it like this: for the first year that I have the higher deductible, I keep “paying” the same rates. I just keep the extra that I saved by raising the deductible and put it into savings so that, by the end of the year, I will have a good start on the money I need to cover that deductible if I ever get into an accident.

Cheers,

Fashun Guadarrama.