How often do you change your car insurance companies?

[honestabe]

It's that time of year again for me to start shopping for a new auto insurance policy since mine expires in a month. Since I got my license 6 years ago I've noticed that it's more beneficial to shop around for a new insurance policy when my current one expires. For some reason I keep going back and forth between Geico (current policy) and Progressive (the soon to be new policy). Only 2 or 3 times have I been with other companies. My new policy will be for $158 with Geico but only $86 with Progressive for 6 months at the state minimum on only my 1995 Geo Metro.

So here's my questions: Do you shop around for a new policy everytime your current one expires? And have you ever found a good reason to stick with the same insurance company even though their rates may be higher than another company?

 

[flight doc89]

I have USAA. So far, nobody's rates have come close to what I get, and are usually double what I pay.

2006 Ford F-250 Turbodiesel - comprehensive coverage with $1000 deductible
2003 VW Beetle TDI - Comprehensive coverage with $500/$300 deductible (Wife's DD) ($500 for comp deduct, $300 for collision)
2001 Oldsmobile Alero - State minimums/liability only (my DD)
Roadside assist/towing for all three.

Coverage for my wife and myself, about $130/month

EDIT: Part of my "Membership Discounts" is the fact that I insure my house through USAA as well, and my total membership discount is about $45/month.

 

[honestabe]

I'm a USAA member as well and only once were they cheaper. But unlike you I only have auto insurance.

 

[SupraMario]

244 every 6 months with FBI. It goes down every time I renew with them plus ive got my house insurance with them.

 

[Suprapowaz!(2)]

Allstate
2005 Honda Accord full coverage $500 deductible
2001 Mazda Protege liability with uninsured/underinsured motorist $500 deductible
Roadside & Towing on both
Home owners insurance discount.
Married
37 yrs old.

$73/mo on both auto. $460/yr on home.

I've been with Allstate for 18 years now. I still shop around, but all the other insurance companies always tell me that I won't find lower rates anywhere becuase I've been with them so long. You know how your parents have been with the same insurance since the 70's.... that's why. They can't find lower rates. I've about given up on shopping around to tell you the truth.

Best thing to do is stick with one major reputable insurance company for the long haul. Don't be tempted to make a switch just because the other guys are willing to provide the same coverage for a few bucks less a month. You'll always be switching and your rates will contiue to go up with time. And don't ever let your insurance lapse, always pay on time. Excelent credit does help when shopping for rates.

 

[OneJArpus]

Don't live in jersey i tell you that much

1996 Subaru Legacy Outback + 88 Supra Progressive $132 a month State minimum no extra coverage =/ NJ Sucks for INS. I've been with them going on 3 years, before that i used Unitrin Direct & Geico. Non of which would come close to what i pay now (ALOT MORE). With all state i've gotten a quote of 3200 for 6 months =O i did not have the option for state minimum. I use to pay 200+ a month for two cars at one point 250 for 3. All state minimum. I've gotten many quotes when my ins is almost up and they are only afew extra bucks lower so i stick with progressive. Plus after my accident my insurance didnt go up, it went down, althought they found me 50% @ fault.

 

[Supracentral]

I've been with Progressive for 10 years. They have excellent customer service and they've given me no reason to shop somewhere else.

 

[te72]

NJ Sucks

FTFY.

That said, I've been with Progressive for nearly 6 years now, they've been good to me so far. Full coverage on the Mk3, and liability on the Mk2, I think I pay something like $52/month...

 

[trucker]

State farm on my satty, somewhere well north of state min. 240 a year. Unfortunately, they will only do 6 mos at a time.

Was with gemania before, my ex was an agent.

I don't shop around. I find an agent with good customer service, and stay there. My current agent will do things like take payments after office hours, and they bake cookies every morning for the customers! Mmm I like cookies

Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk

 

[TomFraser]

19yo driver = shitty premium
Massachusetts = shittier premium
1 speeding ticket doing +35mph in a 65 = icing on the cake (lawyer could not get ticket reduced to anything but speeding, got a few other parts of ticket dropped though (illegal lane change etc.)

$940 every 6 months with minimum coverage

I swapped every six months for the past 2.5 years (from progressive to geico and back and forth), but have stuck with progressive for my most recent change as they were the cheapest. Normally geico and progressive alternate six month periods to be cheap, but progressive must have a better tolerance for speeding tickets, and I like their customer service much better than geico.

 

[trucker]

....and that's why premiums are so high for young guys!

Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk

 

[te72]

Actually, that's not all that unusual for that age Trucker. I remember my being 19, with a clean record, I was paying nearly that much on a 94 Cavalier that was already 7 or 8 years old. Granted, I was living in Phoenix, but still. It'll go down if you keep your driving civil.

 

[honestabe]

2nded. Certain area's (MA seems one of the more expensive area's) really seem to give it to the new drivers. That is a pretty serious ticket, then again my first ticket was nearly as bad (100 in a 60 in heavy traffic and crossing the double yellow into the carpool lane, although with a passenger). At the time I was barely 19 and had my license for all of a month. I paid $230/month for full coverage on my 2003 Chevy Cavalier 2-door 5-speed and a 90 turbo Supra back in 2005.

 

[FullNelson]

Its sad knowing these insurance premiums are the only thing you have to look forward to for your 25th birthday. No tickets and No accidents in a town of 50,000 and im paying $150 a month for comp.

 

[TomFraser]

It was 1020 for the first 6 months I had my license and went down to 790 every six months without the ticket... So we do get hit hard,

Ticket was in my opinion bullshit as the cop that pulled me over put down +100, and "clocked" his reasoning being he "had to go 100 to catch up to you"

Don't get me started on how his logic of estimating my speed was flawed, he did not clock me according to the books, but needed to check something off on the ticket (he had no radar as my valentine1 would have let me know)

I did not get off after a lawyer went through the appeal process from a magistrate to a judge (judge said I was obviously speeding so it did not matter if everything was a lie and wrong on the ticket, bottom line was i was speeding)

Sad part is I was going about 83 to 85 in a 65, speeding... but not near 100. The whole situation pissed me off, especially after hearing the judge's opinion on police officers being legally allowed to lie on tickets.


EDIT: Should add that I do take responsibility for speeding, it all stemmed from that, but that doesn't mean I have to accept the (in my view) unfairness of the situation.

 

[Supracentral]

I will add that many companies have loyalty rewards programs as well. I'm a "diamond level" member with Progressive. I get everything listed on the following page plus a few more perks for sticking with them:

http://www.progressiveagent.com/auto/auto-loyalty-rewards.aspx

 

[Suprapowaz!(2)]

Progressive was the last insurance company I tried to get a quote from. I read line by line on my coverages from Allstate to the Progressive representative helping me. She told me she couldn't get anywhere near my current rates. She also told me to stay with them, and call them on a yearly basis and ask if I'm taking advantage of every discount they have to offer. She was really nice though.

 

[te72]

I remember getting a letter on that Progressive rewards program a while back, but forget what level it said I was at. Find it strange they don't mention how long you have to be with them for each different level...

 

[Jeff Lange]

I pay $280/month. :\

I think that should be about half of that when I renew for the next year though... I hope. At least it's less than the $410/month I used to pay when I first got my Corolla XRS in 2008.

Jeff

 

[Clint]

I've been with USAA since 1999, between my wife and I we have had five tickets and two accidents.

2008 WRX is $519.16 Full coverage, $1000 deductible
2000 Celica GT-S is $460.44 Full coverage, $1000 deductible
1989 Toyota Supra Turbo is $280.75 Basic + Full Glass coverage

Home owners insurance is $565.88 $1000 deductible