Cheap Insurance for a Dodge Journey in San Diego

Do you get exhausted from not being able to scrape enough together to keep your car insured? You are in the same boat as most other consumers in California.

It’s astonishing, but nearly 70% of customers renewed their policy with the same company for at least four years, and 38% of drivers have never compared rates with other companies. Drivers in the United States can save about $860 each year by just comparing rate quotes, but they mistakenly think it’s difficult to find cheap insurance by shopping around.

Multiple insurance companies compete for your hard-earned dollar, and it can be difficult to compare rates to find the absolute lowest cost out there.

You should take the time to shop coverage around as often as possible because rates change frequently. Just because you found the lowest premium rates on Dodge Journey insurance in San Diego six months ago you may be paying too much now. Forget all the misinformation about insurance because you’re about to learn the things you must know in order to reduce your cost while increasing coverage.

If you’re already insured, you will surely be able to cut your premiums using this information. Locating the most cost-effective auto insurance policy in San Diego is actually quite simple. Although California vehicle owners need to learn how the larger insurance companies market on the web and use this information to your advantage.

Auto insurance providers offering low-cost rates in California

The companies in the list below can provide free quotes in California. If more than one company is shown, we suggest you compare several of them in order to find the most affordable rates.

Data rating is based on married female driver age 50, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $500 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include homeowner, multi-policy, claim-free, safe-driver, and multi-vehicle. Information does not factor in San Diego location which can alter rates considerably.

Comparison of full coverage and liability-only policies

The diagram below shows the comparison of Dodge Journey car insurance costs with full physical damage coverage compared to only buying the minimum liability limits required in California. Data assumes no violations or claims, $500 deductibles, married male driver, and no discounts are factored in.

When to stop buying comprehensive and collision coverage

There is no clear-cut rule to exclude comp and collision coverage, but there is a general convention. If the annual cost of having full coverage is 10% or more of the vehicle’s replacement cost less your deductible, then it might be time to consider dropping full coverage.

For example, let’s say your Dodge Journey claim settlement value is $8,000 and you have $1,000 policy deductibles. If your vehicle is totaled, you would only receive $7,000 after paying your deductible. If you are paying over $700 annually for physical damage coverage, then you might want to consider buying only liability coverage.

There are some cases where buying only liability insurance is not a good plan. If you still have a loan on your vehicle, you must maintain physical damage coverage in order to prevent your loan from defaulting. Also, if you cannot afford to purchase a different vehicle in the even your car is totaled, you should not opt for liability only.

Get affordable Dodge Journey insurance in San Diego with discounts

Auto insurance is expensive, but you might find some hidden discounts that many people don’t even know exist. Some discounts apply automatically when you get a quote, but less common discounts must be asked about prior to getting the savings.

• Good Students Pay Less – A discount for being a good student can get you a discount of up to 25%. The good student discount can last well after school through age 25.
• Defensive Driver – Taking time to complete a course teaching defensive driving skills could earn you a small percentage discount and easily recoup the cost of the course.
• Homeowners Savings – Owning a home in San Diego can help you save on auto insurance because of the fact that having a home means you have a higher level of financial diligence.
• Distant College Student Discount – Youth drivers who are enrolled in higher education away from home without a vehicle on campus could get you a discount.
• More Vehicles More Savings – Drivers who insure multiple vehicles on one policy could earn a price break for each car.
• Save over 55 – If you qualify as a senior citizen, you may qualify for a small discount on rates.

We need to note that most discount credits are not given to the entire policy premium. The majority will only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as physical damage coverage or medical payments. If you do the math and it seems like adding up those discounts means a free policy, companies wouldn’t make money that way.

A few popular companies and their offered discounts are detailed below.

• Progressive has discounts for homeowner, good student, multi-policy, online quote discount, online signing, continuous coverage, and multi-vehicle.
• The Hartford may include discounts for anti-theft, bundle, defensive driver, vehicle fuel type, and good student.
• Mercury Insurance policyholders can earn discounts including age of vehicle, accident-free, anti-theft, multi-car, ease of repair, and type of vehicle.
• GEICO offers discounts for driver training, emergency military deployment, air bags, multi-vehicle, five-year accident-free, good student, and multi-policy.
• AAA may have discounts that include anti-theft, AAA membership discount, good driver, education and occupation, multi-policy, and multi-car.
• State Farm offers premium reductions for student away at school, accident-free, safe vehicle, Steer Clear safe driver discount, good driver, passive restraint, and multiple policy.

If you need lower rates, check with each insurance company which discounts they offer. Savings may not be available in your area.

How Your Journey Insurance Rates are Determined

The best way to find cheaper insurance is to take a look at the rating factors that come into play when calculating your policy premiums. When you know what positively or negatively influences your rates, this enables informed choices that can earn you cheaper rates. Many things are taken into consideration when you get your auto insurance bill. Some factors are common sense like your driving record, but some are less apparent such as whether you are married or how safe your car is.

The items below are a few of the “ingredients” that factor into your rates.

• Discounts for married couples – Being married may cut your premiums on your policy. Having a significant other translates into being less irresponsible and statistics prove married couples file fewer claims.
• Companies want multiple policies – The majority of companies allow lower prices to insureds that have more than one policy. It’s known as a multi-policy discount. This can amount to 10 percent or more. If you currently are using one company, it’s always a smart idea to shop around to make sure you are getting the best deal. You may still save more without the discount by buying insurance from more than one company.
• Prices also based on gender – Statistics show that women are safer drivers than men. Now that doesn’t mean females are better drivers. Males and females cause at-fault accidents in similar numbers, but the male of the species cause more damage. Not only are claims higher, but men get ticketed for serious violations such as driving while intoxicated (DWI) or driving recklessly.
• Big city or small town – Residing in a rural area can save you money when trying to find low car insurance rates. Less people translates into fewer accidents as well as less vandalism and auto theft. City drivers have to deal with congested traffic and more severe claims. The longer drive time means higher likelihood of an accident.
• Save by driving less – The more you drive your Dodge in a year’s time the higher your rates will be. Most insurance companies calculate prices based on their usage. Cars that sit idle most of the time receive lower rates as compared to vehicles used primarily for driving to work. An incorrectly rated Journey is throwing money out the window. Make sure your insurance policy is showing the right rating data, because improper ratings can cost you money.
• Teenagers are high risk – Beginning drivers in California have a tendency to be less responsible when driving therefore insurance rates are much higher. More experienced drivers have been proven to be more responsible, tend to cause fewer accidents, and usually have better credit.
• Careless drivers pay higher rates – Having a clean driving record can have a huge impact on auto insurance premiums. Just one citation can bump up the cost by twenty percent. Drivers who don’t get tickets get better rates compared to drivers with tickets. Drivers who have gotten serious violations like DUI or willful reckless driving may find that they have to to complete a SR-22 with the DMV in their state in order to legally drive.
• Extra coverages you don’t need – There are many add-on coverages that can add up on your insurance policy. Coverages for roadside assistance, accident forgiveness, and membership fees could be just wasting money. They may sound like good ideas when you first buy your policy, but if you’ve never needed them in the past eliminate the coverages to reduce your premium.
• Dodge Journey claim data – Insurance companies use claims history to help determine rates. Models that the statistics show to have higher prevalence or dollar amount of losses will have increased rates. The data below shows the loss history for Dodge Journey vehicles.

  For each policy coverage, the claim amount for all vehicles, as an average, equals 100. Numbers below 100 are indicative of better than average losses, while values over 100 point to more frequent losses or an increased chance of larger losses than average.

  Car Insurance Loss Data for Dodge Journey Models

  Specific Dodge Model	Collision	Property Damage	Comp	Personal Injury	Medical Payment	Bodily Injury
  Dodge Journey 4dr 2WD	80	92	80	148	163	131
  Dodge Journey 4dr 4WD	96	116	71	96

  BETTER

  AVERAGE

  WORSE

  Empty fields indicate not enough data collected
  Data Source: iihs.org (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety) for 2013-2015 Model Years

Auto insurance agents near you

Many people still like to visit with an insurance agent and there is nothing wrong with that. A good thing about comparing auto insurance online is that you can obtain cheap auto insurance rates and still buy from a local agent.

To make it easy to find an agent, after completing this short form, your insurance data is sent to participating agents in San Diego who will gladly provide quotes to get your business. You won’t even need to drive around because prices are sent directly to you. You can most likely find cheaper rates and work with a local agent. If you need to compare rates from a particular provider, don’t hesitate to visit that company’s website and submit a quote form there.

Choosing an insurance company requires you to look at more than just the price. Any agent in San Diego should be forthright in answering these questions:

• Does the company have a solid financial rating?
• Can you choose the body shop in case repairs are needed?
• Do they have any clout with companies to ensure a fair claim settlement?
• Which companies can they place coverage with?
• How often do they review policy coverages?
• Does the agency have a positive business rating?

When looking for a reliable insurance agency, you must know there are a couple types of agencies that you can choose from. Agents are considered either exclusive or independent (non-exclusive).

Exclusive Insurance Agencies

These type of agents can only quote rates from one company and examples are State Farm, Allstate, or Farmers Insurance. These agents are not able to provide other company’s prices so keep that in mind. They receive a lot of sales training on what they offer which helps overcome the inability to quote other rates.

Shown below are exclusive insurance agents in San Diego that can give you price quote information.

View more San Diego agents

Independent Agencies or Brokers

Independent insurance agents do not have single company limitations so they can write business with lots of companies and find the cheapest auto insurance rates. If they find a lower price, your agent can just switch to a different company and you stay with the same agent. If you need lower rates, we recommend you get quotes from multiple independent agents so that you can do a thorough price comparison.

Shown below are San Diego independent agents willing to provide price quote information.

View more San Diego agents

Upon receiving satisfactory answers to these questions and cheaper Journey insurance quotes, you’ve probably found an insurance agent that meets the requirements to properly insure your vehicles.

Shop smart and save

The cheapest Dodge Journey insurance in San Diego is definitely available both online and with local San Diego insurance agents, so you should compare both so you have a total pricing picture. A few companies may not have online rate quotes and many times these regional carriers only sell coverage through independent agents.

When searching for cheaper San Diego auto insurance quotes, never reduce coverage to reduce premium. There have been many cases where an insured cut comprehensive coverage or liability limits only to discover later that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. The ultimate goal is to find the BEST coverage for the lowest cost, but do not skimp to save money.

Additional learning opportunities

• Automakers compete to add autobraking (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
• What Car Insurance is Cheapest for Inexperienced Drivers in San Diego? (FAQ)
• Who Has the Cheapest Car Insurance Rates for Handicapped Drivers in San Diego? (FAQ)
• Who Has Cheap Auto Insurance for Drivers with a Bad Driving Record in San Diego? (FAQ)
• Who Has Affordable Auto Insurance for a 20 Year Old Female in San Diego? (FAQ)
• What Insurance is Cheapest for Electric Cars in San Diego? (FAQ)
• Five Mistakes to Avoid (Insurance Information Institute)
• Safety Belts FAQ (iihs.org)
• New Honda safety features benefit drivers of all ages (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
• How Much Auto Coverage do I Need? (Insurance Information Institute)