Has it been a year or more since you last compared quotes for more affordable insurance rates in San Diego, CA? San Diego buyers have many options when searching for the lowest priced Buick Rainier insurance. You can either waste hours contacting agents getting price quotes or utilize the internet to compare rates.
There is a better way to compare insurance rates so we’re going to tell you the quickest way to price shop coverage on a Buick and obtain the cheapest rates from San Diego insurance agents and online providers.
The companies shown below are ready to provide price comparisons in San Diego, CA. If multiple providers are shown, we suggest you visit as many as you can to get the most affordable price.
Three main reasons to buy car insurance
Despite the high cost of buying insurance for a Buick Rainier in San Diego, insurance may not be optional for several reasons.
- The majority of states have minimum mandated liability insurance limits which means state laws require a specific level of liability insurance coverage if you want to drive legally. In California these limits are 15/30/5 which means you must have $15,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $30,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $5,000 of property damage coverage.
- If you took out a loan on your vehicle, almost all lenders will have a requirement that you have full coverage to guarantee their interest in the vehicle. If you do not pay your insurance premiums, the bank may buy a policy for your Buick at a more expensive rate and require you to fork over for the much more expensive policy.
- Car insurance preserves both your vehicle and your assets. It will also provide coverage for most medical and hospital costs for yourself as well as anyone injured by you. One of the most valuable coverages, liability insurance, will also pay for a defense attorney if someone files suit against you as the result of an accident. If your vehicle suffers damage from an accident or hail, comprehensive (other-than-collision) and collision coverage will pay all costs to repair after the deductible has been paid.
The benefits of carrying adequate insurance are without a doubt worth the cost, particularly if you ever have a claim. In a recent study of 1,000 drivers, the average customer is overpaying over $865 each year so you should quote your policy with other companies once a year at a minimum to ensure rates are inline.
Learn How to Lower Your Insurance Prices
When buying car insurance it’s important to understand some of the factors that come into play when calculating the level of your policy premiums. If you know what impacts premium levels, this enables informed choices that will entitle you to cheaper rates. Many different elements are part of the calculation when premium rates are determined. Some are pretty understandable such as your driving history, although others are not as apparent like your continuous coverage or how financially stable you are.
- Tickets and citations cost more than a fine – Your driving citation history has a big impact on rates. Drivers who don’t get tickets have lower premiums than bad drivers. Just one citation could increase your next policy renewal substantially. Drivers who have dangerous violations like DWI, reckless driving or hit and run convictions might be required by their state to file a proof of financial responsibility form (SR-22) with their state’s department of motor vehicles in order to legally drive a vehicle.
- Buy a safe car and pay less – Vehicles with high crash test scores tend to be cheaper to insure. Safer cars reduce occupant injuries and reduced instances of injuries translates directly to fewer claims which can result in lower premiums. If your Buick Rainier scored better than four stars on Safercar.gov you may be receiving a better rate.
- File a policy claims and pay more – If you file claims often, don’t be surprised to see higher premiums or even policy non-renewal. Companies in California award the lowest premiums to insureds who are not frequent claim filers. Your insurance policy is meant to be used in the event of major claims that would cause financial hardship.
- Which gender costs less? – The statistics show that men are more aggressive behind the wheel. That doesn’t necessarily mean that females are better drivers. Both sexes cause accidents in similar percentages, but males tend to have higher claims. Men also statistically get cited for more serious violations like reckless driving and DUI.
- More people means more accidents – Residing in smaller towns and rural areas of the country has definite advantages when talking about car insurance. People in densely populated areas have more road rage incidents and higher rates of accident claims. Less people living in that area means less chance of accidents in addition to fewer liability claims.
- Lower deductibles cost more – The deductibles define how much you are required to spend before your car insurance pays a claim. Insurance for physical damage, termed comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy, covers damage that occurs to your car. A few examples of covered claims are rearending another vehicle, hail damage, or theft of your vehicle. The more of the claim you are required to pay out-of-pocket, the less money you will pay for car insurance.
Save money by taking advantage of discounts
Some insurance providers don’t always list every possible discount very clearly, so we researched both well-publicized as well as some of the hidden credits that you can use to lower your rates.
- Early Switch Discount – Select larger companies give a discount for buying a policy before your current expiration date. It’s a savings of about 10%.
- Safety Restraint Discount – Drivers who always wear seat belts and also require passengers to fasten their seat belts may be able to save a few bucks off the medical payments premium.
- Anti-theft System – Anti-theft and alarm system equipped vehicles help deter theft and qualify for as much as a 10% discount.
- Discounts for Safe Drivers – Drivers without accidents may receive a discount up to 45% as compared to drivers with claims.
- Senior Discount – If you’re over the age of 55, you may be able to get a slight reduction on a San Diego auto insurance quote.
- Drive Less and Save – Maintaining low annual mileage can earn substantially lower prices.
- Driver Safety – Taking time to complete a course in defensive driver could possibly earn you a 5% discount depending on where you live.
One last thing about discounts, most discount credits are not given to the overall cost of the policy. Some only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like liability, collision or medical payments. Just because you may think adding up those discounts means a free policy, you aren’t that lucky.
A few of the larger companies and a selection of discounts are detailed below.
- State Farm includes discounts for passive restraint, defensive driving training, Drive Safe & Save, anti-theft, and good student.
- Progressive has savings for multi-policy, continuous coverage, multi-vehicle, online signing, online quote discount, and good student.
- Travelers discounts include driver training, payment discounts, new car, save driver, early quote, hybrid/electric vehicle, and multi-policy.
- American Family has discounts for bundled insurance, defensive driver, mySafetyValet, Steer into Savings, and good driver.
- Liberty Mutual offers discounts including teen driver discount, newly married, good student, multi-policy, and new graduate.
Double check with each company how many discounts you can get. A few discounts may not apply to policyholders in San Diego. If you would like to view companies that offer discounts in San Diego, click here.
Are insurance agencies of importance?
Some consumers would prefer to buy from a local agent and that is a smart decision Professional insurance agents are trained risk managers and help submit paperwork. One of the benefits of comparing insurance prices online is the fact that drivers can get better rates and still have an agent to talk to. Buying from and supporting local agencies is still important in San Diego.
After filling out this simple form, the quote information is transmitted to local insurance agents who will give competitive quotes for your insurance coverage. There is no reason to contact any agents because quoted prices will be sent to you instantly. If you need to quote rates from a specific insurance provider, you would need to navigate to their website to submit a rate quote request.
Compare rates from both independent and exclusive car insurance agents
When searching for a local San Diego insurance agent, there are two different types of agencies and how they operate. Insurance agencies may be either exclusive or independent (non-exclusive). Both types can insure your vehicles properly, but it’s good to learn the difference between them since it can impact buying decisions.
Independent Insurance Agents
Independent insurance agents are not employed by any specific company so they can write business with an assortment of companies and find you the best rates. If premiums increase, they simply move the coverage in-house without you having to go to a different agency. If you are comparing rate quotes, it’s a good idea to get quotes from a few independent agents in order to have the best price comparison. Many write coverage with small regional insurance companies which could offer lower prices.
Below are San Diego independent insurance agents that may be able to give free insurance quotes.
- Oversea Insurance Agency, Inc
1274 Scott St – San Diego, CA 92106 – (800) 266-2662 – View Map - Barney and Barney Insurance Services LLC
9171 Towne Centre Dr Suite 500 – San Diego, CA 92122 – (800) 321-4696 – View Map - San Diego Insurance
4411 Mercury St #105b – San Diego, CA 92111 – (858) 565-6695 – View Map
Exclusive Insurance Agencies
These type of agents can only place business with one company and examples are Allstate, State Farm and Farmers Insurance. They generally cannot compare other company’s rates so you might not find the best rates. These agents are usually well trained on sales techniques and that can be a competitive advantage. Some people will only choose to use an exclusive agent mostly because of high brand loyalty rather than low rates.
Below are exclusive insurance agencies in San Diego that can give you price quote information.
- Theresa Nguyen-Muth – State Farm Insurance Agent
6650 Flanders Dr F – San Diego, CA 92121 – (858) 450-6000 – View Map - Dave Murphy – State Farm Insurance Agent
12121 Scripps Summit Dr Ste 100 – San Diego, CA 92131 – (858) 621-6681 – View Map - Rick Wiese – State Farm Insurance Agent
2333 Camino del Rio S – San Diego, CA 92108 – (619) 293-7211 – View Map
Deciding on an auto insurance agent requires more thought than just a cheap quote. These questions are important to ask:
- Do you have coverage for a rental car if your vehicle is in the repair shop?
- Are there any hidden costs in their price quote and does it include driving and credit history?
- Does the agent recommend any additional coverage?
- Do they offer accident forgiveness?
- What will you get paid if your car is a total loss? How is that amount determined?
- What insurance company do they write the most business with?
One last thing about your coverage
People change insurance companies for a variety of reasons including not issuing a premium refund, denial of a claim, lack of trust in their agent or unfair underwriting practices. Regardless of your reason for switching companies, finding a great new company is pretty easy and you might even save some money in the process.
We just covered a lot of techniques to reduce Buick Rainier insurance premium rates online in San Diego. The key concept to understand is the more quotes you get, the better likelihood of getting affordable Buick Rainier insurance quotes. Consumers may even find the biggest savings come from a small mutual company.
Cheap Buick Rainier insurance in San Diego is available from both online companies and with local San Diego insurance agents, and you should be comparing both so you have a total pricing picture. Some insurance companies don’t offer online quoting and many times these small, regional companies work with independent agencies.
Even more information is available in these articles:
- Preventing Carjacking and Theft (Insurance Information Institute)
- How Much are San Diego Auto Insurance Rates for Good Drivers? (FAQ)
- What Insurance is Cheapest for Uninsured Drivers in San Diego? (FAQ)
- Auto Theft Statistics (Insurance Information Institute)
- Auto Insurance Basics (Insurance Information Institute)
- Speed and Speed Limit FAQ (iihs.org)
- Auto Insurance FAQ (Farmers Insurance)