Driving in the United States is indispensable to a driver's license and car insurance. Leaving aside the fact that all state laws have minimum liability insurance requirements, and going on the road without insurance is tantamount to breaking the law; In case of an accident, the medical expenses and maintenance expenses in the United States are notoriously expensive, and having to pay for it yourself is the rhythm of bankruptcy in minutes. Therefore, car insurance must not only be bought, but also enough to buy.

So how to choose auto insurance, how to buy cheap? How much payout line is appropriate, which options should be bought, and which ones can be reduced monthly fees? A rain today for everyone to give homework notes, scratch the point!

u.s. auto insurance science

conventional car insurance usually has the following items:

Liability Coverage

Liability liability insurance is also commonly referred to as "half insurance", which is the insurance that is mandatory to purchase in the vast majority of states, including Bodily injury liability (BIL/personal injury liability insurance) and Property damage liability (PDL/property damage liability insurance). When an accident occurs, if the liability is on you, Liability will cover the cost of personal injury (medical expenses) and property damage (such as maintenance costs, property damage, etc.) within the sum insured.

Most states have mandatory requirements for drivers to purchase liability insurance, such as the minimum liability insurance coverage requirement in Oregon, where a Rain is located, is 25/50/20, of which

• 25 represents a maximum payout of $25,000 for the other party's single medical expenses insurance

• 50 indicates that if more than one person is injured in a single accident, the maximum total coverage is $50,000

• 20 means that the insurance pays the other party's property damage up to $20,000

it is conceivable that if the accident is more serious, this minimum sum insured is simply not enough to pay compensation. if the other party files a lawsuit, then the remaining money will have to be paid out of their own pockets, which may not matter to the small partners who have no personal assets, but if they have a car and a house and a deposit, they will lose bankruptcy in minutes.

therefore, for small partners with a certain amount of wealth, it is best to buy an insurance amount higher than the total value of personal net assets, for example, people with a house usually buy at least 100/300/50 ($100,000 single personal injury / $300,000 total personal injury / $50,000 property loss), and people with higher wealth will usually increase the total personal injury and property loss of a single accident.

Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage

The Liability Coverage mentioned earlier is that you pay the other party when you hit someone, and when you are hit by someone (the responsibility is on the other party), the other party pays you. But what if the other party doesn't have insurance? According to official statistics, on average, 1 in 8 drivers in the United States has not bought car insurance.

When the responsibility lies with the other party and the other party is not insured, or when hit-and-run is encountered, Uninsured Motorist (UM) insurance will reimburse you for your losses. UM insurance is also divided into Bodily Injury (UMBI) and Property Damage (UMPD) programs, and the sum insured is usually the same as liability.

Underinsured Motorist (UIM) insurance intervenes when the other party is also insured for negligence, but the sum insured is not enough to cover your loss.

UM AND UIM INSURANCE ALSO HAS MANDATORY PURCHASE REQUIREMENTS IN SOME AREAS, AND IN OTHER REGIONS IT IS A VOLUNTARY PURCHASE PRINCIPLE, FOR SMALL PARTNERS WHO ONLY BUY HALF INSURANCE, ADDING SOME MONEY TO BUY UM AND UIM INSURANCE IS ALSO A KIND OF PROTECTION FOR THEMSELVES.

Medical Payments Coverage

MedPay insurance is the insurance that when an accident occurs, regardless of the party responsible, the insurance will reimburse you and the passengers in your car, or your authorized driver for medical expenses or funeral expenses; You will even pay for medical expenses that result in injuries when you and your family are walking on the road or riding in someone else's car (check with the insurance company for reimbursement).

In some areas, MedPay is mandatory, but most are voluntary purchases.

Personal Injury Protection

PIP is similar to the previously mentioned MedPay, in that regardless of the liability, the insurance will reimburse you, your authorized driver, and the passengers in your car for medical and funeral expenses that have been injured in a car accident, and will also reimburse you for being injured in a car accident while walking or riding in someone else's vehicle. But unlike MedPay, which is only responsible for medical expenses, PIP reimburses a wider range of expenses, and PIP will even reimburse you for the wages you lost due to the injury of the car accident, the need for additional childcare, and other non-medical expenses caused by the car accident. (The specific reimbursement scope should be consulted with the insurance company)

PIP INSURANCE IS MANDATORY IN SOME REGIONS AND VOLUNTARY IN OTHERS, BUT NOT ALL STATES HAVE THIS OPTION.

Collision Coverage

Collision Collision Insurance will cover your car repair costs due to collision accidents, including accidents such as hitting other vehicles, hitting railings or trees, overturning the car, or even damage to the car caused by driving over potholes.

Unlike liability insurance, collision insurance does not have a specific sum insured, and its maximum payout is your car's Acid Cash Value minus Deductible. For example, if you buy a car with a $30,000 knife, the crash insurance deductible is $500, and after driving for a few months, it becomes a serious "Totaled" (maintenance cost exceeds the actual value of the vehicle), and the current market price of the car is $25,000, then the insurance will only pay $24,500.

the price of collision insurance is usually related to deductible, and the lower the deductible amount, the more expensive the insurance cost. generally speaking, when leasing car rental, loan to buy a car, etc., the car dealership or bank will force the owner to purchase collision insurance, and the rest of the time it is a voluntary purchase principle.

Comprehensive Coverage

In addition to the damage caused by the collision, there will be other unfortunate accidents, such as the car was hit by a large hailstone, smashed by a fallen tree, hit by a fire, soaked by floods, or even maliciously damaged or stolen, etc. At this time, the Composite Accident Insurance is required to pay for car repairs. Another interesting thing is that collision insurance does not cover the damage caused by the collision between the vehicle and the animal, and the car is damaged by the animal to be reimbursed by the comprehensive accident insurance.

Comprehensive accident insurance, like collision insurance, also has a deductible option, the maximum payment is car ACV minus deductible, if there is a loan or ease, it is generally mandatory.

other additional insurance options

in addition to the above major car insurance items, there are other insurance items that can be selected by adding a small fee (usually one knife to a few knives per month). for example:

Rental Reimbursement: If your car needs to be left for repair, the insurance will reimburse you for the rental cost of the car during this period, usually up to a per-day and per-accident total cost per accident.

Towing and Roadside Assistance: If there is a problem with the car halfway, the insurance will provide free towing service (there may be a distance limit) or other roadside assistance services, such as sending someone to help you solve the problem of battery battery, no gasoline, flat tire replacement, door locking, etc.

New-Car Replacement Insurance: The aforementioned caps on collision and comprehensive accident insurance are only the actual value of the car at the moment, and due to the depreciation of the new car, the average price of each model model in the first year is 25%. If the new car is unfortunately totaled, the ACV amount paid by the insurance will never buy a new car of the same type, and may not even be enough to repay the loan. If you have new car insurance, then the insurance will also pay the difference between the same new car and the current price of the car (paid by collixion/comprehensive) minus deductible. But insurers don't necessarily have this option.

Gap Insurance: This is similar to new car insurance, which is responsible for paying the difference between the current price of the car (paid by colliesion/comprehensive) and the loan amount minus deductible. If you have less downpayment when you take out a loan, or if the model depreciation is more severe, and you are not too confident in your luck, you can consider adding a difference insurance to protect you.

factors affecting car insurance premiums

when many people buy car insurance, they will reduce the insurance cost by reducing the amount of insurance or increasing the amount of self-payment, but in fact, the level of premium will be affected by many other objective factors. insurance companies will estimate the risk of accidents of policyholders based on various objective factors, and understanding these laws can make you more aware of what to do to reduce premiums.

age and gender

generally speaking, under the same conditions, the younger the premium, the lower the premium for female drivers than for men, especially when under 20 years of age, the premium for boys may be $600/year higher than that of girls, but as they age, the difference between the two will gradually decrease.

usually after the age of 25, the premium price can get a relatively large discount, which can be reduced by 20% compared with before. and under the same conditions, male drivers may instead have lower premiums than female drivers, because according to statistics, older female drivers will have higher accidents than men.

marital status

gender cannot be changed, and age can only wait. however, statistics suggest that married people have less risk of accidents than single (including widows and widows) drivers, and that premiums after marriage are usually 5% to 15% lower than when they were single.

especially for male drivers, if the previous driving record is good, the car insurance premium after marriage can even be reduced by half!

place of residence

the insurance company will judge whether you are in a high-risk area for car accidents from the address you provide, and the premium for living in a densely populated and high-traffic city center will certainly be more expensive than in the sparsely populated suburbs; in addition, the unemployment rate, crime rate, and proportion of uninsured drivers will also have an impact on the premium, because the chance of cars being stolen and smashed in high-risk areas will also be greater.

credit score

Many insurance companies will also consider the credit score of the insured when calculating premiums, and some research data believe that people with low credit scores have a higher chance of filing a Claim ( claim ) , and are more likely to overstate high amounts or even cheat insurance.

in addition, people with low credit scores may also be required to purchase insurance for half a year or a year at a time to avoid defaulting on premiums.

occupation

some insurance companies will also link the driver's profession with the risk of accidents, such as truck drivers or journalists, which often have to drive outside the profession and pilot flight attendants, which have fewer driving opportunities, and the probability of encountering accidents will naturally be higher; or police, paramedics, and insurance workers may get lower prices because people in such occupations are perceived to act more cautiously.

models

the same person drives different cars, and the insurance cost will also be slightly different. for example, if the car safety level is relatively high, then the probability of serious injury to passengers in the event of an accident will be lower, and the premium will naturally be cheaper. therefore, many times the premium of the big car will be cheaper than the car, and the premium of the sports car with the big engine will be more expensive than the average car.

in addition, the price of the car, the cost of maintenance, the theft rate, etc. are also factors that affect the level of the premium, and sometimes even if the new car is equipped with some safety features such as collision warning systems, but because the cost of repair is also very expensive, the premium will also be higher.

driving history

REGARDLESS OF AGE, INEXPERIENCED DRIVERS ARE ALWAYS AT HIGHER RISK OF DRIVING, AND PREMIUMS ARE NATURALLY MORE EXPENSIVE. IN ADDITION, PAST DRIVING RECORDS, WHETHER THERE IS SPEEDING, DUI DRUNK DRIVING, ETC., OR WHETHER THERE HAVE BEEN ACCIDENTS OR INSURANCE CLAIMS IN THE RECENT PAST, THESE WILL AFFECT THE PREMIUM.

Some minor violations, such as speeding, may increase premiums by 20% to 40%; If it is a big problem such as DUI, it is possible to more than double the premium, and if there are more tickets, the insurance company will even refuse the insurance.

usually for some minor accident claims or violation records that are not injured, it may affect the premium for three years; if there is a claim with a record of injury, the premium may rise for five years before it comes down; a drunk driving record can affect premiums for up to 10 years.

daily usage

insurance companies will also estimate premiums based on the daily use of the owner, usually if the daily driving distance is short, then the chance of encountering an accident will be relatively small, and the premium can have a certain discount. in addition, if the car is usually parked in a safer place (such as your garage vs street), the premium will be cheaper.

sometimes, even if you live in a safer area, if you drive a long distance during your daily life, your insurance company may judge that you need to drive to other high-risk areas with a lot of traffic, and will raise your premiums.

past insurance status

according to statistics, people who have continuously purchased car insurance have less chance of accidents while driving, and if you have been buying insurance and have not been disconnected at all, the premium will be lower than that of people who have not been insured recently.

If you have a car but don't drive it for a while, it's better to buy a parking insurance plan commonly known as "Parked Car Insurace" or "Storage Insurance" (equivalent to just buying a fullheensive), so that when you renew your regular insurance, the premium will not rise.

If you already have a driver's license but don't have a car, or have just sold your original car and haven't bought a new one, you can also consider purchasing a cheaper "Non-Owner Car Insurance" (non-owner car insurance), which is generally only responsible for the liability part (BIL and PDL), and some insurance companies may also have MedPay, UMBI and UIMBI options. And the insurance company will lower the premium because you don't have a car – > fewer opportunities to drive – > safer – >.

for example, when you drive a friend's car, what accident occurs, the responsibility is on you, although the friend has to buy insurance will also protect the authorization of you to drive, but if the friend's insurance amount is not enough to compensate, then your non-owner car insurance can be made up. and with non-owner car insurance, when you buy a car to buy insurance in the future, the premium can also get a better price advantage.

how to buy car insurance cheaply?

don't assume that a certain insurance company must be the cheapest

the proportion of various factors on the impact of car insurance costs is not the same, and each insurance company also has its own different calculation formulas and uses different databases, so when small partners buy insurance, they must have more than one price, and shop around to really save money.

for a to get the cheapest premium of the insurance company, may be the most expensive for b, must be based on their own situation to personally compare the price, in order to know which company has the lowest price.

local insurance companies should not miss it either

When it comes to insurance, the friends often hear about Allstate, Geico, Progressive, Farmers and State Farm These are the names of some of the country's well-known large insurance companies, but in fact, in addition to the big brands, some regional small companies may also have good prices and services.

everyone do more homework, ask people nearby, look at user reviews, sometimes in addition to the price, the service level of local insurance is also very important, otherwise there are really problems to apply for claims when there are many procedures, delay time is troublesome.

Remember to ask The Disccounts

there are also many discounts on car insurance, such as the common:

• Multi-car discount, if you have more than one car (such as one for husband and wife), there will be a discount when buying insurance together;

• Bundled discount, if you also need to buy home owner ins. or life insurance (life ins.), there will be a discount on the same company;

• Safety equipment discount, if your car is equipped with some anti-theft or security features, you can also get a discount;

• Driver training discounts, some insurance companies give discounts to young drivers who have taken qualified driving courses;

• Defensive driving discount, which is usually given to seniors (50+) who have taken an eligible driving course;

• Good driver discount, there is also a discount on a good driving record (so after two or three years you should re-inquire);

• Good student discount, many times student parties can also have discounts if their grades are above B;

• Loyalty discount, long-term insurance in the same company will also have a loyalty discount;

• Member discount, sometimes to become a member of some specific organization or group will also have insurance discounts.

although these car insurance discounts are more or less not necessarily, when each insurance company inquires about what discounts can be obtained, and then compare the choices.

pay your premiums on time

credit history is also related to the level of premiums, pay premiums on time, you can accumulate and pull up your credit score, and it is useful to live in the united states.

choose a car with a cheaper premium when buying a car

When buying a new car, you should not only consider the price, fuel consumption, maintenance and other costs, but also consult an insurance broker to consider some models with cheaper premiums in the same situation. According to the statistics of the DMV.org, the following 10 car premiums are the most cost-effective in 2018:

• Jeep Wrangler

• Subaru Outback

• Mazda CX-5

• Acura RDX

• Chevrolet Silverado 1500

• GMC Canyon

• Subaru Forester

• Acura MDX

• Ford Expedition

• Volvo XC60

the top 10 with the most expensive/least cost-effective premiums are as follows:

• Nissan Maxima

• Scion tC

• Chrysler 200 2WD

• Scion iA

• Ford Mustang

• Dodge Challenger

• Kia Optima

• Dodge Charger

• Scion FR-S

• Mitsubishi Lancer

Improve Deductible

If you buy full insurance, choosing a higher diductible means that you need to pay more out of pocket if you want to repair the car, but the premium can also be reduced, according to ConsumerReports statistics, the couple will guarantee two Toyota Camry LE, if you raise the deductible from $500 to $1000, you can save an average of $140 per year.

if you have a good driving record and have not had any accidents, you may wish to consider increasing the deductible limit, which can also avoid some small bumps and think of filing insurance claims. of course, the premise of increasing the deductible is to be sure that in case something happens, you can pay the money at once.

ask the insurance company to offer a few different deductibles to compare and see which option is more suitable for you.

Consider joining PIP and MedPay according to actual needs

(Image courtesy of Buy Auto Insurance Online, copyright belongs to the original author)

If there is no mandatory requirement to buy PIP or MedPay in the state, small partners can refer to the following comparison.

PIP and MedPay are mainly to pay for their own medical expenses at the time of the car accident, if their own health insurance (health insurance) is better, they can also reimburse the medical expenses related to the car accident (you need to consult your own medical insurance), in fact, this money can also be saved.

Another thing to consider is that PIP and MedPay not only protect the owner but also protect the passengers, if your usual passengers' medical insurance is not very good, then pip and MedPay can be of great help when there is an accident.

Many people will choose PIP and skip MedPay, because PIP not only reimburses medical expenses, but also reimburses non-medical expenses. But PIP usually has deductible (out-of-pocket expenses) and MedPay does not, and the other two may have a cap on the sum insured, so there are also some people who buy both PIP and MedPay to increase the sum insured, and use MedPay to reimburse the out-of-pocket part of pip or Medicare.

eliminate collision insurance and comprehensive accident insurance for old cars

if there is no mandatory requirement, is collision insurance and comprehensive accident insurance worth buying? it depends on the value of your car. experts suggest that if the total cost of buying a colliesion and compoundsive in a year exceeds 10% of the value of the car, it is not worth reinvesting insurance. for example, if your car is only worth $4000 and the union/comprehensive insurance costs $400 a year, there is no need to continue to buy full insurance.

therefore, many people who drive old cars only buy half insurance, while new car owners usually buy full insurance.

cancel some unnecessary extra insurance

As mentioned earlier, car insurance will also have some additional options, such as reimbursement for rental cars or trailers. But if you have other cars or you don't have to drive out, you don't have to pay rental reimbursement; And a lot of times you buy a new car manufacturer will also have a free roadside assistance service, or you join a AAA membership or have a credit card with similar benefits, and you don't need to spend money on trailer insurance.

Consider Age-Based Insurance

• Allstate Drivewise: If you don't drive at night, drive at speeds of up to 80MPH, and don't brake hard, you'll get a 3% discount on Drivewise, and you'll get up to 15% cashback if you keep up to a good driving habit.

• Progressive Snapshot: The instrument records events such as driving numbers, driving time, sharp brakes or sharp turns, and you can get a small discount when you participate in a Snapshot event, and up to 30% discount for drivers with good driving habits.

• State Farm Drive Safe & Save: Similar to snapshot, you get a 5% off premium discount on joining, up to 50% off premium discount. However, if you yourself enjoy the low driving number discount of 7500 miles or less, and the instrument records that you have traveled more than this distance, the premium will increase.

• Safeco Rewind: Good drivers can also have accidents, safeco Rewind project is to give this kind of good driver a second chance, if you because of speeding or some small illegal tickets, or a car accident and lead to higher premiums, participate in the Rewind project with its home instruments to record your driving situation, if the record is good, Safeco will immediately revoke the previous bad record and reduce the premium to the original level.

low mileage discount

the average american drive is 12,000 miles a year, and if you don't drive much or drive a short distance that is far below the average average, the insurance usually has a good discount. so if your job has changed, your driving habits have changed, and you don't drive as much now, remember to report to the insurance company and let them re-evaluate.

If you don't drive more than 10,000 miles a year, you can also see if MetroMile or Esurance Pay Per Mile will have a lower offer.

the price is re-compared every two or three years

although there is usually a certain loyalty discount for applying for insurance at the same insurance company, after a period of time various objective factors may change and lead to changes in premiums. if there is a change in living conditions, or when you find that the insurance cost is also "inflationary", you may be surprised to re-evaluate it at a different insurance company!