Did you fall for a flashy sales pitch and buy an expensive car insurance policy? You’re preaching to the choir because you’re not alone.
Shocking but true, a large majority of car insurance policyholders in Louisiana have stayed with the same insurance company for well over three years, and nearly half have never quoted rates to find affordable coverage. American insurance shoppers can save almost $860 each year, but they don’t know the rate savings if they replace their high priced policy.
Steps to saving money on Volvo S60 insurance in New Orleans
The preferred way to get discount car insurance rates is to start doing a yearly price comparison from companies who sell auto insurance in New Orleans.
Step 1: Read about the coverage provided by your policy and the steps you can take to keep rates in check. Many risk factors that drive up the price such as inattentive driving and a not-so-good credit score can be eliminated by being financially responsible and driving safely.
Step 2: Quote rates from exclusive agents, independent agents, and direct providers. Direct and exclusive agents can only give rate quotes from a single company like Progressive or Farmers Insurance, while independent agents can give you price quotes from multiple sources. Select a company
Step 3: Compare the new quotes to the price on your current policy to see if switching to a new carrier will save money. If you find better rates and make a switch, make sure coverage does not lapse between policies.
An important bit of advice to remember is to use the same deductibles and limits on every quote and and to look at as many carriers as you can. Doing this ensures a fair rate comparison and maximum price selection.
You have multiple auto insurance companies to insure vehicles with, and although it’s nice to be able to choose, it can be more challenging to compare rates and cut insurance costs.
It’s a good idea to do price comparisons on a regular basis due to the fact that insurance prices are variable and change quite frequently. Despite the fact that you may have had the best deal on Volvo S60 insurance in New Orleans a year ago you may be paying too much now. Ignore everything you know about car insurance because you’re going to get a crash course in one of the quickest ways to save on car insurance.
Just remember that making a lot of price comparisons will improve the odds of getting a lower rate than you’re paying now. Some smaller insurers do not give online New Orleans S60 insurance quotes, so it’s important to compare prices from them as well.
The auto insurance companies shown below are our best choices to provide quotes in New Orleans, LA. If your goal is to find cheap auto insurance in LA, it’s a good idea that you visit several of them in order to find the cheapest rates.
Insurance is an important decision
Despite the high cost of buying insurance for a Volvo S60 in New Orleans, maintaining insurance is required in Louisiana but it also protects you in many ways.
- The majority of states have mandatory liability insurance requirements which means you are required to carry a specific minimum amount of liability protection in order to drive the car. In Louisiana these limits are 15/30/25 which means you must have $15,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $30,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $25,000 of property damage coverage.
- If you took out a loan on your vehicle, almost all lenders will make it a condition of the loan that you have comprehensive coverage to ensure they get paid if you total the vehicle. If you default on your policy, the bank or lender will purchase a policy for your Volvo at a more expensive rate and require you to fork over a much higher amount than you were paying before.
- Insurance safeguards not only your vehicle but also your financial assets. It will also provide coverage for hospital and medical expenses for not only you but also any passengers injured in an accident. One policy coverage, liability insurance, also covers all legal expenses up to the policy limit if anyone sues you for causing an accident. If your vehicle suffers damage from an accident or hail, collision and comprehensive coverages will pay to repair the damage minus the deductible amount.
The benefits of insuring your car definitely exceed the price paid, particularly when you have a large claim. An average driver in America overpays as much as $865 each year so it’s recommended you shop around at every renewal to ensure rates are competitive.
New Orleans auto insurance discounts
Companies don’t always advertise all their discounts in a way that’s easy to find, so the below list has both the well known and also the lesser-known ways to save on auto insurance. If you’re not getting every credit you qualify for, it’s possible you qualify for a lower rate.
- Clubs and Organizations – Being in qualifying clubs or civic groups could earn you a nice discount on your bill.
- Discounts for Government Workers – Employees or retirees of the government may reduce rates when you quote New Orleans auto insurance but check with your company.
- Payment Discounts – By paying your entire bill at once rather than paying monthly you could save 5% or more.
- Defensive Driving Course – Passing a course in safe driver is a good idea and can lower rates depending on where you live.
- Accident Forgiveness Coverage – Not necessarily a discount, but companies like Progressive, Allstate, and Liberty Mutual allow you one accident without raising rates as long as you don’t have any claims for a particular time prior to the accident.
- Save with More Vehicles Insured – Buying coverage for all your vehicles on one policy could earn a price break for each car.
- Auto/Home Discount – When you combine your auto and home insurance and place coverage with the same company you could get a discount of approximately 10% to 15%.
Discounts save money, but please remember that some of the credits will not apply to the overall cost of the policy. Some only apply to individual premiums such as medical payments or collision. Just because you may think you can get free auto insurance, you won’t be that lucky.
A few companies who might offer many of the previously listed discounts possibly include:
When comparing rates, check with each company to give you their best rates. Some of the discounts discussed earlier may not apply to policyholders in every state. For a list of providers who offer auto insurance discounts in Louisiana, click this link.
Local New Orleans insurance agents and insurance
Some people still like to get advice from a local agent and that can be a smart move One of the best bonuses of comparing rates online is the fact that you can find cheap insurance rates and still buy from a local agent. Putting coverage with local insurance agencies is important especially in New Orleans.
After filling out this quick form, your insurance data is emailed to insurance agents in New Orleans who will give competitive quotes and help you find cheaper coverage. It’s much easier because you don’t need to find an agent since price quotes are sent straight to your inbox. Get lower rates and an insurance agent to talk to. If you wish to compare prices for a specific company, just search and find their rate quote page and submit a quote form there.
Two types of New Orleans car insurance agents
When researching a reputable agency, you must know there are a couple different types of agents that differ in how they can insure your vehicles. Insurance agencies in New Orleans can be described as either exclusive or independent agents depending on their company appointments.
Independent Insurance Agencies or Brokers
Independent agencies can quote rates with many companies and that enables them to quote your coverage with an assortment of companies enabling the ability to shop coverage around. To move your coverage to a new company, they simply move your policy to a different company and you don’t have to find a new agent.
When comparing insurance rates, we recommend you include rate quotes from several independent insurance agents for the best price selection.
The following is a list of independent agents in New Orleans that may be able to provide competitive price quotes.
Martin Insurance Agency, Inc
4700 Orleans Ave – New Orleans, LA 70119 – (504) 486-6133 – View Map
Bob Swanson Insurance
824 Elmwood Park Blvd #295 – New Orleans, LA 70123 – (504) 734-0305 – View Map
Whitney Insurance Agency
650 Poydras St Suite 1500 – New Orleans, LA 70130 – (504) 581-5353 – View Map
Exclusive Insurance Agencies
Exclusive insurance agents can only place business with one company and examples are Farmers Insurance and State Farm. Exclusive agents cannot give you multiple price quotes so they really need to provide good service. Exclusive agencies receive a lot of sales training on sales techniques which helps them compete with independent agents.
Shown below are New Orleans exclusive agents who can help you get comparison quotes.
Manny Hidalgo – State Farm Insurance Agent
3837 MacArthur Blvd – New Orleans, LA 70114 – (504) 362-1919 – View Map
LeMoine Robinson – State Farm Insurance Agent
4747 Earhart Blvd a – New Orleans, LA 70125 – (504) 218-4420 – View Map
Carl Mixon – State Farm Insurance Agent
4716 Canal St – New Orleans, LA 70119 – (504) 482-7897 – View Map
Finding the right auto insurance agent needs to be determined by more than just a cheap quote. These questions are important to ask:
- Do they offer rental car reimbursement?
- Does the company have a solid financial rating?
- Do they get paid more for recommending certain coverages?
- Do they assist clients in filing claims?
- How many companies do they write for?
Parts of your insurance policy
Knowing the specifics of insurance can be of help when determining appropriate coverage and proper limits and deductibles. The terms used in a policy can be confusing and even agents have difficulty translating policy wording. Shown next are typical coverage types found on the average insurance policy.
Liability auto insurance – This protects you from damage or injury you incur to other’s property or people by causing an accident. Split limit liability has three limits of coverage: per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. Your policy might show limits of 15/30/25 which means a $15,000 limit per person for injuries, a total of $30,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $25,000 of coverage for damaged property. Occasionally you may see one limit called combined single limit (CSL) that pays claims from the same limit with no separate limits for injury or property damage.
Liability coverage pays for claims like court costs, repair bills for other people’s vehicles and emergency aid. How much liability coverage do you need? That is a personal decision, but consider buying as high a limit as you can afford. Louisiana requires drivers to carry at least 15/30/25 but you should think about purchasing more coverage.
The chart below shows why minimum state limits may not be enough coverage.
Uninsured Motorist or Underinsured Motorist insurance – This protects you and your vehicle from other motorists when they are uninsured or don’t have enough coverage. It can pay for hospital bills for your injuries and damage to your Volvo S60.
Because many people only purchase the least amount of liability that is required (15/30/25 in Louisiana), their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. That’s why carrying high Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage is very important. Usually your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverages are similar to your liability insurance amounts.
Insurance for medical payments – Coverage for medical payments and/or PIP provide coverage for short-term medical expenses for nursing services, funeral costs, pain medications and doctor visits. They can be used to cover expenses not covered by your health insurance program or if you are not covered by health insurance. It covers you and your occupants and will also cover any family member struck as a pedestrian. PIP is only offered in select states but can be used in place of medical payments coverage
Comprehensive coverage (or Other than Collision) – Comprehensive insurance coverage covers damage that is not covered by collision coverage. You need to pay your deductible first then your comprehensive coverage will pay.
Comprehensive insurance covers things such as damage from a tornado or hurricane, vandalism and hail damage. The highest amount your insurance company will pay is the ACV or actual cash value, so if it’s not worth much more than your deductible consider removing comprehensive coverage.
Collision – This coverage will pay to fix damage to your S60 from colliding with a stationary object or other vehicle. You first must pay a deductible then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.
Collision insurance covers things like crashing into a building, driving through your garage door, rolling your car, crashing into a ditch and colliding with another moving vehicle. Collision is rather expensive coverage, so you might think about dropping it from older vehicles. It’s also possible to increase the deductible on your S60 to get cheaper collision coverage.
What is YOUR best insurance company?
In this article, we presented a lot of ways to shop for Volvo S60 insurance online. The key thing to remember is the more rate quotes you have, the more likely it is that you will get a better rate. You may even be surprised to find that the best premium rates are with a company that doesn’t do a lot of advertising. They may cover specific market segments cheaper than the large multi-state companies such as State Farm, GEICO and Nationwide.
As you prepare to switch companies, don’t be tempted to buy less coverage just to save a little money. In too many instances, someone dropped comprehensive coverage or liability limits and discovered at claim time that it was a big mistake. The proper strategy is to purchase a proper amount of coverage at the lowest possible cost, not the least amount of coverage.
Low-cost Volvo S60 insurance in New Orleans is available on the web and also from your neighborhood New Orleans agents, so you need to quote New Orleans auto insurance with both to have the best selection. A few companies may not offer rates over the internet and usually these smaller providers work with independent agents.
Steps to buying cheaper Volvo S60 insurance in New Orleans
If saving money is your primary concern, then the best way to find affordable Volvo S60 insurance is to annually compare prices from insurers who can sell car insurance in New Orleans.
- First, read and learn about the different coverages in a policy and the factors you can control to prevent high rates. Many rating factors that are responsible for high rates such as traffic citations, accidents, and poor credit history can be controlled by improving your driving habits or financial responsibility.
- Second, obtain price quotes from independent agents, exclusive agents, and direct companies. Direct and exclusive agents can only provide price estimates from one company like GEICO or State Farm, while independent agents can give you price quotes for many different companies. Find a New Orleans insurance agent
- Third, compare the new rate quotes to your existing rates to see if a cheaper price is available. If you find a better price and switch companies, ensure there is no coverage lapse between policies.
- Fourth, give notification to your current company of your decision to cancel your existing policy and submit payment along with a signed and completed policy application to your new agent or company. Immediately safely store the proof of insurance certificate in a readily accessible location in your vehicle.
The critical component of shopping around is to try to use the same deductibles and limits on every price quote and and to get prices from as many companies as feasibly possible. Doing this helps ensure an accurate price comparison and and a good selection of different prices.
To read more, take a look at these articles:
- Distracted Driving (Insurance Information Institute)
- Who Has Cheap Car Insurance for Uber Drivers in New Orleans? (FAQ)
- How Much is Car Insurance for a Nissan Versa in New Orleans? (FAQ)
- Who Has the Cheapest Auto Insurance Rates for Safe Drivers in New Orleans? (FAQ)
- Red Light Cameras (State Farm)
- Rental Reimbursement Coverage (Allstate)