Are you looking for a better way to compare more competitive car insurance rates in Tacoma, WA? Tacoma drivers have options when trying to find low-cost car insurance. You can either spend your time driving around to compare prices or leverage the internet to get rate quotes.
There is a right way and a wrong way to buy car insurance and you need to know the absolute fastest way to price shop coverage for a and get the lowest possible price.
A recent NerdWallet.com study revealed that the vast majority of consumers have bought car insurance from the same company for a minimum of four years, and approximately 38% of consumers have never compared rate quotes at all. Many consumers in Tacoma could cut their rates by approximately 40% a year just by getting comparison quotes, but they just don’t want to compare rates online.
Why you might pay higher rates in Tacoma
An important part of buying insurance is that you know a few of the rating criteria that aid in calculating your insurance rates. When you know what positively or negatively determines base rates, this empowers consumers to make smart changes that could help you find better insurance rates. Multiple criteria are taken into consideration when pricing auto insurance. Some are obvious such as traffic violations, although some other factors are more obscure such as whether you are married or how safe your car is.
The factors shown below are some of the most rate-impacting factors that factor into your premiums.
- Optional features that cut insurance rates – Owning a car with a theft deterrent system can save you a little every year. Advanced theft deterrents like tamper alarm systems, vehicle immobilizer technology and General Motors OnStar help track and prevent auto theft and help lower rates.
- Small claims can cost you – Auto insurance companies in Washington generally give better rates to insureds who do not rely on their insurance for small claims. If you tend to file frequent claims, you can look forward to much higher rates or policy non-renewal. Your insurance policy is designed for larger claims.
- Youthful drivers pay high costs – Older, more experienced drivers are shown to be more cautious, tend to file fewer claims, and receive fewer citations.Young drivers have been known to be inattentive when driving with friends so they pay higher insurance rates.
- Married people drive safer – Being married can actually save you money on your policy. It generally demonstrates drivers are more financially stable and statistics prove married drivers get in fewer accidents.
- Multiple policies with one company can save – Most larger insurance companies allow lower prices to policyholders that buy multiple policies, otherwise known as a multi-policy discount. Discounts can add up to as much as ten percent or more Even with this discount, consumers should still compare other company rates to help ensure you have the lowest rates. It’s possible to still save more without the discount by buying from different companies
- Save money by having excellent credit – Having a bad credit score is a big factor in determining your rates. People with high credit ratings tend to be more responsible and file fewer claims than drivers with lower ratings. Therefore, if your credit leaves room for improvement, you could pay less to insure your vehicle if you improve your credit rating.
- Safer cars lower premiums – Vehicles with high crash test scores tend to have lower insurance rates. Highly rated vehicles result in less severe injuries and any reduction in injury severity means your insurance company pays less and cheaper rates on your policy. If your car has at least an “acceptable” rating on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety website you may be receiving a better rate.
- Never go without insurance – Driving without insurance coverage in place is a misdemeanor and companies may charge more for letting your insurance expire. Not only will you pay more, the inability to provide proof of insurance might get you fines and jail time. Then you may be required to provide proof of insurance in the form of an SR-22 filing with the Washington motor vehicle department.
All major insurance companies make it easy to get coverage prices online. Obtaining pricing is quite simple as all you need to do is type in your coverage information on the page. After you complete the form, their rating system makes automated requests for your credit score and driving record and quotes a price based on the data you entered.
This makes it simple to compare prices and it is important to get many rate quotes if you want to get the cheapest possible prices on insurance.
In order to compare rates using this form now, check out the insurance providers below. If you have coverage now, it’s recommended you replicate the coverage information as shown on your current policy. Doing this guarantees you’re receiving a fair comparison based on identical coverages.
The auto insurance companies shown below are ready to provide comparison quotes in Washington. If multiple companies are listed, it’s highly recommended you click on several of them to get the most affordable price.
| Make, Model, and Trim Level | Annual Policy Premium | 6-month Policy Premium | Monthly Premium | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chevrolet Impala LS | $872 | $436 | $73 | ||||
| Chevrolet Silverado LTZ Extended Cab 4WD | $990 | $495 | $83 | ||||
| Dodge Ram Crew Cab SLT 2WD | $1,140 | $570 | $95 | ||||
| Ford Escape Limited 2WD | $700 | $350 | $58 | ||||
| Ford Explorer Limited AWD | $1,154 | $577 | $96 | ||||
| Ford F-150 STX Super Cab 2WD | $646 | $323 | $54 | ||||
| Ford Focus S 4-Dr Sedan | $756 | $378 | $63 | ||||
| Honda Accord LX 4-Dr Sedan | $786 | $393 | $66 | ||||
| Honda CR-V EX 4WD | $912 | $456 | $76 | ||||
| Honda Civic Hybrid 4-Dr Sedan | $1,278 | $639 | $107 | ||||
| Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 2WD | $926 | $463 | $77 | ||||
| Nissan Altima 3.5 SR 4-Dr Sedan | $1,256 | $628 | $105 | ||||
| Toyota Camry SE | $1,236 | $618 | $103 | ||||
| Toyota Corolla S | $944 | $472 | $79 | ||||
| Toyota Prius | $974 | $487 | $81 | ||||
| Get Your Own Custom Quote Go | |||||||
Cost estimates assume single female driver age 50, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1000 deductibles, and Washington minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, multi-policy, homeowner, claim-free, and multi-vehicle. Premium amounts do not factor in zip code location which can influence insurance rates noticeably.
How much more does full coverage cost in Tacoma?
The information below visualizes the comparison of Dodge Ram annual premium costs with and without full coverage. The information is based on a clean driving record, no at-fault accidents, $250 deductibles, single female driver, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
Dodge Ram rates are for example purposes only. To get rates for your specific vehicle, click here.
Should you be buying full coverage?
There is no clear-cut formula to stop paying for physical damage insurance, but there is a guideline you can use. If the annual cost of your full coverage insurance is 10% or more of the vehicle’s replacement cost less your deductible, then it could be time to drop full coverage.
For example, let’s assume your Dodge Ram replacement cost is $3,000 and you have $1,000 deductibles. If your vehicle is totaled, you would only receive $2,000 after paying the physical damage deductible. If you are paying over $200 a year for your policy with full coverage, then it could be time to drop full coverage.
There are some scenarios where only buying liability is not financially feasible. If you still have a loan on your vehicle, you have to keep full coverage in order to keep the loan. Also, if you can’t afford to buy a different vehicle in the event your current vehicle is totaled, you should keep full coverage in place.
Buying the right vehicle insurance in Washington is an important decision
Even though rates can get expensive, buying insurance serves an important purpose.
First, the majority of states have mandatory insurance requirements which means it is punishable by state law to not carry a specific minimum amount of liability coverage in order to drive the car. In Washington these limits are 25/50/10 which means you must have $25,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $50,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $10,000 of property damage coverage.
Second, if your vehicle has a loan, it’s most likely the lender will make it mandatory that you have physical damage coverage to guarantee their interest in the vehicle. If you do not pay your insurance premiums, the bank may insure your vehicle for a much higher rate and require you to pay a much higher amount than you were paying before.
Third, insurance safeguards both your vehicle and your assets. It will also cover medical expenses for you, your passengers, and anyone else injured in an accident. As part of your policy, liability insurance also covers all legal expenses up to the policy limit if someone files suit against you as the result of an accident. If your car is damaged in a storm or accident, comprehensive and collision coverage will pay to have it repaired.
The benefits of insuring your vehicle definitely exceed the cost, especially when you need to use it. But the average driver in Washington is currently overpaying as much as $750 every year so it’s recommended you shop around each time the policy renews to be sure current rates are still competitive.
Get discounts on Tacoma car insurance
Car insurance is not cheap, but companies offer discounts to help bring down the price. Some discounts will apply when you quote, but once in a while a discount must be manually applied in order for you to get them. If you’re not getting every credit you qualify for, you are just wasting money.
- Sign Online – A few larger companies give back up to $50 for buying your policy on their website.
- Good Student Discount – Being a good student may save as much as 25% on a Tacoma car insurance quote. Most companies allow this discount well after school through age 25.
- Data Collection Discounts – Drivers who elect to allow driving data collection to monitor driving manner remotely like Allstate’s Drivewise may get a rate reduction if they exhibit good driving behavior.
- Auto/Life Discount – If the company offers life insurance, you could get a discount if you purchase life insurance from them.
- Accident Forgiveness – Not really a discount, but a handful of insurance companies will let one accident slide before they charge you more for coverage as long as you don’t have any claims for a specific time period.
- Low Mileage Discounts – Maintaining low annual mileage could qualify for substantially lower car insurance rates.
Discounts reduce rates, but you should keep in mind that some credits don’t apply to your bottom line cost. Most only apply to the price of certain insurance coverages like medical payments or collision. Despite the fact that it seems like adding up those discounts means a free policy, that’s just not realistic.
Some of the insurance companies that may offer these money-saving discounts possibly include:
If you need affordable Tacoma car insurance quotes, ask all the companies which discounts you qualify for. Depending on the company, some discounts might not apply in Tacoma. For a list of insurance companies that provide some of the discounts listed above in Tacoma, follow this link.
What if I want to buy from local Tacoma auto insurance agents?
Some consumers still like to go talk to an agent and that is a personal choice. Agents will help you protect your assets and help submit paperwork. A nice benefit of comparing rate quotes online is that you can obtain cheaper prices and still buy from a local agent. Buying insurance from local insurance agents is important particularly in Tacoma.
Upon completion of this simple form, your insurance coverage information gets sent to insurance agents in Tacoma who want to provide quotes to get your business. It’s much easier because you don’t need to contact any agents since price quotes are sent to your email. In the event you want to compare prices for a specific company, you can always find their quoting web page and fill out their quote form.
Exclusive or Independent: There is a difference
If you want to buy car insurance from a good insurance agency, it helps to know the two different types of agencies and how they are distinctly different. Insurance agencies in Tacoma can be described as either independent (non-exclusive) or exclusive. Both can insure your vehicles properly, but it’s good to learn why they differ because it can influence the kind of agent you use.
Independent Car Insurance Agents
Agents of this type are not employed by one company so they can insure your vehicles with any number of different companies and possibly get better coverage at lower prices. If your agent finds better pricing, the agent simply finds a different carrier and you won’t have to switch agencies. If you are comparing rate quotes, you absolutely need to include a couple of independent agencies for maximum quote selection. Many independent agencies also insure through small regional insurance companies which may have better rates.
Featured below are independent insurance agents in Tacoma that may be able to give you price quote information.
- Rawlings Timothy
1201 Pacific Ave # 1000 – Tacoma, WA 98402 – (253) 759-2200 – View Map - Sound Pacific Insurance
4218 S Steele St #300 – Tacoma, WA 98409 – (253) 237-9009 – View Map - Taylor-Thomason Insurance
3401 S 19th St #200 – Tacoma, WA 98405 – (800) 701-5909 – View Map
Exclusive Insurance Agencies
These type of agents can only place business with one company and examples are Allstate, AAA, Farmers Insurance, and State Farm. Exclusive agents are unable to provide prices from multiple companies so they have to upsell other benefits. Exclusive agents are usually well trained in insurance sales which helps offset the inability to provide other markets. A lot of people use the same agent partially due to the brand rather than low rates.
Below are Tacoma exclusive insurance agents that can give you price quote information.
- Farmers Insurance – Benjamin Johnson
1010 S L St – Tacoma, WA 98405 – (253) 252-2529 – View Map - Farmers Insurance – Colleen Casey
6720 Regents Blvd #112 – Tacoma, WA 98466 – (253) 365-6486 – View Map - Farmers Insurance – David Beckwith
6240 Tacoma Mall Blvd #209 – Tacoma, WA 98409 – (253) 475-3443 – View Map
Finding the right auto insurance agent shouldn’t rely on just the bottom line cost. Here are some questions you might want to ask.
- What insurance company do they write the most business with?
- Is every driver in your family covered?
- Will their companies depreciate repairs to your car based on the mileage?
- Is there a local claims center in Tacoma?
- Will the agent or a CSR service your policy?
How do I know if I need professional advice?
When choosing the right insurance coverage for your personal vehicles, there really is not a best way to insure your cars. Your needs are unique to you so your insurance needs to address that.
For instance, these questions can help discover if your situation will benefit from professional help.
- Do I have ACV or replacement cost coverage?
- Does car insurance cover theft of personal property?
- Does rental coverage apply when I am renting a car?
- Does my policy cover me when driving someone else’s vehicle?
- Is my camper covered by my car insurance policy?
- What is no-fault insurance?
- When do I need to add a new car to my policy?
If you’re not sure about those questions but you think they might apply to your situation, you might consider talking to a licensed insurance agent. If you want to speak to an agent in your area, complete this form or you can go here for a list of companies in your area. It’s fast, free and can provide invaluable advice.
Cheaper auto insurance rates are out there
More affordable auto insurance in Tacoma is available from both online companies and from local agencies, so you need to quote Tacoma car insurance with both in order to have the best price selection to choose from. Some companies do not offer online price quotes and most of the time these small, regional companies provide coverage only through local independent agents.
When buying insurance coverage, it’s not a good idea to buy less coverage just to save a little money. Too many times, an insured cut uninsured motorist or liability limits only to regret at claim time that it was a big mistake. The aim is to purchase plenty of coverage at the best price but still have enough coverage for asset protection.
More information can be found on the following sites:
- Auto Insurance for Teen Drivers (Insurance Information Institute)
- Who Has Affordable Auto Insurance Quotes for a Jeep Wrangler in Seattle? (FAQ)
- Who Has Cheap Car Insurance Rates for Handicapped Drivers in Seattle? (FAQ)
- How Much is Seattle Auto Insurance for a Honda Accord? (FAQ)
- Car Insurance for Teen Drivers with Divorced Parents (Allstate)
- Your Car has been Stolen: Now What? (Allstate)
- Winter Driving (Insurance Information Institute)
- Learn About Car Insurance (GEICO)