Summary:
Automobile insurance is something you just have to buy if you want to drive a vehicle on any public roadway here in Florida. There's no getting around it. Every time an insurance policy is cancelled for any reason the state of Florida is notified - and if a new insurance policy isn't taken out immediately, the state has the power to revoke the uninsured vehicle's registration tags, making it a crime to drive that vehicle.
The upshot of all of this is that virtually every d...
Automobile insurance is something you just have to buy if you want to drive a vehicle on any public roadway here in Florida. There's no getting around it. Every time an insurance policy is cancelled for any reason the state of Florida is notified - and if a new insurance policy isn't taken out immediately, the state has the power to revoke the uninsured vehicle's registration tags, making it a crime to drive that vehicle.
The upshot of all of this is that virtually every driver wants to get the best rates on automobile insurance in Florida. The good news - it's not as difficult to drive down your automobile insurance rates as you might have thought.
If your automobile is being financed your lender will require that you not only have your vehicle insured, but that you carry considerably more than the state-required minimum insurance, so if you are considering buying a new car it makes sense to talk to your automobile insurance agent first and find out ahead of time just how expensive it's going to be to insure the make and model you have your eye on.
Remember, some new cars cost a lot more to insure than others.
Your driving record can affect the cost of your insurance more than almost anything else. Do everything in your power to keep your driving record as pristine as possible. A speeding ticket or any other moving violation will send your premium upward. A conviction for a DUI or a DWI will skyrocket your monthly premium and a second DUI or DWI conviction will send you to the high-risk insurance pool where premiums are over the head of most drivers.
Being young also puts you in a high-risk category. If you're under 25 there isn't a lot you can do about your age, but if you stay in school and can maintain at least a 3.0 grade point average then you can qualify for at least a 5% Good Student reduction in your monthly premium.
If you have other insurance policies with the same insurance company, such as life insurance or homeowner's insurance or health insurance you should qualify for a nice Multi-Policy Discount on your monthly premium.
If you've been insured by the same company for 5 years or longer you may very well qualify for a Long-Term Discount on your automobile policy. In fact, most insurance companies have several discounts that are not promoted and it can pay you handsomely to simply call your agent twice a year and ask point-blank if there are any odd-ball discounts of any kind that you might qualify for.
If you are at least 55 years old you may have noticed that your insurance rates have started to climb. You can keep them in check and even reduce them by around 10% if you take and pass a special driver's refresher course. Not all insurance companies offer this discount so you'll need to check with your agent to see if you can qualify.
Don't waste your money paying for collision and comprehensive insurance if your car is so old it has no Kelly Blue Book value. Your insurance won't pay you more than Blue Book value if your car is damaged, so if your automobile has no Blue Book value you'll get nothing after an accident regardless of whether you've been paying for the insurance or not.
Lastly, how large of a deductible can you honestly afford? The larger your deductible the smaller your monthly automobile premium will be. But don't make your deductible larger than you can honestly afford since this is cash you'll need to come up with out of your own pocket any time you file a claim.
O.K. Now you're armed with everything you need to know in order to create the policy that's right for you with all of the built-in deductions that you can possibly find. So it's time to get online and start comparing the cost for your dream policy at every insurance company here in Florida.
Remember, in order to compare every insurance company in Florida you can't stop after making comparisons on just one site - you'll have to take the extra time to make your comparisons on at least 3 different websites. Once you have done that, and you've found the very best rates on automobile insurance in Florida, then you can rest easy and enjoy your saving month after month, year after year.