Car insurance companies offer discounts in a variety of circumstances. You may already know that the popular car insurance discounts include having a good driving record, combining car insurance with another type of insurance the company offers, and insuring multiple cars or family members with the same company. Car insurance companies also offer several discounts that you may not be as familiar with. Here are some popular car insurance discounts that can save you money.
- Discounts Based on Your Driving
- Discounts Based on Safety Features
- Discounts for Being a Loyal Customer
- Discounts Based on Your Credit Score
- Discounts Based on Being a Good Student
- Military and Veteran Discounts
- Other Types of Insurance Discounts
Discounts Based on Your Driving
Most car insurance companies give discounts for good driving. Insurance companies offer this discount in varying ways. Some companies give you a discount on your premium if you have not had an accident in a several years. Other companies reduce your deductible if you do not have an accident that year.
Some car insurance companies offer e-monitoring of your driving. If the monitoring device shows that your driving is safe, you get a discount on your premium. For example, Progressive offers Snapshot and Allstate offers Drivewise. These devices connect to your car and keep tabs on your driving, allowing you to get discounts from your auto insurance company.
Car insurance companies also offer discounts for low mileage. Thus, if you do not put many miles on your car per year, you pay lower premiums. This makes sense because driving less miles means there is less of a chance for you to have an accident. Although insurance companies have not set a generally accepted mileage limit for this discount, driving around 10,000 miles or less a year generally qualifies.
Discounts Based on Safety Features
Did you know that having a safer car can not only save you from being injured, it can save you money on your car insurance as well? Having features such as anti-lock brakes, airbags, traction control, and door beams can save you money on car insurance. Some safety features get you a discount on your collision insurance. For example, anti-lock brakes typically get you between a 5 and 10% discount. Other features such as airbags can get you up to a 33% deduction in your medical payments or personal injury protection insurance. Esurance offers such a discount for safety features that reduce the risk of injury. Furthermore, having anti-theft protection can get you a discount on your comprehensive insurance which covers you in the event of car theft.
Discounts for Being a Loyal Customer
Car insurance companies reward customers for their loyalty. This means that you can get a discount for having more than one car insured with the company, having more than one type of insurance policy with the company, and/or for being a long-term customer. Thus, whenever possible, get all your cars insured by the same insurance company and bundle your home, life, and car insurance from the same company to save money.
Multi-car discount:
Most car insurance companies offer discount when you add more cars to your policy. Liberty Mutual and American Family offer up to 29% discount. However, their quotes for a 2-car policy might not be the cheapest. We compare multi-car insurance quotes offered by the 10 largest insurance companies for your consideration.
>>MORE: Average Car Insurance Cost for Married Couples
Discounts Based on Your Credit Score
Just like with many other things in life such as mortgage and loan applications, having good credit pays when it comes to car insurance as well. Car insurance companies use your credit score as an approximation of risk. Drivers with a lower credit score typically pay higher insurance premiums. on the flip-side, having a higher credit score typically means that the driver pays a lower premium. However, if you live in Massachusetts, Hawaii, or California, your credit score cannot be legally factored into your auto insurance rate determination.
Discounts Based on Being a Good Student
Sixteen to 25-year-olds typically pay more for car insurance than any other age group. This is due to their lack of experience and the fact that as a group, they are higher risk drivers. Thus, this age group needs car insurance discounts more than any other group. There is good news for members of this age group that are in school. They may qualify for a good student discount. Most major car insurance companies offer discounts for students who maintain a B average or above in high school or college. Furthermore, many car insurance companies offer a student-away discount for students who are more than 100 miles away from home without their car.
Military and Veteran Discounts
Several auto insurance companies offer military discounts to current and former members of the armed forces.
- USAA – They are an auto insurance company that only serves current and former military service members. You can get a discount for garaging your car on base and up to a 60% discount if you are deployed.
- GEICO – They offer a discount to service men of 15% and up to a 25% discount if deployed.
- Arbella – They are a Massachusetts and Connecticut auto insurance company who offers a 10% discount to military service personnel who are deployed more than 100 miles away from their car.
- Armed Forces Insurance – AFI offers discounts to military personnel in the states it serves and can get them a great rate on Progressive auto insurance in 28 other states.
A number of other major insurance companies offer a discount for being a member of the armed forces so be sure to ask about this discount if you qualify.
Summary
| Discount Category | Companies | Discounts | How to Get It? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discounts Based on Your Driving | Progressive, GEICO, USAA, State Farm, Liberty Mutual, Allstate, Amica, AAA, Erie, Farmers, Nationwide | Discount tends to be up to 25% | Stay accident and ticket free |
| Discounts based on Safety Features | GEICO, USAA, State Farm, Liberty Mutual, Allstate, Amica, AAA, Erie, Farmers, Nationwide | Discount tends to be up to 25% | Have anti-lock brakes, airbags, anti-theft device |
| Discounts for Being a Loyal Customer | Progressive, GEICO, USAA, State Farm, Liberty Mutual, Allstate, Amica, AAA, Erie, Farmers, Nationwide | Discount tends to be up to 25% | Keep your insurance with the same company for a year or more, have more than one car insured with the company |
| Discounts for being A Good Student | Progressive, USAA, State Farm, Liberty Mutual, Allstate, Amica, AAA, Farmers, Nationwide | Discount tends to be up to 15% | Maintain a B average or above |
| Military and Veteran Discounts | Progressive (through AFI), GEICO, USAA, liberty Mutual | Discount tends to be up to 15% | Open to current and former members of the military |
| Multi-Policy Discount | Progressive, GEICO, USAA, State Farm, Liberty Mutual, Allstate, Amica, AAA, Erie, Farmers, Nationwide | Varies | Bundle auto insurance with another type of insurance such as home, renters, or life insurance |
| Driver Education Courses | GEICO, USAA, State Farm, Liberty Mutual, Allstate, Amica, AAA, Erie, Farmers, Nationwide | Up to 30% for young drivers, tends to be up to 15% for others | Take driver education courses that are approved by the company for discounts |
Other Types of Insurance Discounts
Different car insurance companies offer other discounts that you may want to look into.
Pay in-full discount: Many auto insurance companies offer discounts for paying the bill in six-month or annual increments. Making monthly payments makes the bill more expensive. For example, GEICO offers up to a $60 savings each year if you pay in full for the 6 months premiums up front or if you pay in 4 installments every half a year in comparison to paying monthly.
Professional membership discount: Members of certain professional and other organizations are eligible for discounts with some insurance companies.
Online discount: Many car insurance companies have unique discounts such as discounts for purchasing your policy online and more.
Others: Setting up e-payments, owning a green vehicle, and making sure your car insurance does not lapse are also ways to save on your car insurance.
There are quite a few car insurance discounts available and you may qualify for more than one. Be sure to ask your insurer which car insurance discounts you are eligible for when setting up your insurance policy.