Top Rated Auto Insurance Carrier

Being able to trust your auto insurance company to be able to fulfill their promises in the event that you are involved in an auto accident of some kind is of paramount importance. One of the things you need to do before buying an auto insurance policy from any company is to look into their financial stability. Top rated companies obviously have more financial stability than those that are not rated so well. The reason that financial stability is so important is because if the auto insurance company is stable financially, they will be able to pay out claims to their customers. Auto insurance companies that aren’t stable could end being bankrupt or going out of business. That is bad news for their customers, because then they become responsible for the damages of an accident themselves, and most people can’t afford to pay the damages from an accident out of their own pockets.

How Are Auto Insurance Companies Rated?

Auto insurance companies are rated by independent rating agencies. An example of one of these agencies is AM Best, which provides independent screening and rating of various auto insurance companies. AM Best gives a letter grade to each company based on their financial stability in order to give consumers an idea of whether or not they are purchasing auto insurance from a well-rated company. These numbers do vary from one company to the next, so knowing how insurance companies are rated is one more important tool in getting the best policy.

Here is how to find top rated car insurance companies and what the ratings mean:

• A++ and A+ (Superior) – this means that the auto insurance company has a superior ability to meet the ongoing obligations to their policyholders
• A and A- (Excellent) – this means that the auto insurance company has an excellent ability to meet the ongoing obligations of their policyholders
• B++ and B+ (Good) – this means that the auto insurance company has a good ability to meet the ongoing obligations to their policyholders
• B and B- (Fair) – this means that the auto insurance company has a fair ability to meet the ongoing obligations of their policyholders
• C++ and C+ (Marginal) – this means that the auto insurance company has only a marginal ability to be able to meet the ongoing obligations to their policyholders
• C and C- (Weak) – this means that the auto insurance company has only a weak ability to be able to meet the ongoing obligations to their policyholders
• D (Poor) – this means that the auto insurance company has only a poor ability to be able to meet the ongoing obligations to their policyholders

With the auto insurance rating being such a crucial factor in deciding which insurance company to buy a policy from, it is always a good idea to find out this number. It is available from a number of sources which are free to anyone, but it is much simpler to find this number out from us. Most auto insurance companies also post this number on their site, but some of the lower rated companies are not anxious to advertise that fact. That is why it is better to go with us, because we protect you from companies that may not be financially stable. We only offer auto insurance from financially stable companies that are going to stand the test of time and be doing business well into the future.

We pride ourselves on only offering B+ and above auto insurance companies to our customers. We don’t want anyone to suffer unpaid claims by doing business with a less than reputable auto insurance carrier. Customer satisfaction is our greatest goal, and that means offering only quality auto insurance policies to our customers.

Other things that we look for in good auto insurance carriers include things like:

• Average customer’s overall experience with that company
• The range of policy offerings to fit a variety of auto insurance needs
• Pricing
• billing and Payment Options available to customers
• Ease of Contacting the company
• How well the company contacts the insurer

These are all things that must be considered by potential policyholders when comparing auto insurance carriers. We look for auto insurance carriers that are going to be easy to work with for our customers, and deliver the best in satisfaction and service. Auto insurance is an important thing to have, and we want you to get the best company possible. That is why we work so hard to ensure the auto insurance carriers that we work with are going to meet your needs in every possible way. You are placing your trust in us to find reputable and financially stable auto insurance companies, and we are returning that trust by offering auto insurance companies that fit those criteria. Consider it a win-win situation for everyone involved, from you, the customer, to us, to the auto insurance carriers looking for new policyholders.

-Car insurance best companies-

There are so many auto insurance companies out there vying for your attention, claiming they will give you the lowest possible price while providing the best service. Between the highly popular companies and the local companies, it can be a bit confusing to decide on which company is better suited for you. While everyone is trying to find the best one out there, the answer just might be that no one particular company is the best auto insurance choice for every driver. Each driver has their own list of priorities for an insurance company and expectations that they must meet before they are chosen.

Are you looking for an auto insurance company? Drivers who begin the search for their first auto insurance company or who want to change the insurer they are currently with need to know some things to look for in their next auto insurance provider. Always start off by making a list of things that are important to you; things that should be provided by the insurer to make your experience with them as pleasant as possible. If you are not sure what to look for or what additional expectations to have, read our suggestions below to help better explore your options.

Price
No customer wants to pay more for the same product that is offered elsewhere at a cheaper price. Often, a driver’s number one priority from an auto insurance company is to get the best price available when compared to another insurer. To make sure you’ve got the lowest price, you will need to shop around and compare what other insurers are offering to their customers. One convenient way to shop around is by using our site and entering in your information, which will then give you a list of price quotes from competing auto insurance companies in your local area. You can begin by entering your zip code on our Homepage.

Another way to guarantee you are getting the lowest price for your auto insurance is by making sure you are taking advantage of the discounts that are offered by your insurance provider. Each company has their own rules and limits on discount programs, so look for a company that offers a variety of ways to lower your insurance price. Some of these discounts include getting good grades, safety features on your vehicle, and attending specific driving courses. Most companies also have an accident forgiveness program that could save you from increasing rates should you be involved in an accident.

Customer Service
If you know that you want an excellent experience any time you make contact with your auto insurance company, always check into the prospective company’s customer service history. There are a few ways of doing this. First, during your selection process, you can call the companies you are considering and find out for yourself how they treat people over the phone with their questions. Do they treat you with respect even though you are not a customer? How do you think they would help you if you needed to file a claim in the future?

Second, you can check how their customer service rates by researching the Better Business Bureau or J.D. Power (jdpower.com). Both of these companies compile lists and information regarding other customer’s experiences with auto insurance companies. You could save yourself some headaches by knowing what other past and current customers think about different auto insurance companies you are considering to use.

Third, don’t hesitate to ask family and friends (and even friends of friends) who they use for their auto insurance and how they like the company. Try to find out how the company treated them when they were first purchasing a policy, when they changed their policy, when they filed a claim, when they had questions, etc. You will want to get a full understanding of their experience with their auto insurer so you can form a better opinion of the company’s customer service.

Financial Stability
In this weak economy with failing companies, it would be helpful to know which auto insurance companies are going to be around for a while to pay out any future claims you may make. Auto insurance companies need to have more money coming in to them (by the method of premium costs) than money going out (by paying filed claims). One way to check their financial status is through researching Weiss Ratings (weissratings.com) and A.M. Best (ambest.com). Much like the customer service review Websites, these Websites provide solid information on the likelihood of an auto insurance company paying out a claim.

These third party evaluations are not biased, compared to calling the auto insurance companies themselves and asking how their financial status is currently. Also, making sure these evaluating companies do not accept any forms of pay will keep their findings more truthful and a better way for you to compare the insurers and find the best one for you.

Convenience (close location, online bill pay, answers phone)
The convenience of an auto insurance company may also be a high expectation and help determine which company you want to use. Factors such as online bill pay, a close location, and even how many times the phone rings before it is answered can influence your decision. Any company, including auto insurance companies, should make themselves available to you and be absolutely convenient in every way. The more convenient and easy a company is to use, the more customers they will have.

An auto insurance company that is does not provide conveniences — no Website, far away, never answers the phone — should probably be dismissed as it would cause stress on your part when you do need to contact the company. Auto insurance is for your protection, and you should have every convenience offered to you.

Again, the best auto insurance company is based on matching your needs and expectations with the auto insurance company that provides the solutions. You will find that one company may be better suited for you, but someone else may disagree it’s the best choice for them. Thorough research will help you find your best company and give you a positive experience with auto insurance.

Auto Insurance Broker Allows You to Compare Quotes

Buying auto insurance through an auto insurance broker comes with many benefits often overlooked by consumers. Some of those benefits include being able to compare auto insurance quotes from multiple auto insurance companies. Many consumers may find themselves trying to decide which auto insurance company to buy insurance from.

What many consumers do not keep in mind is that when buying auto insurance through an auto insurance broker, you can compare auto insurance quotes from multiple insurance companies. Direct insurance agents will provide you rates from one single auto insurance company which limits your options and possibility of receiving competitive rates. Since each auto insurance company targets one or few driver categories, if you do not fall into their targeted category, your auto insurance rates may be high.

An auto insurance broker will most likely represent multiple auto insurance companies which will allow you to compare quotes from multiple auto insurance companies and find the right auto insurance company that will offer competitive rates for your particular driver category.

A few factors that can determine your driver category can be:

• Zip Code
• Marital Status
• Gender
• Violations
• Driving Experience
• Vehicle Type

These factors can directly determine your auto insurance rates because statistics show that the above mentioned factors directly affect the statistics of accident history.

If you fall into a certain category and are receiving cheap auto insurance rates, you may not be aware that if you receive violations or move to a different zip code, your driver category will change and your insurance rates may increase. If you are limited to one auto insurance company, changing driver categories will greatly affect you.

Another benefit of buying insurance through an auto insurance broker is that if you suddenly change categories due to any change, you have the benefits of being able to switch to another auto insurance company that your insurance broker represents which will offer your new category cheap auto insurance rates.

Be sure to keep quality service in mind. A common belief is that auto insurance brokers will not provide good service like a direct agent will which is not necessarily true. Bad service can be avoided by researching customer feedback and choosing the right auto insurance broker which will dedicate each customer the time required to provide the service you deserve.

OnlineAutoInsurance.com is an insurance broker’s website which provide auto insurance online and represents top quality auto insurance companies such as Progressive, AIG, GMAC, Infinity and more. Feel free to obtain as many free auto insurance quotes as you wish.

5 Steps to Filing Your Auto Insurance Claim

1. Evaluate whether or not you should file a claim: Did you know that just when you call your insurance company with a question about possibly filing a claim it is often recorded on your insurance record? It is important to keep your insurance record clean and one way is deciding whether or not you should file a claim. It doesn’t matter if the accident is your fault or not, you should ask yourself first if you can pay for the damage. Simply put, if you can pay for it yourself without financial hardship, don’t file the claim.

2. Fill out your What to do After an Auto Accident Worksheet: This worksheet, which when you click on the title is provided for print-out, will help you keep track of the information you will need to file your auto insurance claim. It is important to get every detail of the accident documented and to try to find witnesses that would be willing to talk to your insurance company to back-up your story.

3. File the claim ASAP: You will want to file the claim as soon as possible with your insurance company. Even if it is not your fault, your insurance company will handle the claim process as your advocate.

4. Prepare for a possible call from the other insurance company: If there is a dispute between the two parties in the accident, you may get a call from the other driver’s insurance company asking for your version of what happened at the accident scene. If this happens make sure you document everything you say and the name of the customer service agent you talked too.

5. Finally, getting your car fixed: If you had body damage to your vehicle this is when you will finally get it fixed. After your claim is approved, you will likely get a call from your insurance company about sending an insurance adjuster out to assess the damage or asking you to send your car to a pre-approved shop to get it fixed.

8 Teen Auto Insurance Mistakes

Do you have a teenager who drives, or one who will soon? Then you'll probably find out that adding a teen to your car insurance policy is sort of like balancing a valuable vase on a tiger's head: it'll probably end in an accident, and it'll probably be expensive. (Lesson number one: don't balance vases on tigers.)

The bad news: you have a teenager eager to get behind the wheel – and recent RateWatch data shows that adding a teen driver to your auto insurance policy costs over $2,000 a year on average.

The good news: auto insurance rates are coming down, so this is the perfect time to shop for policy savings. It can cost even less if you manage to…

Avoid some of these common mistakes

1. Let your kid get bad grades.
Were you aware that a "good student" discount could take as much as 10–15% off the price of your car insurance policy? You are now. Some parents pay their children to maintain a B average or better; this discount will have your children paying you instead.

2. Buy a new car for your child.
All of those safety features will get you auto insurance discounts, right? They might, but it costs more to insure a new car – for you and your teen. Find a safe, used car and save on car payments and insurance.

3. Skip in-car driver training with your kid.
Let the driving school do it. Right parents? I mean, that's why you pay them the money! Not so. No matter what your state legally requires, the more time you spend in the car teaching your teenager to drive, the better.

4. Don't set a curfew.
Part of raising a child is letting them take responsibility, so there's no reason to impose limits. Well, not exactly. Even if your city doesn't have a curfew for teen drivers, you should consider it. Statistics show that teenage driving deaths rise dramatically from 9 pm to 6 am. And if you remember your own youth, you'll agree that there's no good reason for teens to plan trips past 9–10 pm.

5. Don't worry about packing the car with friends and distractions.
The most common cause of teen accidents is driver distraction – either from a car full of friends or a cell phone that's blowing up. It gets even worse with loud music, texting and taking pictures with a cell phone.

6. Speed, drink and don't wear your seatbelt.
It amounts to telling your teen the law is optional. If your child gets a ticket, restrict access to the car. If it's something serious – like a DUI – take away their driving privileges.

7. Lower your deductibles or keep them the same.
A low deductible means your auto insurance company will pay more if there's an accident. Raise it, and you could knock a lot off your premium. Dropping collision coverage on your teen's car can also save money. Just remember that you'll have to pay more for repairs in both cases, so calculate your savings before making the switch.

8. Make one of the other seven mistakes.
(Just kidding.)

8. Let your teenager drive a small, old car.
If you saw mistake number two and thought you could avoid it by getting your teen an older compact car, you're probably wrong. If it's not a safe car, you won't qualify for safety discounts.

9. You said there were only eight mistakes!
Well, I lied. That's right; I said it: I lied. I'll let you in on a little secret: there are probably way more than nine, or even ten! But do you know the biggest one of all? (Drum roll, please.) Not shopping around to compare rates! Insurance.com data shows the average difference between the highest quote for adding a teen and the lowest quote is over $2,000 a year. Failing to compare auto insurance rates can be a very expensive mistake.

Car Insurance Rates Are Dropping

According to a new survey by Insurance.com, 44% of shoppers believed they were overpaying for car insurance. In addition, 22% said that they were shopping because their rates had recently increased with the renewal bill from their current auto insurance company.

Are you getting a good deal? March RateWatch data shows that drivers who pay too much for car insurance now have a great chance to save. "Consumers who shopped for car insurance recently saw rates that were $100 lower on average than rates quoted last fall," said Sam Belden, Vice President at Insurance.com. "Most policies renew every six months, so this decline in average quotes comes as good news for consumers whose policies were affected by rising prices in late 2008."

Insurance.com's survey also found that 32% of drivers were driving less compared to six months ago. Driving fewer miles presents another savings opportunity, because it could earn drivers a 5–15% Low Mileage discount on their auto insurance policy with most insurance companies.

Consumers are making tough decisions about how much coverage they buy, while still trying to maintain their policies. 25% of car insurance shoppers surveyed bought less auto insurance coverage than they had on a prior policy, and 26% dropped comprehensive and collision coverage. While less coverage always beats no insurance, we'd like to remind you that auto insurance provides important protection. Consider these tips:

Protect yourself with Uninsured/Under-insured Motorists coverage. The number of uninsured drivers on the road continues to rise. You can protect your family from these drivers with low-cost UM/UIM coverage.

Don't slash your policy's limits. Don't risk your assets – now and in the future – by cutting your liability limits to state minimums.

Insure your car against damage, even if you increase the deductibles. Try to keep comprehensive and collision coverage for your car, unless you can afford to pay cash to replace it. Even if your car has a low "market value," in this economy it's probably priceless to you!