It takes a little time, but the best way to find the cheapest price for car insurance rates is to compare prices once a year from insurers who provide auto insurance in Nashville.
- Step 1: Take a little time to learn about what coverages are included in your policy and the measures you can control to keep rates in check. Many policy risk factors that are responsible for high rates such as tickets, at-fault accidents, and a poor credit rating can be improved by improving your driving habits or financial responsibility.
- Step 2: Request rate estimates from exclusive agents, independent agents, and direct providers. Exclusive and direct companies can only give rate quotes from a single company like Progressive and State Farm, while independent agencies can give you price quotes from multiple companies.
- Step 3: Compare the new rate quotes to the premium of your current policy and determine if there is any savings. If you find better rates and make a switch, make sure the effective date of the new policy is the same as the expiration date of the old one.
- Step 4: Give proper notification to your current agent or company of your intention to cancel the current policy and submit a down payment along with a signed application to your new agent or company. As soon as you receive it, put the certificate of insurance in an easily accessible location in your vehicle.
The critical component of shopping around is that you use identical coverages on every quote request and and to get rate quotes from every insurance company. Doing this ensures an accurate price comparison and a better comparison of the market.
Amazingly, most car insurance policyholders kept buying from the same company for at least the last four years, and about 40% of consumers have never compared quotes from other companies. Many consumers in Nashville could cut their rates by about 35% a year just by shopping around, but most tend to underestimate the amount of money they would save if they just switched companies.
Choosing the best rates in Nashville is actually not that difficult if you follow our advice. In a nutshell, every vehicle owner who carries car insurance most likely will find a cheaper policy. But Tennessee drivers should learn how big insurance companies determine how much to charge and apply this information to your search.
You Can Change Your Insurance Costs
The best way to find cheaper insurance is to take a look at a few of the rating criteria that are used to determine the price you pay for insurance. If you have some idea of what determines premiums, this allows you to make good choices that can help you get lower rates.
Gender as a rate factor – Over the last 50 years, statistics have shown females are less aggressive when driving. This data doesn’t prove that females are better at driving than males. Both genders cause fender benders in similar percentages, but guys tend to have more serious accidents. They also receive more major tickets such as DWI and reckless driving. Young men ages 16 to 20 are most likely to cause an accident and thus pay the highest rates.
The information below shows the difference between Suzuki Equator auto insurance costs for male and female drivers. The information is based on no claims or driving citations, full coverage, $500 deductibles, marital status is single, and no additional discounts are factored in.
Premiums are affected by your credit history – Having a bad credit history is a large factor in your rate calculation. So if your credit rating is not that good, you could be paying less to insure your Suzuki Equator by improving your rating. Consumers who have good credit tend to be less risk to insure than drivers who have poor credit.
Prevent insurance lapses – Having an insurance coverage lapse is a guaranteed way to bump up your insurance costs. And not only will insurance be more expensive, being ticketed for driving with no insurance will get you a license revocation or jail time.
Low physical damage deductibles can be expensive – Physical damage insurance, commonly called comprehensive (or other-than-collision) and collision coverage, helps pay for damage to your vehicle. Examples of some claims that would be covered would be a broken windshield, vandalism, and windstorm damage. The deductibles you choose define how much you are required to spend out-of-pocket if a covered claim is submitted. The larger the amount you pay before a claim is paid (deductible), the lower your rates will be.
Only buy coverage you need – Policies have add-on coverages that can add up when buying insurance. Add-on coverages like personal injury protection, high-cost glass coverage, and extra equipment coverage could be just wasting money. You may think they are a good idea when deciding what coverages you need, but now you might not need them so get rid of them and save.
Vehicles with better crash test results lower rates – Vehicles that have high safety ratings tend to be cheaper to insure. Vehicles engineered for safety result in less severe injuries and better occupant protection means less claims paid and lower rates for you.
Single drivers may pay higher premiums – Having a wife or husband actually saves money on your insurance bill. Having a spouse is viewed as being more stable financially and statistics prove being married results in fewer claims.
When comparing car insurance rates, know that making a lot of price comparisons helps improve the odds of finding lower pricing.
The car insurance companies shown below are ready to provide quotes in Nashville, TN. To locate the best cheap auto insurance in Nashville, it’s a good idea that you visit two to three different companies to find the cheapest car insurance rates.
Insurance rate breakdown
The information displayed next outlines different insurance rates for Suzuki Equator models. Having a better idea how auto insurance premiums are determined can benefit drivers when making informed decisions.
Model | Comp | Collision | Liability | Medical | UM/UIM | Annual Premium | Monthly Premium |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Equator Ext Cab 2WD | $118 | $224 | $350 | $20 | $104 | $816 | $68 |
Equator Ext Cab 2WD | $118 | $224 | $350 | $20 | $104 | $816 | $68 |
Equator Ext Cab 2WD | $136 | $272 | $350 | $20 | $104 | $882 | $74 |
Equator Ext Cab 2WD | $136 | $272 | $350 | $20 | $104 | $882 | $74 |
Equator Ext Cab 4WD | $136 | $272 | $350 | $20 | $104 | $882 | $74 |
Equator Crew Cab 4WD | $152 | $320 | $350 | $20 | $104 | $946 | $79 |
Equator Crew Cab 4WD | $152 | $320 | $350 | $20 | $104 | $946 | $79 |
Equator Crew Cab 4WD | $152 | $320 | $350 | $20 | $104 | $946 | $79 |
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Prices based on single male driver age 40, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1000 deductibles, and Tennessee minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include homeowner, multi-policy, claim-free, safe-driver, and multi-vehicle. Rate information does not factor in Nashville location which can impact rates significantly.
The information below demonstrates how deductible levels and can influence Suzuki Equator insurance rates for each different age category. The data is based on a single female driver, full physical damage coverage, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
Cost of full coverage
The information below shows the comparison of Suzuki Equator annual premium costs with and without physical damage coverage, medical payments, and uninsured/under-insured motorist coverage. The data assumes no accidents, no driving violations, $100 deductibles, single marital status, and no discounts are factored in.
When to stop buying comprehensive and collision coverage
There isn’t a written rule for dropping physical damage coverage on your policy, but there is a guideline you can consider. If the yearly cost of full coverage is more than around 10% of replacement cost minus your deductible, then you might want to consider buying only liability coverage.
For example, let’s assume your Suzuki Equator replacement cost is $9,000 and you have $1,000 deductibles. If your vehicle is totaled in an accident, you would only receive $8,000 after the policy deductible has been paid. If premium cost is more than $800 annually for your policy with full coverage, then you may need to consider dropping full coverage.
There are some situations where eliminating full coverage is not in your best interest. If you still owe money on your vehicle, you have to maintain full coverage in order to prevent the bank from purchasing higher-priced coverage. Also, if your finances do not allow you to purchase a different vehicle if your current one is damaged, you should not eliminate full coverage.
Three main reasons to buy car insurance
Even though it can be expensive, insuring your vehicle may be required for several reasons.
- Most states have minimum mandated liability insurance limits which means it is punishable by state law to not carry a specific minimum amount of liability in order to get the vehicle licensed. In Tennessee these limits are 25/50/15 which means you must have $25,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $50,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $15,000 of property damage coverage.
- If you have a loan on your Equator, almost every bank will stipulate that you have full coverage to protect their interest in the vehicle. If you let the policy lapse, the lender will be forced to insure your Suzuki for a much higher rate and force you to reimburse them much more than you were paying before.
- Car insurance protects your car and your assets. It will also provide coverage for many types of medical costs for you, your passengers, and anyone else injured in an accident. Liability coverage, the one required by state law, will also pay attorney fees if you are sued as the result of your driving. If your vehicle suffers damage from an accident or hail, comprehensive and collision coverage will pay all costs to repair after the deductible has been paid.
The benefits of carrying adequate insurance definitely exceed the cost, especially if you ever need it. But the average American driver is overpaying over $865 each year so it’s important to compare rates at every renewal to be sure current rates are still competitive.
Cheaper Suzuki Equator insurance rates in Nashville
Some insurers don’t list every discount available very clearly, so we researched some of the more common and also the more inconspicuous credits available to you.
- Theft Deterrent Discount – Cars and trucks that have factory anti-theft systems have a lower chance of being stolen and qualify for as much as a 10% discount.
- Own a Home – Owning your own home or condo may earn you a small savings because owning a home means you have a higher level of financial diligence.
- Passive Restraint Discount – Vehicles equipped with air bags may qualify for discounts as much as 30%.
- Bundle and Save – If you combine your homeowners and auto policies with one insurance company you could save over 10 percent off each policy depending on the company.
- Military Rewards – Being on active duty in the military could trigger a small discount.
- Distant Student Discount – Kids who are enrolled in higher education away from home and do not have a car may qualify for this discount.
It’s important to understand that some credits don’t apply to the entire cost. Some only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as medical payments or collision. So even though it sounds like adding up those discounts means a free policy, you won’t be that lucky.
The chart below illustrates the comparison of Suzuki Equator annual premium costs with and without some available policy discounts. Data assumes a female driver, no tickets, no at-fault accidents, Tennessee state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $500 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The second shows the rates with claim-free, multi-policy, safe-driver, marriage, homeowner, and multi-car discounts applied.
Companies and some of their more popular discounts are detailed below.
- 21st Century may include discounts for anti-lock brakes, theft prevention, early bird, air bags, and 55 and older.
- State Farm includes discounts for Drive Safe & Save, student away at school, defensive driving training, multiple autos, good driver, accident-free, and multiple policy.
- AAA may have discounts that include anti-theft, multi-policy, multi-car, good driver, and education and occupation.
- Liberty Mutual may offer discounts for new graduate, hybrid vehicle, preferred payment discount, multi-policy, exclusive group savings, new move discount, and safety features.
- Progressive offers discounts including multi-policy, homeowner, continuous coverage, good student, and online quote discount.
Check with all the companies to apply every possible discount. Some credits might not be available to policyholders in Nashville. If you would like to view companies who offer online Suzuki Equator insurance quotes in Nashville, click here to view.
Auto insurance is available from local insurance agents
Some consumers still prefer to talk to an insurance agent and that is a smart decision A good thing about getting free rate quotes online is you can get the best rates and still have a local agent.
Once you complete this short form, the coverage information is transmitted to participating agents in Nashville who will give you quotes for your coverage. You don’t have to contact an agency since rate quotes are delivered to your email. You can most likely find cheaper rates and a licensed agent to work with. If you need to compare rates from a specific auto insurance provider, just navigate to their website to submit a rate quote request.
Finding the right insurance company should include more criteria than just the quoted price. The answers to these questions are important, too.
- How would your car be valued if totaled?
- Can glass claims be handled at your home?
- Do the agents have professional certifications like CPCU or CIC?
- Do they have adequate Errors and Omissions coverage? This protects you if they make a mistake.
- Does the company have a local claim office in Nashville?
- Are they properly licensed to sell insurance in Tennessee?
- Is auto insurance their primary focus in Nashville?
- Is the agency involved in supporting local community causes?
Listed below are agents in Nashville that can give you price quotes for Suzuki Equator insurance in Nashville.
Cheryl Crewse – State Farm Insurance Agent
15582 Old Hickory Blvd – Nashville, TN 37211 – (615) 831-1800 – View Map
Mark Le Clair – State Farm Insurance Agent
5548 Franklin Pike #201 – Nashville, TN 37220 – (615) 292-9233 – View Map
Nationwide Insurance: Eric Pirtle Insurance Agency
2630 Old Lebanon Rd – Nashville, TN 37214 – (615) 889-3640 – View Map
Vernon Wells – State Farm Insurance Agent
4704 Nolensville Rd – Nashville, TN 37211 – (615) 833-6333 – View Map
You can lower your insurance rates
When trying to cut insurance costs, don’t be tempted to sacrifice coverage to reduce premiums. There are a lot of situations where an insured cut comprehensive coverage or liability limits and found out when filing a claim that it was a big error on their part. The proper strategy is to purchase a proper amount of coverage at the best cost, but do not sacrifice coverage to save money.
You just learned a lot of information how to reduce Suzuki Equator insurance premium rates online in Nashville. The key thing to remember is the more providers you compare, the better chance you’ll have of finding affordable Suzuki Equator insurance quotes. Consumers may even find the most savings is with the least-expected company. These companies may have significantly lower prices on certain market segments than the large multi-state companies such as Allstate or State Farm.
For more information, take a look at the following helpful articles:
- Auto Insurance FAQ (Farmers Insurance)
- How Much is Nashville Auto Insurance for a GMC Sierra? (FAQ)
- How Much are Car Insurance Rates for College Students in Nashville? (FAQ)
- Warning systems don’t curb driver distraction (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
- When is the Right Time to Switch Car Insurance Companies? (Allstate)
- Teen Driver Licensing Information (iihs.org)