It takes a few minutes, but the best way to find cheaper prices for car insurance rates in Buffalo is to compare prices once a year from different companies that insure vehicles in New York. You can compare prices by following these guidelines.
- First, try to learn about the different coverages in a policy and the factors you can control to prevent expensive coverage. Many risk factors that are responsible for high rates like speeding and poor credit rating can be eliminated by making small lifestyle or driving habit changes. Keep reading for information to keep prices down and earn a bigger discount.
- Second, compare prices from direct, independent, and exclusive agents. Direct companies and exclusive agencies can only provide price estimates from a single company like Progressive or Allstate, while agents who are independent can quote prices from multiple companies.
- Third, compare the new rates to your existing coverage to determine if you can save on SS insurance. If you find a better price and change companies, make sure coverage does not lapse between policies.
- Fourth, notify your current company of your intention to cancel your current auto insurance policy and submit a completed application and payment to the new company. Once the paperwork is finalized, keep your new certificate of insurance with the vehicle registration.
An important part of this process is to try to compare identical limits and deductibles on every quote request and and to get quotes from as many auto insurance providers as possible. This provides an accurate price comparison and the best rate selection.
Smart shoppers know that insurance companies want to prevent you from shopping around. Consumers who rate shop once a year will most likely switch to a new company because of the good chance of finding discount prices. A study discovered that people who did price comparisons regularly saved approximately $850 each year compared to drivers who never compared other company’s rates.
If finding the lowest price on Chevy SS insurance is your ultimate target, understanding the best way to shop and compare coverage rates can make shopping around easier.
If you are paying for car insurance now, you will be able to buy cheaper insurance using the ideas presented in this article. Shopping around for the cheapest insurance coverage in Buffalo can be fairly easy. But New York drivers must understand the way companies determine prices because rates are impacted by many factors.
Most major insurance companies such as Allstate, GEICO and Progressive give prices from their websites. Doing online quotes for Chevy SS insurance in Buffalo is fairly simple as you simply enter your required coverages into the quote form. Once you submit the form, the quote system will obtain credit information and your driving record and quotes a price.
This makes it a lot easier to compare rates and it is imperative to have as many quotes as possible in order to get affordable prices.
To find out how much you can save on insurance, take a look at the companies shown below. If you have your current policy handy, we recommend you copy deductibles and limits identical to your current policy. This makes sure you will have rate quotes using the exact same coverages.
The companies shown below are our best choices to provide comparison quotes in Buffalo, NY. If your goal is to find the best cheap auto insurance in Buffalo, it’s highly recommended you visit as many as you can in order to get a fair rate comparison.
Car insurance protects more than just your car
Even though it can be expensive, insurance is not optional due to several reasons.
- Just about all states have compulsory liability insurance requirements which means you are required to carry a specific minimum amount of liability in order to be legal. In New York 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.
- If your Chevy has a lienholder, most lenders will require you to have comprehensive coverage to ensure the loan is repaid in case of a total loss. If you cancel or allow the policy to lapse, the lender may insure your Chevy at a more expensive rate and require you to pay for the expensive policy.
- Insurance safeguards not only your Chevy SS but also your assets. It also can pay for many types of medical costs incurred in an accident. Liability insurance, one of your policy coverages, also covers legal expenses in the event you are sued. If you receive damage to your vehicle caused by a storm or accident, comprehensive and/or collision insurance will cover the damage repairs after a deductible is paid.
The benefits of having car insurance more than offset the price you pay, especially with large liability claims. In a recent study of 1,000 drivers, the average customer overpays as much as $850 per year so you should quote and compare rates once a year at a minimum to be sure current rates are still competitive.
Get Lower-cost Insurance Premiums by Understanding These Factors
The best way to find cheaper auto insurance is to take a look at some of the factors that go into determining the level of your policy premiums. When you understand what positively or negatively impacts your premiums, this empowers consumers to make smart changes that can earn you much lower annual insurance costs. Multiple criteria are part of the equation when you quote your car insurance policy. Most are fairly basic like your driving record, but some are more obscure like your vehicle usage or your financial responsibility.
The list below includes a few of the things used by your company to calculate your prices.
Cheaper premiums for prior coverage – Going without insurance is a guaranteed way to trigger a rate increase. And not only will your rates increase, not being able to provide proof of insurance could result in a hefty fine and possibly a revoked license. You will then be forced to submit proof of financial responsibility or a SR-22 with the New York DMV.
File claims and pay more – If you frequently file small claims, you can definitely plan on either higher rates or even cancellation. Auto insurance companies in New York give discounts to insureds that do not abuse their auto insurance. Insurance coverage is designed for more catastrophic claims.
Employer can influence prices – Careers like judges, airline pilots, and miners generally pay higher premium rates attributed to job stress and incredibly demanding work hours. On the other hand, careers like scientists, students and the unemployed have lower than average premiums.
Your location is important – Having an address in small towns and rural areas can be a good thing when talking about auto insurance. Drivers who live in large cities tend to have much more traffic and longer commute times. Fewer drivers on the road means less chance of accidents and lower theft and vandalism rates.
Save money with higher deductibles – The deductibles you choose are how much you are willing to pay in the event of a claim. Physical damage protection, aka comp and collision, is used to repair damage to your car. Examples of covered claims are rear-ending another vehicle, hail damage, and having a roll-over accident. The more you have to pay, the lower your rates will be.
Save money by having good credit – An insured’s credit history will be a significant factor in calculating your premium rate. Insureds that have good credit tend to be more responsible than those with poor credit scores. Therefore, if your credit rating can use some improvement, you could be paying less to insure your Chevrolet SS by taking the time to improve your credit score.
Add-on coverages you don’t need – There are quite a few extra bells and whistles that sound like a good idea at the time on your auto insurance policy. Coverages for rental car coverage, accidental death, and membership fees may be costing you every month. You may think they are a good idea when deciding what coverages you need, but if you’ve never needed them in the past remove them from your policy.
Save by driving safer vehicles – Vehicles that have high safety ratings cost less to insure. Safe vehicles result in less severe injuries and reduced instances of injuries means lower claim amounts passed on to you as lower rates. If the Chevy SS has ratings of a minimum four stars on Safercar.gov you may qualify for a discount.
Loss statistics for a Chevy SS – Insurance companies include the past claim trends for vehicles to help determine the price you pay. Vehicles that have higher claim amounts or frequency will cost more for coverage.
The table below outlines the historical insurance loss data for Chevy SS vehicles. For each coverage type, the claim amount for all vehicles, regardless of manufacturer or model, is considered to be 100. Values that are below 100 are indicative of better than average losses, while numbers that are greater than 100 indicate more frequent claims or larger claims.
| Specific Chevrolet Model | Collision | Property Damage | Comp | Personal Injury | Medical Payment | Bodily Injury |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chevrolet SS | 142 | 75 | 137 |
Empty fields indicate not enough data collected
Statistics Source: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety for 2013-2015 Model Years
Car insurance discounts help lower rates for Chevy SS insurance in Buffalo
Companies that sell car insurance do not advertise every discount available in an easy-to-find place, so the following list contains both the well known and also the more inconspicuous discounts that you can inquire about if you buy Buffalo car insurance online.
- Save over 55 – Drivers that qualify as senior citizens may qualify for a small decrease in premiums.
- Theft Deterrent System – Anti-theft and alarm system equipped vehicles are stolen with less frequency and qualify for as much as a 10% discount.
- Low Miles Discount – Keeping the miles down on your Chevy could earn discounted car insurance rates on garaged vehicles.
- Government Employees – Active or former government employment may reduce rates when you quote Buffalo car insurance with a few car insurance companies.
- Military Discounts – Having a family member in the military could mean lower rates.
- Clubs and Organizations – Having an affiliation with certain professional organizations is a good way to get lower rates when shopping for car insurance.
Please keep in mind that many deductions do not apply to all coverage premiums. The majority will only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like collision or personal injury protection. So when it seems like you could get a free car insurance policy, it just doesn’t work that way.
A few of the larger companies and the discounts they provide are included below.
- State Farm has savings for student away at school, accident-free, Drive Safe & Save, defensive driving training, and safe vehicle.
- Nationwide offers premium reductions for family plan, Farm Bureau membership, business or organization, multi-policy, accident-free, and anti-theft.
- GEICO has discounts for seat belt use, military active duty, multi-policy, air bags, and anti-theft.
- AAA discounts include education and occupation, AAA membership discount, anti-theft, pay-in-full, multi-car, and good driver.
- 21st Century may include discounts for anti-lock brakes, homeowners, theft prevention, automatic seat belts, and good student.
- The Hartford includes discounts for anti-theft, bundle, good student, defensive driver, air bag, and driver training.
Before buying, ask each company which discounts they offer. Discounts may not be available in Buffalo. To choose insurance companies with discount rates in Buffalo, follow this link.
What insurance coverages do I need?
When selecting the best auto insurance coverage for your vehicles, there isn’t really a best way to insure your cars. Coverage needs to be tailored to your specific needs and a cookie cutter policy won’t apply.
These are some specific questions might help in determining if you will benefit from professional help.
- Is my Chevy SS covered if I use it for business?
- Are rock-chip repairs free?
- Are my custom wheels covered?
- Do I have newly-acquired coverage?
- Do I need replacement cost coverage on my Chevy SS?
- What does medical payments cover?
If you can’t answer these questions but one or more may apply to you, you might consider talking to an insurance agent. To find an agent in your area, complete this form or go to this page to view a list of companies.
Local Buffalo insurance agents and car insurance
A lot of people just want to talk to a local agent and that is recommended in a lot of cases The biggest benefit of comparing insurance prices online is the fact that drivers can get better rates and still buy from a local agent. And buying from local insurance agencies is still important in Buffalo.
For easy comparison, once you complete this quick form, the quote information is emailed to participating agents in Buffalo who will give you bids for your insurance coverage. It makes it easy because there is no need to leave your computer because prices are sent to your email. It’s the lowest rates without having to waste a lot of time. If you want to get a price quote from a specific insurance company, you would need to find their quoting web page and give them your coverage information.
When researching a reputable insurance agent or broker, it’s important to understand the different types of agents and how they differ in how they quote coverages. Car insurance agents in Buffalo may be either independent agents or exclusive agents depending on their employer.
Independent Agents (or Brokers)
Independent agents are appointed with more than one company and that is an advantage because they can write policies with many different companies and help determine which has the cheapest rates. If premiums increase, the agent simply finds a different carrier and you can keep the same agent.
When shopping rates, we highly recommend that you compare quotes from independent agents in order to compare the most rates. They often place coverage with small mutual carriers which may have better rates.
Below are Buffalo independent insurance agents that can give you cheap rate quotes.
- Senior American Insurance Agency Inc
2001 Niagara Falls Blvd # 10 – Buffalo, NY 14228 – (800) 332-7557 – View Map - Vanner Insurance Agency
11 Pinchot Ct # 2 – Buffalo, NY 14228 – (716) 688-8888 – View Map - Lawley
361 Delaware Ave – Buffalo, NY 14202 – (716) 849-8618 – View Map
Exclusive Agencies
Exclusive insurance agents can only provide one company’s prices like Farmers Insurance, Allstate, or State Farm. They generally cannot shop your coverage around so you need to shop around if the rates are high. Exclusive insurance agents are trained well on their company’s products and that can be a competitive advantage. Some insured continue to use the same exclusive agent partially due to the prominence of the brand and the convenience of having a single billing for all their coverages.
Shown below are Buffalo exclusive insurance agencies that are able to give price quotes.
- Dan Schmidt – State Farm Insurance Agent
615 Elmwood Ave – Buffalo, NY 14222 – (716) 783-9460 – View Map - Joe Czaja – State Farm Insurance Agent
1021 Union Rd – Buffalo, NY 14224 – (716) 674-3654 – View Map - Lou Santiago – State Farm Insurance Agent
557 Niagara St – Buffalo, NY 14201 – (716) 883-5500 – View Map
Selecting a insurance agent requires more thought than just the premium amount. The following questions are important to ask.
- Do they have advanced training designations such as CPCU, AAI, AIC, or CIC?
- Do they assist clients in filing claims?
- Does the company have a solid financial rating?
- Does the agent have a valid license to sell insurance in New York?
- Do you need full coverage on every vehicle?
- Will your rates increase after a single accident?
- How would your car be valued if totaled?
Don’t give up on affordable rates
Budget-friendly auto insurance in Buffalo is definitely available from both online companies and from local insurance agents, and you need to price shop both to have the best selection. Some auto insurance companies don’t offer internet price quotes and usually these regional insurance providers work with independent insurance agents.
We covered many ways to shop for Chevy SS insurance online. The most important thing to understand is the more providers you compare, the higher your chance of finding low cost Buffalo car insurance quotes. Consumers could even find that the best price on auto insurance is with some of the smallest insurance companies. These smaller insurers may cover specific market segments cheaper as compared to the big name companies such as State Farm, GEICO and Nationwide.
When shopping online for auto insurance, make sure you don’t skimp on coverage in order to save money. Too many times, an insured cut physical damage coverage only to find out they didn’t have enough coverage. The proper strategy is to buy enough coverage at the lowest possible cost, but don’t skip important coverages to save money.
Other learning opportunities
- Determining Auto Insurance Rates (GEICO)
- How Much is Buffalo Car Insurance for a GMC Sierra? (FAQ)
- Auto Insurance Learning Center (State Farm)
- Rental Car Insurance Tips (Insurance Information Institute)
- Tread Depth and Tire Safety (State Farm)
- Understanding Car Crashes Video (iihs.org)