If you want to save the most money, the best way to get more affordable Honda CR-Z insurance in Buffalo is to regularly compare prices from companies in New York. Rates can be compared by following these guidelines.
- Step 1: Get a basic knowledge of the different coverages in a policy and the things you can control to drop your rates. Many rating criteria that result in higher rates like accidents, careless driving, and an unacceptable credit history can be remedied by making lifestyle changes or driving safer. Read the full article for information to lower rates and find additional discounts.
- Step 2: Obtain price quotes from direct, independent, and exclusive agents. Exclusive agents and direct companies can give quotes from a single company like Progressive and State Farm, while agents who are independent can provide rate quotes from multiple insurance companies. Compare rates now
- Step 3: Compare the price quotes to the price on your current policy to see if switching to a new carrier will save money. If you can save some money and buy the policy, ensure coverage does not lapse between policies.
- Step 4: Provide adequate notice to your current company to cancel your current car insurance policy. Submit a down payment along with a signed application to the new company. Once the application is submitted, put the certificate verifying coverage in an accessible location in your vehicle.
One piece of advice is to make sure you enter the same level of coverage on every quote and and to compare as many auto insurance providers as possible. This ensures a fair rate comparison and a complete selection of prices.
Sadly, almost 70% of insureds in New York renewed their policy with the same company for a minimum of four years, and roughly 40% of drivers have never compared rates from other carriers. American consumers could save as much as 46.5% every year by just comparing quotes, but they just don’t understand how easy it is to shop their coverage around.
Most of the larger companies such as State Farm and Allstate allow you to get prices for coverage online. Doing online price comparisons for Honda CR-Z insurance in Buffalo doesn’t take a lot of time as you just enter your required coverages into a form. After you submit the form the quote system obtains your credit score and driving record and quotes a price. Using the web to get rates for Honda CR-Z insurance in Buffalo makes it easy to compare insurance prices and it’s also necessary to get many rate quotes in order to get the best possible rates on insurance.
To fill out one form to compare multiple rates now, compare quotes from the companies shown below. To compare your current rates, we recommend you type in the limits and deductibles just like they are on your policy. This guarantees you will have a price comparison using the exact same coverages.
The companies shown below are our best choices to provide comparison quotes in New York. If you want the cheapest car insurance in NY, we recommend you click on several of them to get the best price comparison.
Why you need to buy auto insurance
Despite the high insurance cost for a Honda CR-Z in Buffalo, buying auto insurance is most likely required but also gives you several important benefits.
First, just about all states have compulsory liability insurance requirements which means state laws require a minimum amount of liability insurance in order to drive the car legally. 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.
Second, if you have a loan on your car, it’s guaranteed your bank will stipulate that you buy insurance 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 Honda at a much higher rate and make you pay much more than you were paying before.
Third, insurance protects both your assets and your car. It also can pay for medical bills that are the result of an accident. One of the most valuable coverages, liability insurance, will also pay for a defense attorney if you are sued as the result of your driving. If mother nature or an accident damages your car, your auto insurance policy will pay to repair the damage minus the deductible amount.
The benefits of having auto insurance definitely exceed the price paid, especially when you need to use it. Unknowingly, the average driver overpays more than $820 a year so it’s recommended you shop around each time the policy renews to ensure rates are competitive.
The Honda CR-Z Insurance Premium Equation
When buying car insurance it’s important to understand the rating factors that play a part in calculating your policy premiums. When you know what positively or negatively influences your rates, this allows you to make good choices that may result in much lower annual insurance costs. Lots of factors are part of the calculation when you get a price on insurance. A few of the factors are predictable such as your driving history, but some are less apparent like your continuous coverage or your commute time.
- Higher rates for car insurance policy lapses – Having a lapse in insurance coverage can be a sure-fire way to bump up your car insurance costs. In addition to paying higher rates, the inability to provide proof of insurance may earn you a revoked license or a big fine. You may then be required to provide proof of insurance in the form of an SR-22 filing with the New York department of motor vehicles.
- Youthful drivers pay more – Teen drivers in New York are known to get distracted easily when at the wheel of a vehicle so car insurance rates are higher. Mature drivers are more cautious drivers, file fewer claims, and receive fewer citations.
- Save miles driven and save money – Driving a lot of miles every year the more you will pay for car insurance. Many insurance companies rate vehicles partially by how you use the vehicle. Cars and trucks not used for work or commuting can be on a lower rate level compared to those used for work or business. An improperly rated CR-Z is throwing money out the window. Verify your car insurance policy properly reflects the proper vehicle usage, because it can save money.
- Low comp and collision deductibles can be expensive – Physical damage insurance, also called ‘full coverage’, covers damage that occurs to your Honda. Some instances where coverage would apply could be a broken side mirror, damage caused by hail, and burglary. The deductibles you choose tell how much you are required to spend out-of-pocket if a claim is determined to be covered. The more you choose to pay out-of-pocket, the bigger discount you will receive.
- Is insurance cheaper for men or women? – Statistics have proven that females take fewer risks when driving. It does not mean females are better at driving than males. Both sexes cause at-fault accidents at a similar rate, but the males have accidents that have higher claims. Men also tend to have more aggressive citations like DWI (DUI) or reckless driving. Young males cause the most accidents so they pay the highest premiums.
- Premiums go up with performance – The type of car, truck or SUV you are trying to find cheaper insurance for makes a huge difference in your rates. The lowest rates are generally reserved for the lowest performance passenger cars, but there are many factors that impact the final cost.
- Get cheaper rates after the wedding – Getting married helps lower the price on your car insurance policy. It demonstrates that you tend to be more mature and responsible and statistics prove drivers who are married are more cautious.
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Honda CR-Z statistical loss data – Insurers use past loss statistics for each vehicle when they file their rates in each state. Models that have a trend towards higher claims will have a higher premium rate. The table shown below demonstrates the loss history for Honda CR-Z vehicles.
For each coverage category, the loss probability for all vehicles, regardless of manufacturer or model, is equal to 100. Values that are 100 or less indicate better than average losses, while values that are 100 or greater point to more claims or a tendency for claims to be larger.
Honda CR-Z Insurance Loss Statistics Make and Model Collision Property Damage Comp Personal Injury Medical Payment Bodily Injury Honda CR-Z Hybrid 106 87 83 98 BETTERAVERAGEWORSEEmpty fields indicate not enough data collected
Statistics from IIHS.org for 2013-2015 Model Years
Buffalo insurance discounts for a Honda CR-Z
Properly insuring your vehicles can get expensive, but there could be significant discounts that many consumers don’t even know exist. Many discounts should be triggered when you complete an application, but a few must be specially asked for prior to receiving the credit.
- Drivers Education – It’s a good idea to have your young drivers enroll in driver’s education as it will make them better drivers and lower rates.
- First Accident Forgiveness – Not necessarily a discount, but certain companies may permit one accident without getting socked with a rate hike if you are claim-free prior to the accident.
- Passive Restraints – Vehicles equipped with air bags or motorized seat belts may get savings of 20 to 30 percent.
- Renewal Discounts – A few larger companies give discounts for signing up prior to your current CR-Z insurance policy expiration. Ten percent is about the average savings.
- E-sign – Certain larger companies will give you a small discount for buying your policy over the internet.
- Save with a New Car – Putting insurance coverage on a new CR-Z can cost up to 25% less compared to insuring an older model.
As a sidenote, most credits do not apply to the entire policy premium. Most only reduce the cost of specific coverages such as comprehensive or collision. If you do the math and it seems like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, you won’t be that lucky.
A partial list of companies that may include some of the discounts shown above are:
Check with all companies you are considering to apply every possible discount. Savings might not be offered on policies everywhere. To locate insurance companies with discount rates in Buffalo, click here.
Auto insurance agents can help
Some consumers still like to get professional advice from a licensed agent and that can be a smart move The biggest benefit of comparing insurance prices online is the fact that you can find the lowest rates but still work with a licensed agent. Buying from local insurance agents is still important in Buffalo.
To make it easy to find an agent, after completing this form (opens in new window), your insurance data is emailed to participating agents in Buffalo who will return price quotes for your insurance coverage. You don’t have to search for any insurance agencies as quotes are delivered immediately to you. You’ll get the best rates without requiring a lot of work. If you need to compare rates for a specific company, you can always go to their quote page and submit a quote form there.
If you are searching for a local insurance agency, there are a couple of different types of agents that you can choose from. Car insurance policy providers are categorized either exclusive or independent (non-exclusive).
Independent Car Insurance Agencies or Brokers
Agents that choose to be independent often have affiliation with several companies so they can quote policies with a variety of different insurance companies and get you the best rates possible. If you want to switch companies, they simply move your policy to a different company which is easy for the insured.
When comparison shopping, you absolutely need to include independent agents so that you have a good selection of quotes to compare.
Listed below is a short list of independent agents in Buffalo that may be able to provide pricing information.
La Penna Insur Agency Inc
3835 Harlem Rd – Buffalo, NY 14215 – (716) 838-1880 – View Map
TLC Brokerage
1660 Kensington Ave # 2 – Buffalo, NY 14215 – (716) 427-6922 – View Map
Mesi Agency Inc
759 Dick Rd – Buffalo, NY 14225 – (716) 626-3355 – View Map
Exclusive Agents
These agents can only quote rates from one company like State Farm, Allstate, or Farmers Insurance. Exclusive agencies are unable to compare rates from other companies so they have no alternatives for high prices. Exclusive agencies are usually quite knowledgeable on their products and sales techniques which helps overcome the inability to quote other rates.
Shown below are exclusive agencies in Buffalo that can give you comparison quotes.
George Ihle III – State Farm Insurance Agent
7718 Buffalo Ave – Niagara Falls, NY 14304 – (716) 283-9100 – View Map
Lou Santiago – State Farm Insurance Agent
557 Niagara St – Buffalo, NY 14201 – (716) 883-5500 – View Map
Farmers Insurance – Toni Du Bois
2460 Main St – Buffalo, NY 14214 – (716) 931-5200 – View Map
Picking a insurance agency shouldn’t rely on just the bottom line cost. Ask your prospective agent these questions:
- Is there a local claims center in Buffalo?
- What company do they have the most business with?
- When do they do policy reviews?
- Are they paid to recommend certain coverages?
- Can you use your own choice of collision repair facility?
New York car insurance companies
Ending up with a good quality auto insurance provider can be rather challenging considering how many different companies sell coverage in Buffalo. The ranking data shown below can help you decide which auto insurers you want to consider comparing rate quotes with.
Top 10 Buffalo Car Insurance Companies Ranked by Value
- The General
- Erie Insurance
- The Hartford
- Mercury Insurance
- Farmers Insurance
- 21st Century
- Safeco Insurance
- AAA Insurance
- State Farm
- Travelers
Top 10 Buffalo Car Insurance Companies Ranked by Customer Satisfaction
- The Hartford – 93%
- The General – 91%
- Progressive – 90%
- 21st Century – 89%
- Erie Insurance – 88%
- USAA – 87%
- State Farm – 87%
- Travelers – 87%
- Mercury Insurance – 87%
- Safeco Insurance – 86%
Persistent drivers can save
In this article, we presented some good ideas how you can lower your Honda CR-Z insurance prices in Buffalo. The key concept to understand is the more times you quote, the higher the chance of saving money. Drivers may even discover the lowest priced insurance comes from some of the smallest insurance companies. These companies can often provide lower rates in certain areas than the large multi-state companies such as Allstate, GEICO and Progressive.
While you’re price shopping online, it’s not a good idea to buy less coverage just to save a little money. In too many instances, someone dropped physical damage coverage only to regret that saving that couple of dollars actually costed them tens of thousands. The goal is to purchase a proper amount of coverage at the best possible price, but don’t skip important coverages to save money.
Additional detailed information is available at these sites:
- Higher speed limits cause more fatalities (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
- Who Has the Cheapest Buffalo Auto Insurance for Good Drivers? (FAQ)
- Who Has Affordable Car Insurance Quotes for 4×4 Vehicles in Buffalo? (FAQ)
- Who Has Cheap Car Insurance Quotes for College Students in Buffalo? (FAQ)
- Rental Reimbursement Coverage (Allstate)
- Anti-Lock Brake FAQ (iihs.org)