As we’ve all learned by now, driving without car insurance results in a hefty fine, loss of license in some cases and more penalties than I care to think about. Luckily, with the advent of the internet, shopping for cheap car insurance is no longer limited to middle of the day television commercials.
The first step in this process is going to be setting up a dedicated web based email address since the volume of emails you’re going to receive after applying for free car insurance quotes is going to be staggering and you don’t need that clogging up your everyday or work in-box. Yahoo, Hotmail or Gmail all offer free email accounts with nearly unlimited storage capacity.
The next step is to turn on the auto-complete forms option in your web browser. As the information you’re going to be entering for your cheap auto insurance quotes is as basic as it is universal, this will save you a great deal of time.
Typing “Free Online Auto Insurance Quotes” into a popular search engine such as google or yahoo will yield the best results. For instance Google has a column on the right hand side of the screen that contains it’s sponsored links. This is a perfect place to start as many of the cheap auto insurance companies are going to be listed here. Your AIG, your GEICO, etc. are all going to be listed in this column. They may not be the best of rates, but these are going to contain free online quote forms as well as a reputable company if, heaven forbid, you ever need to file a claim.
Progressive’s online insurance form famously lets you compare their rate with estimated rates of some of their larger competitors. This way you can see if Progressive is as good a deal as say, State Farm or AIG. They mostly only compare the big players in the market, so they may not be the best deals in town, but it’s a good place to start comparison shopping.
Insurance.com provides the opportunity to search several of the top cheap auto insurance companies at once by filling in a single form. This option is great for saving time and by having multiple companies in one place the market forces will make these companies compete for your business. Remember, there are a thousand different cheap auto insurance issuers and you have the power of the pen, so shop around, make them compete for your business.
Another helpful idea is to go to AAA’s website. If you’re not already a member of this fantastic driver advocacy group, you might think about it. Using their free online form for cheap auto insurance quotes you are leveraging not only your own buying power but the buying power of thousands of your fellow motorists to secure some of the lowest rates imaginable.
Many companies, especially some of the smaller ones forego having actual brokers and deal directly with the customers. This model, made famous by GEICO, can actually save you quite a bit of money. By filling out their online form you may find that some of the smaller companies actually have special online only rates. This makes sense when you think of their marketing costs compared to some of the bigger players. Online marketing is relatively cheap compared with television commercials and direct mail campaigns. If you’re willing to go with an “off brand” you can actually score some great deals.
The internet and the world of online auto insurance has really opened up the market place and helped the consumer. The individual driver is no longer tied to the local insurance broker who was worried about his commission and his office. Now you can buy insurance from just about anywhere in the country, from some issuers who may not have a physical office anywhere near you. While there are ups and downs no matter who you go with, the amount of choice the consumer has is phenomenal. Shop around and use the above tips to find the best deal, not only in town but in the nation.