Nobody I know loves paying for auto insurance, especially when they know they are paying too much.
A study showed that most auto insurance buyers have been with the same company for a minimum of four years, and about 40% of consumers have never compared quotes from other companies. Many consumers in California could save about $470 each year by just shopping around, but they just don’t want to go online and compare rates.
Many auto insurance companies compete for your hard-earned dollar, and because of this it can be hard to compare insurance companies to discover the definitive cheapest price on Nissan Leaf insurance in Bakersfield.
It’s important to compare rates occasionally because insurance rates change regularly. If you had the lowest premium rates on Nissan Leaf insurance in Bakersfield last year you will most likely find a better price today. Forget anything you know (or think you know) about auto insurance because you’re about to learn the things you must know in order to properly buy coverages while reducing your premium.
If you currently have auto insurance, you stand a good chance to be able to find the best rates using the ideas covered in this article. Finding affordable auto insurance coverage in Bakersfield is actually not that difficult if you follow our advice. But California drivers benefit from understanding how insurance companies sell insurance online and use it to your advantage.
Most major insurance companies make it easy to get insurance quotes on the web. Getting quotes for Nissan Leaf insurance in Bakersfield is quite simple as all you need to do is type in the coverages you want as requested by the quote form. After the form is submitted, their quoting system makes automated requests for your driving and credit reports and returns a price based on many factors. The ability to get online price quotes for Nissan Leaf insurance in Bakersfield makes it simple to compare prices and it’s absolutely necessary to have as many quotes as possible if you are searching for the best rate.
If you want to compare rates now, compare quotes from the companies shown below. If you have your current policy handy, we recommend you complete the form with the limits and deductibles just like they are on your policy. This makes sure you will have an apples-to-apples comparison using the same coverage and limits.
The following companies provide quotes in Bakersfield, CA. If multiple companies are shown, it’s a good idea that you visit two to three different companies to find the most competitive auto insurance rates.
Learn How to Quote Auto Insurance at a Discount
The best way to find cheaper auto insurance is to take a look at some of the elements that go into determining your auto insurance rates. When you know what positively or negatively influences your rates, this allows you to make educated decisions that can help you get lower auto insurance prices.
- Stress out and pay more – Did you know your career choice can influence rates? Occupational choices like real estate brokers, business owners, and dentists generally pay higher rates than average because of high stress levels and long work hours. Conversely, careers such as scientists, historians and retirees receive lower rates.
- Prices go up with performance – The performance of the car or truck you need insurance for makes a significant difference in how high your rates are. The lowest rates are generally reserved for low performance passenger vehicles, but other factors influence the final cost greatly.
- High premiums for younger drivers – Mature drivers tend to be more responsible, file fewer claims, and usually have better credit. Youthful drivers are proven to be easily distracted when driving with friends and because of this, their auto insurance rates are much higher.
- Miles impacts rates – The more you drive your Nissan in a year’s time the more you will pay for auto insurance. Most insurance companies calculate prices based upon how you use the vehicle. Autos that sit idle most of the time get more affordable rates than those that get driven frequently. It’s always a good idea to double check that your auto insurance declarations sheet properly reflects the right rating data, because it can save money. Having an incorrect usage rating on your Leaf may be wasting your money.
- See if your company offers a multi-policy discount – Most larger companies give lower prices to insureds that have more than one policy, otherwise known as a multi-policy discount. Even with this discount applied, it’s always a smart idea to compare Nissan Leaf rates in Bakersfield to help ensure you have the lowest rates.
- Prevent auto insurance policy lapses – Driving without insurance coverage in place can get you a ticket and any future policy may cost more because you let your insurance expire. Not only will you pay more, the inability to provide proof of insurance will get you a fine, jail time, or a revoked license. Then you may be required to submit proof of financial responsibility or a SR-22 with the California DMV.
- Use credit responsibly and save – Having a bad credit score will be a significant factor in calculating your premium rate. People that have good credit tend to be better risks to insure as compared to drivers with bad credit. If your credit is lower than you’d like, you could save money insuring your Nissan Leaf by improving your credit score.
- Only buy coverage you need – Insurance companies have many additional coverages that can add up if you don’t pay attention. Things like coverage for rental cars, towing coverage, and extra equipment coverage may be wasting your money. 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.
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Nissan Leaf insurance claim data – Auto insurance companies analyze claim trends for every vehicle when setting rates for each model. Vehicles that tend to have a higher amount or frequency of claims will cost more to insure. The table shown below demonstrates the insurance loss data used by companies for Nissan Leaf vehicles.
For each type of coverage, the claim amount for all vehicles compiled together is set at 100. Numbers under 100 imply a favorable loss record, while values that are above 100 indicate a higher chance of having a claim or an increased chance of a larger loss.
Auto Insurance Loss Data for Nissan Leaf Models Specific Nissan Model Collision Property Damage Comp Personal Injury Medical Payment Bodily Injury Nissan Leaf Electric 89 84 45 83 64 76 BETTERAVERAGEWORSEData Source: iihs.org (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety) for 2013-2015 Model Years
Auto insurance is not optional in California
Even though it’s not necessarily cheap to insure a Nissan in Bakersfield, paying for auto insurance may not be optional for several reasons.
- The majority of states have minimum mandated liability insurance limits which means state laws require a specific minimum amount of liability coverage if you don’t want to risk a ticket. In California these limits are 15/30/5 which means you must have $15,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $30,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $5,000 of property damage coverage.
- If your vehicle has a loan, most lenders will make it mandatory that you buy full coverage to guarantee payment of the loan. If the policy lapses, the lender will be forced to insure your Nissan at a much higher premium rate and force you to pay for the much more expensive policy.
- Insurance protects not only your vehicle but also your financial assets. Insurance will also pay for many types of medical costs for both you and anyone you injure as the result of an accident. Liability insurance will also pay to defend you if you are named as a defendant in an auto accident. If your car is damaged in a storm or accident, collision and comprehensive (also known as other-than-collision) coverage will pay to repair the damage minus the deductible amount.
The benefits of buying auto insurance outweigh the cost, specifically if you ever have a liability claim. The average driver in America overpays as much as $850 per year so it’s recommended you shop around at every policy renewal to be sure current rates are still competitive.
What is the best car insurance company in Bakersfield?
Picking the right insurer is hard considering how many choices you have in California. The rank data displayed below may help you decide which auto insurance companies to look at comparing rates from.
Top 10 Bakersfield Car Insurance Companies Ranked by Customer Service
- AAA of Southern California
- GEICO
- State Farm
- The Hartford
- Mercury Insurance
- The General
- Progressive
- Allstate
- AAA Insurance
- American Family
Top 10 Bakersfield Car Insurance Companies Overall
- USAA
- American Family
- AAA of Southern California
- State Farm
- The Hartford
- AAA Insurance
- GEICO
- The General
- Titan Insurance
- Progressive