Shockingly, a large majority of drivers in California have stayed with the same insurance company for more than four years, and practically 40% of car insurance customers have never shopped around. With the average car insurance premium being $1,847, American drivers could save themselves approximately $860 a year, but most undervalue how much they could save if they switched.
It takes a few minutes, but the best way to find better pricing on auto insurance rates in Bakersfield is to do a yearly price comparison from insurers in California. Rate comparisons can be done by following these guidelines.
- Try to understand auto insurance and the changes you can make to keep rates down. Many risk factors that are responsible for high rates such as traffic violations, accidents, and a less-than-favorable credit history can be rectified by making lifestyle changes or driving safer.
- Quote rates from direct, independent, and exclusive agents. Direct and exclusive agents can only quote rates from a single company like GEICO and Allstate, while independent agents can quote prices from multiple insurance companies. Compare rates now
- Compare the new rates to your existing policy and determine if cheaper Cherokee coverage is available. If you can save money and decide to switch, ensure coverage does not lapse between policies.
A crucial key to this process is to compare similar limits and deductibles on every price quote and and to get rates from every company you can. This guarantees an accurate price comparison and a complete rate analysis.
Car insurance rates and discounts
Some providers do not advertise the entire discount list very well, so we took the time to find some of the best known in addition to some of the lesser obvious credits available to you. If you are not receiving all the discounts you qualify for, you are paying more than you should be.
- Student in College – Any of your kids who are enrolled in higher education away from home without a vehicle on campus could qualify for this discount.
- Fewer Miles Equal More Savings – Maintaining low annual mileage could earn substantially lower prices.
- Bundled Policy Discount – If you combine your auto and home policies with the same insurance company you will save as much as 10 to 15 percent.
- Membership in Organizations – Participating in a qualifying organization could trigger savings on your next renewal.
- Senior Citizen Rates – Drivers over the age of 55 may receive better car insurance rates.
- Braking Control Discount – Cars and trucks equipped with ABS or steering control are much safer to drive and earn discounts up to 10%.
One thing to note about discounts is that many deductions do not apply to the entire cost. Most only reduce specific coverage prices like liability and collision coverage. Just because you may think all the discounts add up to a free policy, it’s just not the way it works.
A list of car insurance companies and a partial list of their discounts are:
- 21st Century may include discounts for air bags, anti-lock brakes, homeowners, teen driver, student driver, and good student.
- Progressive may have discounts that include homeowner, online signing, multi-policy, online quote discount, and good student.
- State Farm offers premium reductions for safe vehicle, accident-free, multiple policy, Steer Clear safe driver discount, and Drive Safe & Save.
- Nationwide offers discounts for business or organization, family plan, easy pay, anti-theft, accident-free, and defensive driving.
- Esurance includes discounts for paid-in-full, online shopper, anti-theft, multi-policy, claim free, and good student.
- The Hartford has discounts for defensive driver, good student, anti-theft, air bag, driver training, and bundle.
When comparing rates, check with each company or agent which discounts can lower your rates. Depending on the company, some discounts might not apply in your area.
Most companies such as State Farm and Allstate allow you to get coverage prices direct online. Obtaining pricing for Jeep Cherokee insurance in Bakersfield is quite simple as you just type in your coverage preferences into the quote form. Once you submit the form, the system gets your credit score and driving record and quotes a price based on the information you submitted. This helps simplify price comparisons, and it’s also necessary to get many rate quotes if you want to find the cheapest price.
To find out what other companies charge, check out the auto insurance providers below. If you have a policy now, it’s recommended you duplicate coverages and limits exactly as shown on your declarations page. This helps ensure you will have a fair comparison for similar coverage.
The following companies provide quotes in California. If multiple companies are shown, we suggest you visit several of them to get the best price comparison.
Quote Jeep Cherokee Insurance More Affordably
Lots of things are part of the equation when quoting car insurance. Some of the criteria are obvious such as traffic violations, but some are not quite as obvious such as your credit history or your financial responsibility. Consumers need to have an understanding of some of the factors that help determine your auto insurance rates. When you understand what impacts premium levels, this helps enable you to make changes that will entitle you to better auto insurance rates.
- Safeguard your assets with liability coverage – Liability coverage is the coverage that protects you when you are found liable for damages from an accident. It will provide for a legal defense which can be incredibly expensive. This coverage is very inexpensive compared to insuring for physical damage coverage, so do not skimp.
- Better credit means lower rates – Having a good credit score is a large factor in determining what you pay. If your credit history is lower than you’d like, you may save money insuring your Jeep Cherokee if you clean up your credit. People with excellent credit scores tend to be less risk to insure as compared to drivers with bad credit.
- Only buy what you need – There are quite a few extra bells and whistles that you can buy on your Cherokee policy. Coverages like replacement cost coverage, accident forgiveness, and membership fees may not be needed and are just wasting money. They may sound like good ideas initially, but if you’ve never needed them in the past get rid of them and save.
- See if your company offers a multi-policy discount – Many auto insurance companies provide discounts to insureds that have more than one policy such as combining an auto and homeowners policy. Even if you’re getting this discount you may still want to shop around to guarantee you are still saving the most.There is a good possibility that you can find a better deal even if you insure with multiple companies
- Employer stress can make you pay more – Occupations such as judges, business owners, and emergency personnel usually pay higher rates than average because of stressful work requirements and long work days. On the other hand, jobs such as scientists, students and the unemployed get better rates.
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Jeep Cherokee claim statistics – Insurance companies analyze claim trends for every vehicle when determining insurance prices. Models that the data shows to have higher frequency or amount of claims will have a higher cost to insure. The table shown below demonstrates the collected loss data for Jeep Cherokee vehicles.
For each insurance policy coverage type, the loss probability for all vehicles compiled together equals 100. Percentages below 100 represent a good loss history, while values that are 100 or greater show a trend for more claims or tendency to have higher losses.
Jeep Cherokee Insurance Loss Statistics Make and Model Collision Property Damage Comp Personal Injury Medical Payment Bodily Injury Jeep Cherokee 4dr 2WD 76 105 77 87 90 109 Jeep Cherokee 4dr 4WD 78 115 82 75 79 103 BETTERAVERAGEWORSEStatistics from IIHS.org for 2013-2015 Model Years
Auto insurance quotes from local Bakersfield insurance agents
Some consumers just want to buy from a local agent and that is OK! A nice benefit of comparing rate quotes online is you may find cheaper rates and also buy local.
Once you complete this short form, the quote information gets sent to local insurance agents in Bakersfield who can give free rate quotes for your insurance coverage. You never need to leave your computer since rate quotes are delivered immediately to your email address. You can most likely find cheaper rates and a licensed agent to talk to. If you want to compare prices from a particular provider, don’t hesitate to search and find their rate quote page and submit a quote form there.
Selecting an insurer shouldn’t rely on just the premium amount. Any agent in Bakersfield should be willing to answer these questions.
- In the event of vehicle damage, can you pick the collision repair facility?
- How much can you save by raising your physical damage deductibles?
- What is their Better Business Bureau rating?
- How would your car be valued if totaled?
- What company holds the largest book of business for them?
- If independent agents, which companies do they recommend?
- Do you qualify for any additional discounts?
Three reasons auto insurance is important
Despite the high insurance cost for a Jeep Cherokee in Bakersfield, buying auto insurance is required for several reasons.
First, the majority of states have mandatory insurance requirements which means you are required to buy a minimum amount of liability coverage if you drive a vehicle. 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.
Second, if you have a loan on your Cherokee, almost every bank will require that you have insurance to protect their interest in the vehicle. If you cancel or allow the policy to lapse, the bank or lender will purchase a policy for your Jeep for a lot more money and force you to reimburse them a much higher amount than you were paying before.
Third, insurance safeguards not only your car but also your financial assets. Insurance will also pay for medical transport and hospital expenses that are the result of an accident. Liability insurance, one of your policy coverages, also pays for attorney fees and expenses if you cause an accident and are sued. If damage is caused by hail or an accident, collision and comprehensive coverages will pay to repair the damage minus the deductible amount.
The benefits of carrying adequate insurance more than offset the price you pay, particularly when you have a large claim. But the average American driver is currently overpaying as much as $700 annually so compare rate quotes every year to save money.
Best car insurance company in Bakersfield
Selecting the right car insurance company can be difficult considering how many choices drivers have in Bakersfield. The company information shown below may help you analyze which insurers you want to consider purchasing coverage from.
| Company | Value | Customer Service | Claims | Customer Satisfaction | A.M Best Rating | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USAA | 98 | 100 | 100 | 94% | A++ | 98.6 |
| American Family | 98 | 89 | 100 | 86% | A | 95.4 |
| AAA of Southern California | 91 | 94 | 97 | 92% | A+ | 94.1 |
| State Farm | 88 | 93 | 96 | 90% | A++ | 92.4 |
| The Hartford | 94 | 92 | 90 | 89% | A+ | 91.7 |
| AAA Insurance | 88 | 89 | 95 | 91% | A | 91.2 |
| GEICO | 84 | 93 | 93 | 89% | A++ | 90.3 |
| The General | 89 | 91 | 89 | 88% | A- | 90 |
| Titan Insurance | 90 | 87 | 91 | 95% | A+ | 89.6 |
| Progressive | 84 | 91 | 93 | 87% | A+ | 89.5 |
| Mercury Insurance | 88 | 91 | 90 | 85% | A+ | 89.4 |
| Allstate | 85 | 90 | 92 | 88% | A+ | 89.3 |
| Nationwide | 87 | 88 | 84 | 90% | A+ | 88.7 |
| Liberty Mutual | 84 | 87 | 93 | 88% | A | 88.5 |
| 21st Century | 85 | 86 | 87 | 88% | A | 86.7 |
| Esurance | 85 | 80 | 95 | 87% | A+ | 85.9 |
| Safeco | 85 | 85 | 85 | 86% | A | 85.8 |
| Travelers | 80 | 87 | 87 | 83% | A++ | 85.2 |
| Farmers Insurance | 78 | 87 | 88 | 79% | A | 84.3 |
| Compare Rates Now Go | ||||||
Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies
Shop around and save
Some car insurance companies may not provide internet price quotes and usually these small insurance companies only sell through independent insurance agencies. The cheapest Jeep Cherokee insurance in Bakersfield is available on the web and from local agencies, so you should be comparing quotes from both to have the best selection.
Throughout this article, we presented many tips how you can find lower-cost Jeep Cherokee insurance in Bakersfield. The most important thing to understand is the more price quotes you have, the better your comparison will be. You may even discover the best price on car insurance is with the smaller companies. Some small companies may have significantly lower rates on certain market segments as compared to the big name companies such as Allstate or State Farm.
Much more information about car insurance in California can be found below:
- How Does Hitting a Deer Impact Insurance Rates? (Allstate)
- Who Has Affordable Bakersfield Car Insurance Quotes for a Ford Focus? (FAQ)
- Bodily Injury Coverage (Liberty Mutual)
- Credit and Insurance Scores (Insurance Information Institute)