feel like im getting screwed on my montly insurance

[Boomerang]

Im using cost-u-less (oxymoron?), and my monthly is 79.50 a month for the bottom of the barrel liability for my 87 325is, the i got my renewal this month for the next sixth months, and the bill is 129.74 which "includes a renewal fee for your convenience"....right.... Am i getting screwed? My friend pays 35 a month for his 1980 cutlass, im not sure if right there im comparing apples to apples or apples to oranges, but my record is clean. I had my car for two years now, when i first signed up i was paying 110 then after a year it went down to 79 a month for being there for a year. Is this right or am i getting charged too much? FWIW my record is clean by the way, a ticket is pending in court but i know that wont affect unless you get proven guilty, still i can take traffic school as well. Thanks for any advice!

[StereoInstaller1]

Go shopping.

Figure it like this: if you spend 3 hours shopping and beat the price you had by $100, that is like $33/hr.

Progressive did me pretty well.

GL!
Luke

[fretburnr]

for comparison's sake, i pay ~85-90/mo for full coverage on allstate

[Jscotty]

Are you sure that $129 is not just the first payment and then the $79.50 will be the monthly payments that follow?

Shop around for a better deal. It sounds like you are dealing with an insurance broker more so than an actual insurance company. Some companies pay out better commissions to the broker than others and in turn the broker has to balance difference between being profitable and keeping you as a customer.

Having said that, it would be in his best interest to get you the lowest rate possible if it means keeping you as a customer, however, if he thinks that you will go for a higher priced company, and it translates to a better commission for him, that's what he will do.

Also there are various factors when it comes to the rates. Your friend probably lives in a lower risk area of town and drives a shorter distance to work. Plus Oldsmobiles are probably in less accidents than BMW's

[SpecM]

-GEICO ftw. I pay about $148 for full coverage on my '89 325i AND my wife's new Camery. And that's with me being 20 yo and a not-so-good driving record.

[Boomerang]

scotty, yeah i meant that the extra 50 bucks was to the first month event hough i have been with them, i dont know if i made that clear, then again i woke up a minute before typing that hahaha.

ok now say i want to get geico, exactly how do i avoid the broker? isnt everywhere you see on the street corner a broker or no? i remember i went with "cheaper insurance" (thats the name lol) and it was 175 for the liability for a beat up ass 80's Mazda, that was when i was 16, i didnt know anything about shopping for insurance, i called to cancel when my mom told me that was rediculous, they denied and my mom went there and ripped them a new one.
Would i have to call geico or what? i guess its time after 2 years to switch.
also can you talk to your company and ask for a lower price? i honestly still think im getting ripped, but then again im with a broker now :(

[fretburnr]

you can avoid a broker by calling the insurance companies directly. get their info from their websites.

[silversleeper]

yea, what they are saying about avoiding the broker is good i think. i called up progressive direct for my stuff. i can't wait till next year though, but at the same time i dont want next year to come. for that is the year i turn 25 and become an old fart.

[SpecM]

-GEICO doesn't have brokers, iirc. Just call the company, they'll hook you up.

1-800-841-3000 btw

[Jordan]

I would recommend against Progressive. I was with them nearly 3 years when I had to file my first and only claim ever. They handled it so piss poor that I dropped them like a bad habit.

I'm with State Farm now, and paying much much less... I was paying $125/mo for full coverage on my 99 M3 and basic on the 95 740iL, not sure what the new rate with the 318iS on there is.

[jflip2002]

Allstate is great with their claims. And when I go to progressive, and compare rates, allstate is usually the cheapest for me.

When Rachel flipped her camaro, they gave her $11k for the car. They also gave her an additional $11k for the posessions in the car, which happened to be a $5k ring. But either way, $6k for other shit that was like expensive make up, jeans, glasses, etc.

They handled things very well. Id recommend getting the renters insurance also, since thtas how she got the extra $11k for her missing shit. They put that under the renters insurance section of the claim.

[Boomerang]

damn so i called geico, progressive etc...and all they could do was at least 10 dollars MORE than what i have right now, they ran my drivers license etc...

they said that when a COP rear ended my car three years ago, that counted as an ACCIDENT on MY part....WTF? lol i guess sitting at a red light and having a cop plow into you is your fault

they also said that my license was suspended for a year when it wasnt....WTF...so now i have to call the DMV mandatory action dept to see what happened and if there was a screw up on my record. It so WASNT suspended and she didnt believe me haha.

ill report back once i get things straightened out. She said i could get 54.39 a month if that goes away

[Jscotty]

ok now say i want to get geico, exactly how do i avoid the broker? isnt everywhere you see on the street corner a broker or no?

Usually the smaller named low-budget "off-brand" insurance offices are broker shops. Names like "Dick & Tom's Insurance" or "U-SAVE Insurance" or "Lattimer's Insurance Associates" should be a direct giveaway. Any other carrier that is nationally known (e.g. Geico, Nationwide, Farmer's etc." is not a broker.

Generally there are 3 types of structures- You have the direct company like Geico who has branch offices, then you have the companies like State Farm and Allstate in which each location is independantly owned and operated. They are not brokers, however, they can "broker" a policy for you through a different carrier if they so choose. And then you have the typical broker.

And yes, you can certainly ask for a lower rate. If the agent is well trained then he will ask you a series of questions outside of the "norm" to see if you qualify for something else. I actually saved $200 a year off of my policy because I have a business and my vehicles (including the E30) can be classified for "business use".

[delatlanta1281]

damn so i called geico, progressive etc...and all they could do was at least 10 dollars MORE than what i have right now, they ran my drivers license etc...

they said that when a COP rear ended my car three years ago, that counted as an ACCIDENT on MY part....WTF? lol i guess sitting at a red light and having a cop plow into you is your fault

they also said that my license was suspended for a year when it wasnt....WTF...so now i have to call the DMV mandatory action dept to see what happened and if there was a screw up on my record. It so WASNT suspended and she didnt believe me haha.

ill report back once i get things straightened out. She said i could get 54.39 a month if that goes away

Criminal.
Face it, you are screwed. I pay 200 clams a month for 4 cars. All are full coverage. You aren't old enough or there is something (like the above) you are leaving out.

[euroshark]

Progressive is awesome, $56 a month for my euro 6er and it's the only car on the policy... I'm 21.

Esurance isn't terrible either, I have 3 cars on that policy and the last one I added (the Audi) only raised my 6 month premium by $6. No kidding.