Auto Insurance Rate Quotes for a Chevy HHR in Austin

Paying for overpriced Chevrolet HHR insurance in Austin can dry up your checking account and force you to make tough financial choices. Comparing rates annually is a fast and free way to make ends meet.

Statistics show that a large majority of drivers have remained with the same auto insurance company for a minimum of four years, and approximately 38% of consumers have never quoted auto insurance rates at all. Texas consumers can cut their rates by up to 70% a year, but they just don’t understand how easy it is to compare rate quotes online.

Companies like Progressive, GEICO and Farmers Insurance constantly bombard you with fancy advertisements and it is challenging if not impossible to see past the geckos and flying pigs and effectively compare rates to find the best deal.

It’s a good idea to do price comparisons yearly because rates are adjusted regularly by insurance companies. Despite the fact that you may have had the lowest premium rates on Chevy HHR insurance in Austin a couple years back you will most likely find a better price today. Forget anything you know (or think you know) about auto insurance because I’m going to let you in on the secrets to the proper way to get good coverage on Chevy HHR insurance in Austin at a lower rate.

Get Chevy HHR Insurance at a Discount

It’s important that you understand some of the things that play a part in calculating your car insurance rates. When you understand what influences your rates, this enables informed choices that will entitle you to much lower annual insurance costs. Many things are part of the equation when quoting car insurance. Some are obvious such as your driving record, but other factors are not as apparent like your continuous coverage or how financially stable you are.

How your age affects premiums – Drivers with little experience are statistically shown to get distracted easily when driving and because of this, their car insurance rates are much higher. If you’ve ever had to add a youthful driver to your car insurance policy can increase premiums substantially. Mature drivers are viewed as being more responsible, are lower risk to insure, and get fewer tickets.

Performance affects insurance premiums – The type of car you are trying to find cheaper insurance for makes a significant difference in the rate you pay. Since the Chevrolet HHR is considered a crossover, insurance will be slightly more as compared to the average rate in Austin. Lower performance four cylinder passenger cars usually are quite affordable to insure, but your final cost has many other factors.

Cars with good safety ratings mean better premiums – Vehicles with high crash test scores tend to be cheaper to insure. Safe vehicles have better occupant injury protection and fewer injuries means your insurance company pays less and thus lower rates.

Prevent car insurance lapses – Having a lapse in insurance coverage is a quick way to trigger a rate increase. In addition to paying higher rates, the inability to provide proof of insurance may earn you a revoked license or a big fine. You could then be forced to file a SR-22 with the Texas motor vehicle department to get your license reinstated.

Drivers with high credit save on car insurance – Having a bad credit score will be a significant factor in determining premium rates. Consumers who have very good credit scores tend to be more responsible and file fewer claims than drivers with lower credit scores. So if your credit score can use some improvement, you could be paying less to insure your Chevrolet HHR by taking the time to improve your credit score.

Save money with GPS tracking and theft deterrents – Purchasing a vehicle with anti-theft technology or alarm system can save you some money. Systems that thwart thieves like OnStar, LoJack tracking, and tamper alarms all aid in stopping car theft and help bring rates down.

Most major insurance companies like State Farm, Allstate and GEICO provide coverage price quotes online. Comparing prices online for Chevy HHR insurance in Austin doesn’t take a lot of time because you just enter your personal and coverage information into the form. When complete, the system will obtain your driving and credit reports and provides a quote determined by many factors. This simplifies rate comparisons, and it’s also necessary to do this in order to find cheaper rates.

To get comparison pricing now, compare rate quotes from the providers shown below. If you have your current policy handy, we recommend you enter the insurance coverages identical to your current policy. This ensures you’re receiving an apples-to-apples comparison using the same coverage and limits.

The companies shown below have been selected to offer free rate quotes in Texas. If several companies are displayed, we suggest you get rates from several of them to find the most affordable car insurance rates.

Prices above based on married male driver age 50, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and Texas minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include homeowner, multi-vehicle, claim-free, safe-driver, and multi-policy. Rate information does not factor in vehicle location which can affect rates considerably.

Does full coverage make sense?

The illustration below visualizes the comparison of Chevrolet HHR premium costs with and without full coverage. The premium estimates are based on no claims or violations, $500 deductibles, married female driver, and no discounts are factored in.

When to eliminate full coverage

There is no set guideline of when to stop paying for physical damage insurance, but there is a guideline you can consider. If the annual cost of coverage is more than around 10% of the replacement cost minus the deductible, the it may be a good time to stop paying for full coverage.

For example, let’s say your Chevrolet HHR claim settlement value is $9,000 and you have $1,000 policy deductibles. If your vehicle is destroyed, you would only receive $8,000 after paying your deductible. If you are paying over $800 annually for physical damage coverage, the it may be a good time to stop paying for full coverage.

There are some cases where eliminating full coverage is not in your best interest. If you still owe money on your vehicle, you have to maintain full coverage to satisfy the loan requirements. Also, if your finances do not allow you to purchase a different vehicle if your current one is in an accident, you should keep full coverage in place.

Physical damage deductibles

The diagram below demonstrates how deductible levels and can influence Chevrolet HHR insurance prices for each age group. The prices are based on a single male driver, full coverage, and no policy discounts are applied.

Drive safe and save

The chart below illustrates how speeding tickets and at-fault claims can affect Chevrolet HHR insurance costs for different age groups of insureds. The premiums assume a married male driver, full coverage, $500 deductibles, and no discounts are applied.

Can you really save $408 a year?

Respected companies like State Farm, Allstate and GEICO constantly bombard you with television and radio advertisements. They all have a common claim of big savings just by switching your insurance policy to them. It sounds good, but how can they all sell you cheaper insurance coverage? This is the trick they use.

Companies have specific criteria for the type of driver that will be a good risk. An example of this type of insured could be a mature driver, has a clear driving record, and has excellent credit. Anybody who meets those qualifications will probably get the lowest prices and as a result will probably save quite a bit of money when switching.

Consumers who do not fit these criteria will probably have to pay more expensive rates and this can result in the customer buying from a different company. If you pay close attention to the ads, they say “people that switch” but not “all drivers who get quotes” save that much. That is how insurance companies can claim big savings. This really illustrates why you should compare as many free Austin auto insurance quotes as you can. You cannot predict with any certainty which company will be your best fit.

Three main reasons to buy car insurance

Despite the fact that car insurance is not cheap in Austin, insurance may be required for several reasons.

• Most states have minimum liability requirements which means you are required to buy a specific level of liability in order to be legal. In Texas these limits are 30/60/25 which means you must have $30,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $60,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $25,000 of property damage coverage.
• If your Chevy HHR has a loan, it’s most likely the lender will make it mandatory that you carry insurance to guarantee payment of the loan. If you cancel or allow the policy to lapse, the bank may insure your Chevy at a much higher rate and require you to pay for the expensive policy.
• Car insurance protects not only your car but also your assets. It will also cover most medical and hospital costs for you, your passengers, and anyone else injured in an accident. Liability coverage also covers legal expenses if you are sued as the result of an accident. If your Chevy gets damaged, collision and comprehensive coverages will pay to repair the damage.

The benefits of buying car insurance more than offset the price you pay, especially with large liability claims. As of last year, the average driver in Texas is currently overpaying as much as $865 each year so compare quotes from several companies at least once a year to ensure rates are competitive.

Affordable rates on Chevy HHR insurance in Austin with these auto insurance discounts

Companies offering auto insurance do not advertise every possible discount in an easy-to-find place, so the below list has a few of the more well known and also the lesser-known discounts that you can inquire about if you buy Austin auto insurance online.

• Accident Forgiveness Coverage – This one is not really a discount per se, but some companies like Progressive, Allstate, and GEICO will turn a blind eye to one accident before your rates go up if you are claim-free for a particular time prior to the accident.
• Government Employees – Simply working for the federal government can earn a discount up to 10% with a few auto insurance companies.
• Distant Student – Children who attend college more than 100 miles from Austin and do not have access to a covered vehicle may qualify for this discount.
• Bundle and Save – If you combine your auto and homeowners policies with one insurance company you will save at least 10% off all policies.
• Defensive Driving Course – Passing a safe driver course could cut 5% off your bill if your company offers it.
• Theft Prevention Discount – Cars, trucks, and SUVs equipped with anti-theft or alarm systems are stolen with less frequency and will qualify for a discount on a Austin auto insurance quote.
• Early Signing – Select larger companies give a discount for switching policies prior to your current HHR insurance policy expiring. You may see this discount when you get Austin auto insurance quotes online.
• Organization Discounts – Affiliation with qualifying employment or professional organizations is a simple method to lower premiums when getting a Austin auto insurance quote.
• Payment Discounts – If you pay your bill all at once instead of making monthly payments you can actually save on your bill.
• Senior Citizen Rates – Drivers that qualify as senior citizens could receive a small decrease in premiums.

As is typical with insurance, some of the credits will not apply to the entire policy premium. Most only cut specific coverage prices like liability and collision coverage. If you do the math and it seems like you can get free auto insurance, company stockholders wouldn’t be very happy. But all discounts will help reduce the amount you have to pay.

To find providers that offer many of these discounts in Texas, follow this link.

Neighborhood Austin auto insurance agents

Some people just prefer to sit down and talk to an agent and that is a personal choice. One of the benefits of comparing rates online is the fact that drivers can get the best rates and still have a local agent.

By using this simple form, your insurance data is immediately sent to local insurance agents who will give competitive quotes for your business. It’s much easier because you don’t need to contact any agents since rate quotes are delivered immediately to you. You can find better rates and work with a local agent. If you have a need to compare rates from a specific car insurance provider, don’t hesitate to search and find their rate quote page and submit a quote form there.

Finding a good provider requires you to look at more than just the premium amount. Get answers to these questions too.

• How much can you save by raising your physical damage deductibles?
• When do they do policy reviews?
• What company do they have the most business with?
• Which companies can they place coverage with?
• Do you qualify for any additional discounts?

If you are searching for a reliable insurance agency, you need to know there are two types of agencies and how they are distinctly different. Agents can be categorized as either exclusive or independent.

Exclusive Agencies

Agents of this type can only provide pricing for a single company like Farmers Insurance, State Farm, or Allstate. They usually cannot provide other company’s prices so if the price isn’t competitive there isn’t much they can do. Exclusive agents are usually quite knowledgeable in insurance sales and that enables them to sell even at higher rates.

The following are Austin exclusive agencies willing to provide rate quotes.

More Austin agents

Independent Insurance Agents

Agents that choose to be independent do not have single company limitations so they can quote policies with an assortment of companies depending on which coverage is best. If they find a cheaper price, your agent can switch companies which makes it simple for you. If you need cheaper car insurance rates, you will definitely want to compare prices from independent agents to get the most accurate price comparison.

Shown below is a short list of independent agents in Austin willing to provide comparison quotes.

More Austin agents

Get the best coverage at the most affordable price

While you’re price shopping online, don’t be tempted to skimp on critical coverages to save a buck or two. There are too many instances where an insured cut liability coverage limits to discover at claim time that the small savings ended up costing them much more. Your aim should be to purchase plenty of coverage at the best possible price.

Cost effective Chevy HHR insurance is possible online and also from your neighborhood Austin agents, so you should compare both to have the best selection. There are still a few companies who may not provide online rate quotes and usually these smaller companies only sell through local independent agents.

For more information, link through to these articles:

• Cellphones, Texting and Driving (iihs.org)
• Who Has the Cheapest Austin Auto Insurance with Multiple Speeding Tickets? (FAQ)
• Who Has Affordable Auto Insurance Quotes for Retired Military in Austin? (FAQ)
• Who Has Affordable Austin Auto Insurance Quotes for Active Military? (FAQ)
• Honda warning system reduces insurance claims (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
• Crash Avoidance Technologies FAQ (iihs.org)
• Understanding Rental Car Insurance (Insurance Information Institute)
• What are my Rights when Filing a Claim? (Insurance Information Institute)