Save Money on Ford Explorer Insurance in Portland

Nobody that owns a car is fond of buying auto insurance, in particular when the cost is too high.

Anyone knows that car insurance companies want to prevent you from shopping around. Consumers who compare rates once a year are likely to switch companies because there is a good chance of getting low-cost coverage. Remarkably, a study showed that people who regularly compared price quotes saved $860 a year compared to policyholders who never compared prices.

If finding the best price on Ford Explorer insurance is the reason for your visit, then having a grasp of how to choose a company and compare auto insurance can save time and money.

Steps to saving money on Ford Explorer insurance in Portland

If you want to save the most money, the best way to find cheaper quotes for car insurance rates in Portland is to begin comparing prices regularly from companies that insure vehicles in Oregon. Rate comparisons can be done by following these steps.

1. Read and learn about how companies set rates and the things you can change to drop your rates. Many risk factors that increase rates such as traffic violations and poor credit rating can be remedied by paying attention to minor details.
2. Compare rates from exclusive agents, independent agents, and direct providers. Direct and exclusive agents can only quote rates from a single company like Progressive or Farmers Insurance, while independent agencies can provide prices from many different companies.
3. Compare the price quotes to the price on your current policy to see if a cheaper price is available in Portland. If you can save money, make sure there is no lapse between the expiration of your current policy and the new one.
4. Notify your company or agent of your decision to cancel your existing policy. Submit any necessary down payment along with the completed application for the new policy. As soon as coverage is bound, keep your new certificate of insurance in an easily accessible location.

One thing to point out is to make sure you’re comparing the same coverage limits and deductibles on each quote request and and to get prices from as many carriers as you can. This provides a fair rate comparison and the best rate selection.

You have multiple auto insurance companies to choose from, and though it is a good thing to have a choice, more choices can make it harder to find the lowest rates for Ford Explorer insurance in Portland.

When comparison shopping, there are several ways to compare prices from different Portland insurance companies. The easiest way to lower the rate you pay for Ford Explorer insurance consists of obtaining rate quotes online.

It’s so easy to compare rates online that it makes it a waste of time to spend your day driving to different Portland agent offices. The fact that you can get quotes online can eliminate the need for a local agent unless your situation requires the professional guidance that only a licensed agent can provide. It is possible with some companies compare online quotes but buy the policy through an agent.

Just remember that getting more free quotes gives you a better chance of getting lower pricing.

The companies shown below are our best choices to provide price comparisons in Portland, OR. If you want to find the best cheap auto insurance in Portland, OR, we recommend you click on several of them to get a more complete price comparison.

Get cheaper Ford Explorer insurance rates in Portland

Auto insurance companies don’t always list every discount in an easy-to-find place, so the following is a list of some of the best known in addition to some of the lesser obvious discounts that may be available.

• Student Driver Training – Reduce the cost of insurance for teen drivers by having them participate in a local driver’s education class in school or through a local driver safety program.
• Discount for Swiching Early – Select larger companies give a discount for switching policies before your current Explorer insurance policy expires. You can save around 10% with this discount.
• Accident Forgiveness – This one is not really a discount per se, but some insurance companies permit an accident without getting socked with a rate hike if your claims history is clear prior to the accident.
• Student in College – Kids who are enrolled in a college that is more than 100 miles from Portland and leave their car at home may qualify for this discount.
• Policy Bundle Discount – If you can combine your homeowners and auto policy with one company you could save up to 20% off your total Explorer insurance premium.
• Anti-theft System – Cars and trucks optioned with advanced anti-theft systems are stolen with less frequency and earn discounts up to 10% off your Portland car insurance quote.
• Drive Safe and Save – Accident-free drivers can save as much as half off their rates than drivers with accidents.
• Good Student – Getting good grades may save you up to 25%. Most companies allow this discount until age 25.
• Telematics Devices – Drivers who elect to allow driving data collection to analyze where and when they drive by using a telematics device in their vehicle such as State Farm’s In-Drive could see a rate decrease if their driving habits are good.

Just know that most of the big mark downs will not be given to your bottom line cost. Most cut the cost of specific coverages such as liability, collision or medical payments. So when the math indicates you could get a free auto insurance policy, it doesn’t quite work that way. But all discounts will definitely lower the cost of coverage.

The information below shows the comparison of Ford Explorer car insurance costs with and without discounts applied. The data is based on a male driver, no violations or claims, Oregon state minimum liability limits, full physical damage coverage, and $250 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The second shows the rates with multi-car, multi-policy, homeowner, safe-driver, marriage, and claim-free discounts applied.

A few popular companies and some of their more popular discounts can be found below.

• GEICO has discounts for air bags, driver training, multi-vehicle, daytime running lights, federal employee, and anti-theft.
• MetLife may offer discounts for defensive driver, good student, multi-policy, accident-free, and claim-free.
• Progressive offers discounts including homeowner, online quote discount, multi-vehicle, online signing, and multi-policy.
• Travelers offers premium reductions for IntelliDrive, continuous insurance, save driver, hybrid/electric vehicle, payment discounts, and new car.
• SAFECO offers discounts for teen safety rewards, anti-lock brakes, anti-theft, teen safe driver, and bundle discounts.
• AAA has savings for good driver, multi-car, anti-theft, pay-in-full, AAA membership discount, multi-policy, and education and occupation.

If you want cheaper Portland car insurance quotes, ask every prospective company how many discounts you can get. All car insurance discounts might not apply in every state. To find companies that offer some of these discounts in Oregon, follow this link.

Rates and statistics

The premium information below showcases a range of insurance rates for Ford Explorer models. Having a good grasp of how policy rates are determined is important for making informed purchases.

Data variables include single female driver age 30, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1000 deductibles, and Oregon minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, safe-driver, homeowner, multi-policy, and claim-free. Premium amounts do not factor in the specific area where the vehicle is garaged which can affect insurance rates considerably.

Full coverage rates compared to liability-only

The example below shows the comparison of Ford Explorer car insurance rates with full physical damage coverage and with liability coverage only. Data assumes a clean driving record, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, drivers are single, and no discounts are applied.

When to eliminate full coverage

There is no definitive guideline that works best for making the decision to drop comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy, but there is a guideline you can consider. If the yearly cost of full coverage is more than 10% of the settlement you would receive from your company, then you might want to consider buying only liability coverage.

For example, let’s assume your Ford Explorer replacement value is $9,000 and you have $1,000 policy deductibles. If your vehicle is severely damaged, you would only receive $8,000 after you pay the deductible. If you are paying over $800 a year for full coverage, then it could be time to drop full coverage.

There are some conditions where eliminating full coverage is not financially feasible. If you haven’t paid off your loan, you have to carry full coverage in order to keep the loan. Also, if you don’t have enough money to buy a different vehicle in the event your current vehicle is totaled, you should not drop full coverage.

Insurance agencies can help

A lot of people just prefer to talk to an insurance agent and there is nothing wrong with that. The biggest benefit of price shopping on the web is the fact that you can find cheap auto insurance rates and also buy local.

For easy comparison, once you complete this quick form, your information is instantly submitted to local insurance agents in Portland who can give free rate quotes for your coverage. There is no need to leave your computer because prices are sent instantly to you. You can most likely find cheaper rates AND an agent nearby. If for some reason you want to quote rates from a specific auto insurance provider, you can always search and find their rate quote page and submit a quote form there.

Picking the best company should depend on more than just the bottom line cost. Ask your prospective agent these questions:

• When do they do policy reviews?
• Is auto insurance their primary focus in Portland?
• Does the agency have a positive business rating?
• How are they compensated?
• Do you qualify for any additional discounts?

If you need to find a reputable agency, you must know there are a couple different agency structures and how they are slightly different. Auto insurance agents can be categorized as either independent or exclusive depending on the company they work for.

Exclusive Auto Insurance Agents

Exclusive agents can only quote rates from one company such as Allstate, Farmers Insurance, State Farm, and AAA. Exclusive agents cannot compare rates from other companies so you need to shop around if the rates are high. Exclusive agents receive a lot of sales training on the products they sell which helps them sell insurance even at higher premiums.

Shown below is a list of exclusive insurance agents in Portland who can help you get price quotes.

View more agents

Independent Agents

These type of agents do not have single company limitations so they can insure your vehicles with an assortment of companies enabling the ability to shop coverage around. If they find a lower price, an independent agent can move your coverage without you having to go to a different agency.

When comparing auto insurance prices, we recommend you include a few independent agents in order to compare the most rates.

The following is a list of independent agents in Portland that are able to give comparison quotes.

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Coverages available on your insurance policy

Knowing the specifics of your insurance policy aids in choosing the best coverages for your vehicles. Policy terminology can be impossible to understand and coverage can change by endorsement. Below you’ll find the usual coverages available from insurance companies.

Comprehensive insurance

Comprehensive insurance coverage pays to fix your vehicle from damage that is not covered by collision coverage. You need to pay your deductible first and then insurance will cover the rest of the damage.

Comprehensive insurance covers things such as falling objects, rock chips in glass and a tree branch falling on your vehicle. The most you’ll receive from a claim is the cash value of the vehicle, so if your deductible is as high as the vehicle’s value consider dropping full coverage.

Med pay and Personal Injury Protection (PIP)

Medical payments and Personal Injury Protection insurance kick in for immediate expenses for surgery, X-ray expenses, funeral costs and hospital visits. They are often utilized in addition to your health insurance program or if you do not have health coverage. Coverage applies to all vehicle occupants as well as any family member struck as a pedestrian. PIP is not an option in every state but can be used in place of medical payments coverage

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM)

Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist coverage provides protection from other drivers when they do not carry enough liability coverage. Covered losses include injuries to you and your family and damage to your Ford Explorer.

Due to the fact that many Oregon drivers have only the minimum liability required by law (25/50/20), their limits can quickly be used up. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage is a good idea.

Auto collision coverage

Collision coverage will pay to fix damage to your Explorer from colliding with another car or object. A deductible applies and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.

Collision coverage protects against claims such as colliding with a tree, crashing into a building, driving through your garage door and backing into a parked car. Collision coverage makes up a good portion of your premium, so consider dropping it from lower value vehicles. It’s also possible to raise the deductible on your Explorer in order to get cheaper collision rates.

Auto liability

Liability insurance protects you from damages or injuries you inflict on people or other property by causing an accident. Coverage consists of three different limits, bodily injury per person, bodily injury per accident and property damage. You commonly see policy limits of 25/50/20 that translate to $25,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, $50,000 for the entire accident, and a limit of $20,000 paid for damaged property.

Liability coverage pays for claims like court costs, loss of income and structural damage. How much liability should you purchase? That is your choice, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase higher limits if possible. Oregon requires drivers to carry at least 25/50/20 but you should think about purchasing more liability than the minimum.

The chart below shows why minimum state limits may not provide adequate coverage.

Do the work, save more money

We’ve covered some good ideas how to lower your Ford Explorer insurance prices in Portland. The key concept to understand is the more companies you get rates for, the better likelihood of getting the cheapest Ford Explorer rate quotes. Drivers may even discover the most savings is with an unexpected company. These companies may have significantly lower rates on certain market segments than their larger competitors like Allstate, GEICO and Progressive.

Lower-priced Ford Explorer insurance in Portland is definitely available from both online companies and from local insurance agents, so you need to shop Portland car insurance with both in order to have the best chance of saving money. A few companies do not provide rate quotes online and usually these smaller companies prefer to sell through independent agents.

Steps to finding cheaper rates for Ford Explorer insurance in Portland

The preferred way to find cheaper auto insurance rates is to compare prices regularly from insurers that sell auto insurance in Portland. Rate comparisons can be done by following these guidelines.

• Step 1: Try to learn a little about what coverages are included in your policy and the steps you can take to drop your rates. Many things that are responsible for high rates such as speeding tickets, accidents and an unacceptable credit history can be remedied by making minor changes to your lifestyle.
• Step 2: Compare prices from direct, independent, and exclusive agents. Direct and exclusive agents can only give prices from one company like Progressive or Allstate, while agents who are independent can give you price quotes for a wide range of insurance providers. View companies
• Step 3: Compare the new rate quotes to your current policy premium and determine if cheaper Explorer coverage is available. If you find a lower rate quote and change companies, make sure the effective date of the new policy is the same as the expiration date of the old one.
• Step 4: Tell your current agent or company of your intent to cancel your current coverage. Submit a down payment along with a signed application for the new policy. Once received, safely store the proof of insurance certificate with your registration paperwork.

One important bit of advice is that you’ll want to make sure you compare the same amount of coverage on each quote request and and to get quotes from as many car insurance companies as possible. This ensures a level playing field and a complete price analysis.

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