Are you tired of trying to scrape together enough money to pay car insurance each month? Your situation is no different than many other Pennsylvania consumers.
It’s astonishing, but the vast majority of car insurance customers have bought car insurance from the same company for at least four years, and nearly half have never compared quotes from other companies. Pennsylvania insurance shoppers can cut their rates by almost $700 a year by just comparing rate quotes, but they just don’t want to find cheaper insurance by shopping around.
Insurance companies such as GEICO, Progressive and Allstate persitently shower you with catchy ads and it is difficult to see past the geckos and flying pigs and do the work needed to find the best deal.
If you are insured now, you will definitely be able to buy cheaper car insurance using this information. Finding affordable car insurance coverage in Pittsburgh can be easy if you know a few tricks. Nevertheless, Pennsylvania vehicle owners can benefit from knowing how companies sell insurance online because it varies considerably.
Informed Consumers Can Lower Their Insurance Prices
One of the most helpful ways to save on car insurance is to to have a grasp of a few of the rating criteria that go into determining the level of your policy premiums. If you have a feel for what influences your rates, this helps enable you to make changes that could result in big savings. Lots of factors are taken into consideration when you get your auto insurance bill. A few of the factors are predictable such as traffic violations, although some other factors are more obscure such as your marital status or how financially stable you are.
Shown below are some of the factors companies use to determine your rates.
Traffic violations can increase prices – Being a careful driver has a huge affect on how much you pay. Even one moving violation can bump up the cost by as much as thirty percent. Good drivers tend to pay less for car insurance compared to bad drivers. Drivers who have gotten multiple tickets such as DUI, reckless driving or excessive speeding may need to submit a SR-22 form with their state motor vehicle department in order to legally drive a vehicle.
The illustration below demonstrates how traffic citations and fender-benders increase Volvo XC70 yearly insurance costs for different insured age categories. The costs are based on a single female driver, comp and collision included, $500 deductibles, and no discounts are factored in.
No insurance claims equals better rates – Insurance companies in Pennsylvania generally give the best rates to drivers who are not frequent claim filers. If you file a lot of claims you can definitely plan on much higher rates or policy non-renewal. Your insurance policy is meant to be used in the event of claims that you cannot pay yourself.
Drive a fast car and pay more – The performance level of the vehicle you own makes a big difference in your auto insurance rates. The lowest premiums tend to be for economy passenger cars, but many other things help determine your insurance rates.
The chart below uses these variables: single female driver age 20, full coverage with $250 deductibles, and no discounts or violations. It compares Volvo XC70 rates compared to other makes and models that have different performance risks.
Annual mileage and car insurance costs – Driving a lot of miles annually the higher your rates will be. Most companies rate vehicles partially by how you use the vehicle. Autos that have low annual miles receive lower rates than those that get driven frequently. Verify your vehicle rating states the correct usage, because improper ratings can cost you money. Having an incorrect usage rating on your XC70 can result in significantly higher rates.
Job stress can affect rates – Did you know your job can affect your rates? Jobs such as real estate brokers, executives, and emergency personnel generally have higher premiums than the average policyholder due to intense work requirements and incredibly demanding work hours. Conversely, jobs like actors, engineers and performers have lower than average premiums.
Multiple policies with one company can save – Most larger companies provide lower prices to policyholders who have multiple policies with them, otherwise known as a multi-policy discount. Even with this discount, you may still want to compare other Pittsburgh XC70 insurance rates to verify if the discount is saving money.
Responsible credit means lower prices – Having a good credit score can be an important factor in determining what you pay. Consumers who have very high credit ratings tend to file fewer claims and have better driving records as compared to drivers with lower credit ratings. If your credit score is lower than you’d like, you could potentially save money when insuring your Volvo XC70 by improving your credit score.
Volvo XC70 claim data – Insurers study historical loss data to help calculate premium costs. Vehicles that statistically have high amounts or severity of claims will be charged more to insure. The table shown below demonstrates the loss history for Volvo XC70 vehicles.
For each coverage type, the loss probability for all vehicles, as a total average, equals 100. Numbers shown that are under 100 represent a good loss history, while numbers above 100 point to more frequent losses or an increased chance of larger losses than average.
Vehicle Make and Model | Collision | Property Damage | Comp | Personal Injury | Medical Payment | Bodily Injury |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Volvo XC70 Station Wagon 2WD | 69 | |||||
Volvo XC70 Station Wagon 4WD | 79 | 70 | 94 | 45 |
Empty fields indicate not enough data collected
Statistics from IIHS.org for 2013-2015 Model Years
Volvo XC70 insurance analysis
The rate table displayed below showcases estimates of coverage costs for Volvo XC70 models. Knowing how premiums are calculated can help customers make decisions when shopping your coverage around.
Model | Comp | Collision | Liability | Medical | UM/UIM | Annual Premium | Monthly Premium |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
XC70 3.2 AWD Station Wagon | $200 | $338 | $350 | $20 | $104 | $1,012 | $84 |
XC70 T6 AWD 4-Dr | $200 | $390 | $350 | $20 | $104 | $1,064 | $89 |
Get Your Own Custom Quote Go |
Price data assumes married female driver age 50, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $500 deductibles, and Pennsylvania minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include claim-free, multi-vehicle, multi-policy, safe-driver, and homeowner. Estimates do not factor in specific location information which can alter coverage rates significantly.
Physical damage deductibles: Should you raise them?
One frequently asked question is how high should the physical damage deductibles be. The comparisons below determine the differences in premium rates between low and high coverage deductibles. The first price estimate table uses a $100 deductible for comprehensive and collision coverage and the second set of prices uses a $500 deductible.
Model | Comp | Collision | Liability | Medical | UM/UIM | Annual Premium | Monthly Premium |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
XC70 3.2 AWD Station Wagon | $356 | $602 | $372 | $22 | $112 | $1,489 | $124 |
XC70 T6 AWD 4-Dr | $356 | $694 | $372 | $22 | $112 | $1,581 | $132 |
Get Your Own Custom Quote Go |
Model | Comp | Collision | Liability | Medical | UM/UIM | Annual Premium | Monthly Premium |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
XC70 3.2 AWD Station Wagon | $260 | $408 | $372 | $22 | $112 | $1,174 | $98 |
XC70 T6 AWD 4-Dr | $260 | $468 | $372 | $22 | $112 | $1,234 | $103 |
Get Your Own Custom Quote Go |
Table data represents married male driver age 30, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, and Pennsylvania minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, multi-policy, homeowner, claim-free, and multi-vehicle. Prices do not factor in specific Pittsburgh garaging location which can decrease or increase insurance rates significantly.
Based on the data above, we can derive that using a $100 deductible costs roughly $27 more each month or $324 annually than choosing the higher $500 deductible. Since you would have to pay $400 more if you turn in a claim with a $500 deductible as compared to a $100 deductible, if you tend to have more than 15 months between claim filings, you would more than likely save some money by going with a higher deductible.
Annual premiums comparing men and women in Pittsburgh
The illustration below shows the comparison of Volvo XC70 yearly insurance costs for male and female drivers. The data is based on no tickets, no at-fault accidents, full coverage, $100 deductibles, single status, and no additional discounts are factored in.
Volvo XC70 liability rates compared to full coverage
The example below illustrates the comparison of Volvo XC70 annual premium costs with and without full coverage. The costs are based on no claims or driving violations, $500 deductibles, drivers are single, and no discounts are factored in.
When to stop buying physical damage coverage
There isn’t a written rule to drop physical damage coverage, but there is a general convention. If the yearly cost of comp and collision coverage is more than about 10% of the replacement cost of your vehicle minus the policy deductible, then you might want to think about dropping full coverage.
For example, let’s say your Volvo XC70 replacement cost is $3,000 and you have $1,000 physical damage deductibles. If your vehicle is severely damaged, the most your company would pay you is $2,000 after you pay the deductible. If it’s costing in excess of $200 a year for your policy with full coverage, then you may want to consider only buying liability coverage.
There are some circumstances where dropping physical damage coverage is not recommended. If you haven’t paid off your loan, you have to keep full coverage as part of the loan conditions. Also, if your emergency fund is not enough to purchase a different vehicle if your current one is in an accident, you should not consider dropping full coverage.
Earn discounts on Pittsburgh auto insurance
Some providers don’t always list every available discount very clearly, so we took the time to find some of the more common as well as the least known discounts you could be receiving when you buy Pittsburgh car insurance online.
- Driving Data Discount – Insureds that choose to allow driving data submission to analyze driving habits through the use of a telematics system such as Allstate’s Drivewise and State Farm’s In-Drive system might see lower rates as long as they are good drivers.
- Distant College Student Discount – Older children who are attending college and won’t have access to an insured vehicle may be insured at a cheaper rate.
- Club Memberships – Belonging to qualifying clubs or civic groups could qualify you for a break on your bill.
- Drive Less and Save – Maintaining low annual mileage may allow you to get lower rates on the low mileage vehicles.
- Driver Training Discounts – Taking a defensive driver course is a good idea and can lower rates and easily pay for the cost of the class.
- Discounts for Safe Drivers – Drivers who avoid accidents can pay as much as 50% less compared to rates paid by drivers with frequent claims.
- Active Military Service – Being on active deployment in the military could qualify you for better auto insurance rates.
- Bundle and Save – If you can combine your auto and home policy and place coverage with the same company you may save up to 20% off your total XC70 insurance premium.
- Early Renewal Discounts – A few insurance companies allow discounts for switching companies early. This discount can save up to 10%.
- Theft Prevention System – Vehicles equipped with anti-theft or alarm systems can help prevent theft and that can save you a little bit as well.
It’s important to understand that most credits do not apply to all coverage premiums. Most only cut the price of certain insurance coverages like comp or med pay. Despite the appearance that it’s possible to get free car insurance, it just doesn’t work that way.
The diagram below compares Volvo XC70 car insurance costs with and without discounts applied. The information is based on a female driver, a clean driving record, no at-fault accidents, Pennsylvania state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $1,000 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The second shows the rates with marriage, multi-policy, homeowner, safe-driver, multi-car, and claim-free discounts applied.
For a list of companies that can offer you the previously mentioned discounts in Pennsylvania, click this link.
Compare but don’t skimp
We just presented some good ideas how you can find cheap Volvo XC70 insurance in Pittsburgh. It’s most important to understand that the more quotes you get, the higher your chance of finding low cost Pittsburgh car insurance quotes. You may even find the lowest priced car insurance comes from some of the lesser-known companies. Regional companies can often provide lower prices in certain areas than the large multi-state companies such as State Farm or Progressive.
As you shop your coverage around, make sure you don’t sacrifice coverage to reduce premiums. There have been many cases where an insured dropped liability limits or collision coverage only to discover later that a couple dollars of savings turned into a financial nightmare. The goal is to get the best coverage possible at a price you can afford and still be able to protect your assets.
Lower-priced car insurance in Pittsburgh can be purchased on the web and with local Pittsburgh insurance agents, and you should compare rates from both so you have a total pricing picture. Some car insurance companies may not have online rate quotes and usually these small, regional companies provide coverage only through independent agents.
How to buy discount Volvo XC70 insurance in Pittsburgh
If you want to find the absolute lowest rates, then the best way to find cheaper quotes for Volvo XC70 insurance in Pittsburgh is to compare prices regularly from providers in Pennsylvania.
- First, get a basic knowledge of how insurance works and the modifications you can make to drop your rates. Many rating criteria that increase rates like traffic citations and an imperfect credit score can be amended by making minor driving habit or lifestyle changes.
- Second, compare prices from direct, independent, and exclusive agents. Direct and exclusive agents can only give prices from a single company like Progressive or Allstate, while agents who are independent can quote rates from multiple insurance companies.
- Third, compare the quotes to your existing coverage to see if switching to a new carrier will save money. If you can save some money and make a switch, make sure there is no lapse between the expiration of your current policy and the new one.
- Fourth, give notification to your agent or company of your intention to cancel your current policy and submit a down payment along with a signed application to your new carrier. Don’t forget to place your new certificate verifying coverage in your vehicle’s glove compartment or console.
The most important part of shopping around is that you use the same level of coverage on each quote and and to get price estimates from every company you can. Doing this guarantees a fair price comparison and the best rate selection.
Helpful learning opportunities
- Side airbags reduce rollover fatalities (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
- Who Has the Cheapest Auto Insurance Rates for Uber Drivers in Pittsburgh? (FAQ)
- What Car Insurance is Cheapest for Young Drivers in Pittsburgh? (FAQ)
- What Auto Insurance is Cheapest for Low Income Drivers in Pittsburgh? (FAQ)
- How Much is Pittsburgh Auto Insurance for a 20 Year Old Male? (FAQ)
- Booster Seat Ratings (iihs.org)
- New Honda safety features benefit drivers of all ages (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
- Steps to Take After an Auto Accident (Insurance Information Institute)