View 2001 Ford Explorer Sport Trac Car Insurance Rates

Looking for the cheapest car insurance rates? Shoppers have a choice when shopping for affordable Ford Explorer Sport Trac insurance. You can either waste hours struggling with agents getting price quotes or use the internet to compare rates. There are both good and bad ways to compare car insurance rates and we’ll show you the best way to price shop coverage on a Ford and find the cheapest rates either online or from local insurance agents.

Six factors that impact insurance costs

Many factors are considered when quoting car insurance. Some are obvious such as your driving record, but other factors are less apparent such as your credit history or how financially stable you are.

• Vehicles with better crash test results cost less to insure – Vehicles with high crash test scores tend to have lower insurance rates. Vehicles engineered for safety reduce the chance of injuries and better occupant protection means less money paid by your insurance company passed on to you as lower rates.
• Rates impacted by your city – Choosing to live in small towns and rural areas has definite advantages when insuring your vehicles. People who live in big cities have much more traffic and longer commutes to work. Fewer drivers and short commutes means a lower chance of having an accident and a lower car theft rate.
• Use one insurance company and save – Lots of companies will give lower prices to policyholders who have multiple policies with them. It’s known as a multi-policy discount. Discounts can add up to as much as ten percent or more Even though this discount sounds good, it’s always a smart idea to compare rates to guarantee you are still saving the most.
• Your stress level may be raising your rates – Do you have a high-stress occupation? Occupations such as doctorspolice officers and medical professionals generally pay higher premiums than the average policyholder in part from intense work situations and extremely grueling work hours. Conversely, occupations such as farmers, athletes and the unemployed pay the least on Explorer Sport Trac coverage.
• Having a spouse pays dividends – Having a wife or husband helps lower the price when buying car insurance. It means you’re more stable financially it has been statistically shown that married drivers tend to have fewer serious accidents.
• Extra policy coverages that aren’t used – There are a lot of additional coverages that you can get tricked into buying on your car insurance policy. Coverages for roadside assistance, better glass coverage, and extra life insurance coverage may not be needed and are just wasting money. You may think they are a good idea when talking to your agent, but if you have no use for them remove them from your policy.

Compare insurance coverage quotes online

There are several ways to shop for insurance coverage, but some are less labor-intensive and much quicker. You can waste a lot of time talking to insurance companies in your area, or you could save time and use the internet to achieve your goal.

Most of the larger companies enroll in a system that allows shoppers to complete one form, and each company can give them a price based on the submitted data. This prevents consumers from doing quotation requests for each company. To find out how much you’re overpaying now click to open in new window.

The single downside to using this type of form is you are unable to specify which companies you want pricing from. So if you want to choose from a list of companies to receive pricing from, we have a page of the cheapest insurance coverage companies in your area. Click here to view list.

It’s your choice how you get your quotes, but ensure you’re using nearly identical quote data for every company. If you have different deductibles you will not be able to determine the lowest rate for your Ford Explorer Sport Trac.

Auto insurance savings promises

Drivers can’t get away from all the ads that claim the lowest premium rates from the likes of State Farm and Allstate. All the companies seem to make the promise that drivers will save a bundle if you move your policy.

How is it plausible that every one can offer you a better deal? Here is the trick they use.

Auto insurance companies can use profiling for the driver that earns them the most money. An example of this type of risk profile should be married and over the age of 30, carries full coverage, and drives a car with an anti-theft system. Any customer who fits that profile will most likely get cheap rates and is almost guaranteed to save a lot of money.

Potential insureds who are not a match for those criteria will be charged more expensive rates and ends up with the prospect going elsewhere. The ad wording is “people that switch” but not “all drivers who get quotes” save that much money. That is how companies can truthfully advertise the way they do. Because of the profiling, you need to compare free insurance coverage quotes often. It’s just too difficult to predict the company that will give you lower prices than your current company.

Auto insurance policy discounts

Auto insurance companies don’t necessarily list every policy discount very well, so we took the time to find a few of the more common and also the more inconspicuous discounts that you can inquire about if you buy insurance coverage online.

• Smart Student Discounts – Maintaining excellent grades could provide a savings of up to 20% or more. The good student discount can last well after school through age 25.
• Seat Belt Usage – Drivers who require all vehicle occupants to use a seat belt could save 15% off the medical payments premium.
• Early Switch Discount – Some insurance companies reward drivers for switching to them prior to the expiration date on your current policy. You could save around 10% when you buy insurance coverage online.
• Discount for Multiple Policies – When you have multiple policies with the same insurance company you may earn as much as 10 to 15 percent.
• Distant Student – Any of your kids who are attending college without a vehicle on campus may be insured at a cheaper rate.

As a sidenote, most discount credits are not given to the overall cost of the policy. Some only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like medical payments or collision. So even though they make it sound like having all the discounts means you get insurance for free, it just doesn’t work that way.

A few of the larger companies and their possible discounts are:

• State Farm may have discounts that include defensive driving training, accident-free, multiple policy, anti-theft, and multiple autos.
• Geico has savings for anti-lock brakes, multi-policy, anti-theft, good student, defensive driver, and military active duty.
• Progressive offers discounts including multi-vehicle, homeowner, good student, online quote discount, and multi-policy.
• 21st Century policyholders can earn discounts including defensive driver, theft prevention, 55 and older, automatic seat belts, air bags, and anti-lock brakes.
• American Family includes discounts for good student, air bags, accident-free, Steer into Savings, early bird, bundled insurance, and multi-vehicle.
• The Hartford discounts include anti-theft, bundle, driver training, good student, air bag, and vehicle fuel type.
• AAA may offer discounts for pay-in-full, education and occupation, AAA membership discount, multi-car, and multi-policy.

When quoting, ask all companies you are considering the best way to save money. Depending on the company, some discounts might not be offered on policies in your area. To choose insurers that offer the discounts shown above, click here to view.

How do I know if I need professional advice?

When it comes to choosing the best car insurance coverage, there is no single plan that fits everyone. Everyone’s needs are different.

For instance, these questions can help discover whether or not you could use an agent’s help.

• Does my policy cover my teen driver if they drive my company car?
• Should I have a commercial auto policy?
• Do I have coverage when using my vehicle for my home business?
• Am I covered if hit by an uninsured driver?
• What should my uninsured motorist coverage limits be in my state?
• Does my personal policy cover me when driving out-of-state?

If you don’t know the answers to these questions but one or more may apply to you, you may need to chat with a licensed agent. If you don’t have a local agent, fill out this quick form. It is quick, free and may give you better protection.

Coverages available on your insurance policy

Learning about specific coverages of a insurance policy can be of help when determining which coverages you need and the correct deductibles and limits. The coverage terms in a policy can be confusing and nobody wants to actually read their policy.

Collision – Collision coverage pays to fix your vehicle from damage resulting from colliding with an object or car. You will need to pay your deductible then your collision coverage will kick in.

Collision insurance covers things such as backing into a parked car, damaging your car on a curb and scraping a guard rail. Collision is rather expensive coverage, so analyze the benefit of dropping coverage from older vehicles. You can also raise the deductible to save money on collision insurance.

UM/UIM Coverage – This coverage protects you and your vehicle from other motorists when they either have no liability insurance or not enough. It can pay for injuries sustained by your vehicle’s occupants as well as your vehicle’s damage.

Because many people only purchase the least amount of liability that is required, their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. That’s why carrying high Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage should not be overlooked.

Liability coverages – This coverage provides protection from damage or injury you incur to other people or property in an accident. It protects YOU against other people’s claims. Liability doesn’t cover your own vehicle damage or injuries.

Split limit liability has three limits of coverage: bodily injury per person, bodily injury per accident and property damage. You might see values of 50/100/50 that translate to a $50,000 limit per person for injuries, a limit of $100,000 in injury protection per accident, and property damage coverage for $50,000.

Liability coverage protects against claims like court costs, loss of income, repair bills for other people’s vehicles and emergency aid. How much coverage you buy is a personal decision, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase as much as you can afford.

Comprehensive or Other Than Collision – Comprehensive insurance will pay to fix damage that is not covered by collision coverage. A deductible will apply then your comprehensive coverage will pay.

Comprehensive coverage pays for claims such as vandalism, falling objects, damage from a tornado or hurricane, hitting a bird and theft. The maximum amount your insurance company will pay is the actual cash value, so if the vehicle’s value is low consider dropping full coverage.

Medical costs insurance – Coverage for medical payments and/or PIP kick in for bills such as hospital visits, EMT expenses and nursing services. They are often used to fill the gap from your health insurance program or if you are not covered by health insurance. They cover all vehicle occupants and also covers any family member struck as a pedestrian. PIP coverage is not an option in every state but can be used in place of medical payments coverage

Feed the piggy bank

When searching for affordable insurance coverage quotes, it’s not a good idea to skimp on coverage in order to save money. There have been many situations where someone sacrificed uninsured motorist or liability limits and learned later that the savings was not a smart move. Your aim should be to get the best coverage possible at the best price while still protecting your assets.

People change insurance companies for a number of reasons such as high rates after DUI convictions, being labeled a high risk driver, extreme rates for teen drivers or questionable increases in premium. Whatever your reason, choosing a new company is pretty easy and you might even save some money in the process.

Lower-priced insurance coverage is definitely available on the web and with local insurance agents, so you need to quote insurance coverage with both in order to have the best price selection to choose from. Some insurance coverage companies may not provide the ability to get quotes online and these smaller providers work with independent insurance agencies.

Other learning opportunities

• Frontal Crash Tests (iihs.org)
• Who Has Cheap Auto Insurance Rates for a Ford Explorer in San Francisco? (SFAutoGuard.com)
• Understanding Your Insurance Deductible (Insurance Information Insitute)
• Tread Depth and Tire Safety (State Farm)
• Parking Tips to Reduce Door Dings (State Farm)
• No-Fault Auto Insurance Statistics (Insurance Information Insitute)