View 2002 Dodge Dakota Insurance Quotes

Comparison shopping for cheaper Driverscar insurance can be quite difficult for drivers new to online comparison shopping. People have so many agents and companies to choose from that it can quickly become a real hassle to find more affordable prices.

If you currently have a car insurance policy, you should be able to reduce your rates substantially using these techniques. Buying the lowest cost coverage is simple if you know the tricks. Although car owners do need to understand the way companies determine prices and apply this information to your search.

What impacts Dodge Dakota insurance rates?

A large part of saving on insurance is knowing the rating factors that play a part in calculating the rates you pay for insurance. If you know what controls the rates you pay, this allows you to make good choices that will entitle you to lower insurance prices.

• Five star safety rating saves money – Cars with five star safety ratings tend to have better insurance rates. Safe vehicles result in less severe injuries and fewer serious injuries means less claims paid passed on to you as lower rates. If the Dodge Dakota is rated at least an “acceptable” rating on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety website it is probably cheaper to insure.
• Never let your insurance policy expire – Not maintaining insurance is illegal and any future policy may cost more because you let your coverage lapse. In addition to paying higher rates, getting caught without coverage can result in a hefty fine and possibly a revoked license. You may have to file a SR-22 with your state department of motor vehicles.
• Females tend to be lower risk – The statistics show women are more cautious behind the wheel. This data doesn’t prove that men are WORSE drivers than women. They both cause at-fault accidents in similar numbers, but the males cause more damage and cost insurance companies more money. Not only that, but men also have more aggressive citations like reckless driving and DUI. Teenage male drivers have the highest risk to insure and thus pay the highest rates.
• Save money with responsible credit – A driver’s credit score is likely to be a major factor in your rate calculation. If your credit rating is not that good, you could be paying less to insure your 2002 Dodge Dakota by taking the time to improve your credit score. People with good credit tend to file fewer claims and have better driving records than those with lower credit ratings.
• Rates may be higher where you live – Being located in less populated areas of the country has it’s advantages when it comes to insurance. People in densly populated areas regularly have more traffic problems and longer commutes to work. Fewer drivers means reduced accidents in addition to lower liability claims

Compare auto insurance quotes

Performing a rate comparison can take hours if you don’t utilize the easiest way. You could waste time talking about coverages with insurance companies in your area, or you can stay home and use the web to get the quickest rates.

Many of the larger companies are enrolled in a marketplace where insurance shoppers only type in their quote data once, and each company returns a competitive quote determined by their information. This system prevents you from having to do quote forms for each company you want a rate for.

To access this free quoting program, click here to start a free quote.

The one downside to using this type of system is buyers cannot specifically choose the companies to get quotes from. So if you want to select specific insurance companies to compare prices, we have a listing of the cheapest auto insurance companies in your area. Click here to view list.

You can choose any of those ways to find more affodable coverage, but do your best to enter apples-to-apples coverage information for each price quote. If each company quotes different data you will not be able to determine the best price for your Dodge Dakota. Slightly different limits can make a big difference in price. And when price shopping your coverage, comparing more quotes will improve the odds of getting the best rates. Not every company provides prices over the internet, so it’s necessary to compare rates from them as well.

Do drivers who switch really save?

Insurance coverage providers like 21st Century, Allstate and State Farm regularly use ads in print and on television. They all seem to advertise claims about savings just by moving your coverage to them. How is it possible that every company can lower your car insurance rates? This is the way they can do it.

All companies have an ideal profile for the type of customer that makes them money. For instance, a profitable insured might have to be a married female, has few claims, and drives a car with an anti-theft system. A customer who fits that profile will get a cheap rate quote and will cut their rates if they switch.

People who do not fit this stringent profile will be quoted higher prices and business going elsewhere. If you pay close attention to the ads, they say “customers who switch” but not “all drivers who get quotes” save the amount stated. This is how insurance companies can lure you into getting a quote. Because of the profiling, you should do a price quote comparison at every renewal. It’s just not possible to know which insurance companies will have the best premium rates for your profile.

More affordable rates with discounts

Auto insurance companies do not advertise the entire discount list very well, so below is a list a few of the more common and the harder-to-find discounts you could be receiving when you buy insurance coverage online. If you do not double check each discount you qualify for, it’s possible you qualify for a lower rate.

• Save with a New Car – Putting car insurance coverage on a new car can save up to 30% since newer models are generally safer.
• Discount for Life Insurance – Some car insurance companies give a lower price if you buy a life insurance policy as well.
• Early Payment Discounts – By paying your entire bill at once instead of paying each month you could save up to 5%.
• Switch and Save Discount – A few insurance companies offer discounts for switching to them prior to your current policy expiration. It can save you around 10%.
• Multiple Policy Discount – If you insure your home and vehicles with one insurance company you may earn at least 10% off all policies.
• First Accident Forgiveness – Not necessarily a discount, but a handful of insurance companies may permit one accident before they charge you more for coverage if your claims history is clear for a particular time prior to the accident.
• Driver’s Ed – It’s a good idea to have your young drivers sucessfully take a drivers education course in high school.

As a disclaimer on discounts, most discounts do not apply to your bottom line cost. Most only cut specific coverage prices like collision or personal injury protection. Even though it appears it’s possible to get free car insurance, companies wouldn’t make money that way.

A list of companies and the discounts they provide are included below.

• Progressive may include discounts for online signing, multi-policy, continuous coverage, homeowner, online quote discount, and multi-vehicle.
• SAFECO includes discounts for teen safety rewards, anti-lock brakes, homeowner, safe driver, teen safe driver, drive less, and bundle discounts.
• American Family discounts include Steer into Savings, good driver, mySafetyValet, air bags, bundled insurance, good student, and TimeAway discount.
• MetLife offers discounts including accident-free, good student, multi-policy, defensive driver, claim-free, good driver
• Geico has discounts for driver training, five-year accident-free, daytime running lights, military active duty, membership and employees, defensive driver, and anti-lock brakes.
• The Hartford may have discounts that include air bag, anti-theft, driver training, vehicle fuel type, and bundle.

Before you buy a policy, ask all the companies how many discounts you can get. Discounts may not be available in your area. If you would like to view insurers who offer online car insurance quotes, click here.

What is the best auto insurance coverage?

When choosing the right insurance coverage for your vehicles, there really is not a best way to insure your cars. Everyone’s situation is a little different.

These are some specific questions can aid in determining whether your personal situation might need professional guidance.

• Am I covered if I hit a deer?
• Is my 2002 Dodge Dakota covered for flood damage?
• Do I pay less if my vehicle is kept in my garage?
• Why does it cost so much to insure a teen driver?
• Does my personal policy cover me when driving out-of-state?
• Does coverage extend to my business vehicle?
• Which companies will insure high-risk drivers?
• Is my cargo covered for damage or theft?

If you can’t answer these questions but one or more may apply to you, you might consider talking to an agent. If you don’t have a local agent, fill out this quick form.

Coverages available on your policy

Understanding the coverages of your policy aids in choosing the best coverages for your vehicles. Insurance terms can be impossible to understand and coverage can change by endorsement.

Collision – This pays for damage to your Dakota caused by collision with a stationary object or other vehicle. You will need to pay your deductible then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.

Collision insurance covers claims like colliding with a tree, backing into a parked car, sideswiping another vehicle and crashing into a building. Collision is rather expensive coverage, so analyze the benefit of dropping coverage from lower value vehicles. Drivers also have the option to choose a higher deductible to bring the cost down.

Coverage for liability – Liability coverage protects you from damage or injury you incur to people or other property by causing an accident. It protects YOU against claims from other people. Liability doesn’t cover damage sustained by your vehicle in an accident.

Liability coverage has three limits: bodily injury for each person, bodily injury for the entire accident, and a limit for property damage. You commonly see values of 100/300/100 that means you have a limit of $100,000 per injured person, a per accident bodily injury limit of $300,000, and a total limit of $100,000 for damage to vehicles and property.

Liability coverage protects against claims such as medical expenses, repair bills for other people’s vehicles and legal defense fees. How much liability coverage do you need? That is a personal decision, but buy higher limits if possible.

Coverage for uninsured or underinsured drivers – Your UM/UIM coverage gives you protection when other motorists either are underinsured or have no liability coverage at all. It can pay for injuries sustained by your vehicle’s occupants and also any damage incurred to your 2002 Dodge Dakota.

Due to the fact that many drivers carry very low liability coverage limits, it only takes a small accident to exceed their coverage. For this reason, having high UM/UIM coverages is very important.

Comprehensive insurance – Comprehensive insurance will pay to fix damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. You need to pay your deductible first then your comprehensive coverage will pay.

Comprehensive can pay for claims such as hitting a deer, hail damage, a tree branch falling on your vehicle and vandalism. The maximum payout you can receive from a comprehensive claim is the cash value of the vehicle, so if the vehicle’s value is low it’s probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.

Coverage for medical expenses – Med pay and PIP coverage kick in for short-term medical expenses like hospital visits, funeral costs, chiropractic care and rehabilitation expenses. The coverages can be used in conjunction with a health insurance policy or if you are not covered by health insurance. Medical payments and PIP cover both the driver and occupants and also covers getting struck while a pedestrian. Personal injury protection coverage is not universally available but can be used in place of medical payments coverage

Buy Smart and Save

We just covered many ways to save on 2002 Dodge Dakota insurance. The most important thing to understand is the more rate quotes you have, the higher the chance of saving money. You may even discover the best prices are with some of the smallest insurance companies.

More affordable insurance is attainable from both online companies and from local agencies, and you need to price shop both to have the best chance of lowering rates. There are still a few companies who may not have rate quotes online and these small insurance companies sell through independent agencies.

When searching for cheaper insurance coverage quotes, it’s a bad idea to buy poor coverage just to save money. There are too many instances where an insured cut collision coverage and discovered at claim time they didn’t have enough coverage. Your goal is to buy the best coverage you can find at an affordable rate and still be able to protect your assets.

More detailed insurance information can be read at these sites:

• Liability Insurance Coverage (Nationwide)
• Teen Driving Statistics (iihs.org)
• What is Full Coverage? (Allstate)
• Booster Seat Ratings (iihs.org)
• Determing Auto Insurance Rates (Geico)
• Steps to Take After an Auto Accident (Insurance Information Insitute)