2004 Mercedes-Benz M-Class Insurance Quotes – 10 Savings Tips

I really doubt anyone likes having to buy auto insurance, especially knowing they are paying too much.

Big companies like Allstate and Progressive all claim big savings, bombarding you with fancy advertisements and it can be hard to see past the geckos and flying pigs and do the work needed to find the best deal.

Smart consumers take time to do price comparisons every six months because rates fluctuate regularly. Just because you had the best deal for M-Class coverage six months ago you can probably find a better price now. You can find a lot of misleading information regarding auto insurance online, but we’re going to give you some tested techniques to stop overpaying for insurance.

Verify you’re applying every discount

Companies that sell car insurance don’t always list all their discounts very well, so the list below gives a summary of a few of the more well known and also the lesser-known credits that you can use to lower your rates.

• Employee of Federal Government – Active or former government employment may reduce rates when you quote insurance for M-Class coverage but check with your company.
• Paperwork-free – Some of the larger companies will provide an incentive for buying your policy online.
• Accident Free – Drivers who don’t have accidents pay less compared to policyholders that have many claims.
• Senior Citizens – Seniors may receive a small discount on rates for M-Class coverage.
• College Student – Children who live away from home at college and won’t have access to an insured vehicle could qualify for this discount.
• Club Memberships – Participating in specific professional or occupational memberships or organizations is a good way to get lower rates on insurance coverage.
• Discounts for Multiple Vehicles – Having more than one vehicle on the same insurance coverage policy can reduce the rates for all insured vehicles.
• One Accident Forgiven – This one is not really a discount per se, but certain companies permit an accident before they charge you more for coverage if your claims history is clear for a set time period.
• Driver Training Discounts – Participating in a safe driver course could cut 5% off your bill if you qualify.
• Renewal Discounts – A few insurance coverage companies give discounts for buying a policy before your current expiration date. You could save around 10% when you buy insurance online.

One thing to note about discounts is that most discounts do not apply to the overall cost of the policy. The majority will only reduce individual premiums such as comprehensive or collision. So despite the fact that it appears you can get free auto insurance, company stockholders wouldn’t be very happy.

Companies and some of the discounts are shown below.

• American Family may offer discounts for good driver, mySafetyValet, multi-vehicle, accident-free, good student, and bundled insurance.
• Nationwide offers premium reductions for business or organization, good student, easy pay, anti-theft, Farm Bureau membership, and accident-free.
• MetLife may have discounts that include good driver, claim-free, good student, multi-policy, and accident-free.
• 21st Century has savings for defensive driver, early bird, 55 and older, air bags, automatic seat belts, and good student.
• Farmers Insurance includes discounts for multi-car, mature driver, teen driver, electronic funds transfer, and early shopping.
• Allstate policyholders can earn discounts including senior citizen, anti-lock brakes, anti-theft, resident student, good student, eSmart discount, and teenSMART discount.

If you need lower rates, check with each insurance company the best way to save money. Depending on the company, some discounts may not be offered in your area. If you would like to see a list of providers with discount rates, click here.

Shop insurance coverage online

There are several ways of comparing rates from all the different companies. The easiest way by far to find cheaper 2004 Mercedes-Benz M-Class rates consists of shopping online. This can be done in just a few minutes using one of these methods.

• Without a doubt, the easiest way to get quotes is to use a rate comparison form click to view form in new window. This easy form saves time by eliminating repetitive form entry to each individual insurance coverage company. Completing one form will return price quotes from multiple companies.
• A different way to find lower rates consists of visiting each individual company website to request a price quote. For example, we’ll pretend you need rates from Progressive, Esurance and American Family. You would be required to go to each individual site and type in your information over and over, which explains why we recommend starting with the first method.

  For a list of links to companies insuring cars in your area, click here.

You can use whichever method you prefer to find lower rates, just make sure you are using equivalent coverages with each company. If you use different data it will be next to impossible to truly determine the lowest rate. Slightly different insurance coverages or limits can result in a big premium difference. Keep in mind that comparing more quotes helps increase your odds of locating better pricing. Some companies don’t provide rate quotes online, so you should also compare prices from the smaller companies as well.

When should I discuss my situation with an agent?

When it comes to buying adequate coverage for your personal vehicles, there isn’t really a cookie cutter policy. Every situation is different and a cookie cutter policy won’t apply. For example, these questions may help highlight if your situation would benefit from an agent’s advice.

• Do I have coverage when making deliveries for my home business?
• Do I need replacement cost coverage?
• What discounts do I qualify for?
• Where can I find high-risk insurance?
• Should I bundle my homeowners policy with my auto?
• Do I pay less if my vehicle is kept in my garage?
• I have a DUI can I still get coverage?
• Do I need added coverage for expensive stereo equipment?
• Is my 2004 Mercedes-Benz M-Class covered for smoke damage?

If you’re not sure about those questions but you think they might apply to your situation, then you may want to think about talking to a licensed insurance agent. If you don’t have a local agent, simply complete this short form or you can go here for a list of companies in your area.

Save 15 percent in 15 minutes? Is it for real?

Progressive, Geico, Allstate and State Farm seem to constantly run ads on TV and radio. They all state the claim about savings just by switching your auto insurance coverage to their company. How does every company say the same thing? Here is how they do it.

Auto insurance companies give the best rates for a prospective insured they prefer to insure. An example of a profitable customer might have to be over age 30, has never had a claim, and drives less than 5,000 miles a year. A customer getting a price quote that hits that “sweet spot” will get a cheap rate quote and most likely will cut their rates substantially.

Drivers who don’t measure up to these criteria will see a higher rate and ends up with the customer not buying. The trick is to say “customers who switch” not “everyone who quotes” save that much. This is how companies can make it sound like they have such great car insurance rates. Because of the profiling, it’s extremely important to do a price quote comparison at every renewal. You cannot predict which auto insurance company will give you the biggest savings.

Auto insurance coverages explained

Understanding the coverages of a auto insurance policy helps when choosing which coverages you need and the correct deductibles and limits. The coverage terms in a policy can be difficult to understand and reading a policy is terribly boring. Shown next are the normal coverages available from auto insurance companies.

Coverage for uninsured or underinsured drivers

Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist coverage provides protection when other motorists do not carry enough liability coverage. This coverage pays for hospital bills for your injuries and also any damage incurred to your Mercedes-Benz M-Class.

Because many people only purchase the least amount of liability that is required, their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. So UM/UIM coverage is a good idea.

Liability car insurance

Liability coverage protects you from damage that occurs to people or other property in an accident. This coverage protects you against other people’s claims. Liability doesn’t cover damage to your own property or vehicle.

Coverage consists of three different limits, per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. Your policy might show policy limits of 25/50/25 which means a limit of $25,000 per injured person, a total of $50,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and property damage coverage for $25,000.

Liability can pay for things like medical services, legal defense fees, repair bills for other people’s vehicles, bail bonds and medical expenses. The amount of liability coverage you purchase is up to you, but consider buying as large an amount as possible.

Comprehensive auto insurance

Comprehensive insurance coverage will pay to fix damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. You first have to pay a deductible and the remainder of the damage will be paid by comprehensive coverage.

Comprehensive insurance covers claims such as a tree branch falling on your vehicle, hail damage and hitting a bird. The maximum payout your auto insurance company will pay is the market value of your vehicle, so if the vehicle’s value is low consider dropping full coverage.

Coverage for medical expenses

Med pay and PIP coverage pay for bills like X-ray expenses, rehabilitation expenses, hospital visits, surgery and nursing services. They can be used to fill the gap from your health insurance plan or if you lack health insurance entirely. Coverage applies to all vehicle occupants and will also cover getting struck while a pedestrian. PIP is only offered in select states and may carry a deductible

Collision protection

Collision coverage will pay to fix damage to your M-Class resulting from a collision with another car or object. A deductible applies then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.

Collision coverage protects against claims such as rolling your car, scraping a guard rail, crashing into a ditch, hitting a parking meter and hitting a mailbox. Collision is rather expensive coverage, so analyze the benefit of dropping coverage from vehicles that are older. It’s also possible to choose a higher deductible to bring the cost down.

Compare but don’t skimp

We just showed you many ways to get a better price on 2004 Mercedes-Benz M-Class insurance. It’s most important to understand that the more price quotes you have, the better your comparison will be. Consumers may even find the lowest auto insurance rates come from a small mutual company. They can often provide lower premium rates in certain areas than the large multi-state companies such as Geico and State Farm.

As you restructure your insurance plan, never skimp on coverage in order to save money. There are too many instances where an accident victim reduced full coverage only to regret that the few dollars in savings costed them thousands. Your objective should be to find the BEST coverage at the best cost, not the least amount of coverage.

Even more information is located at these sites:

• What is Gap Insurance? (Insurance Information Insitute)
• Car Insurance for Teen Drivers with Divorced Parents (Allstate)
• Teen Driver Statistics (Insurance Information Insitute)
• Insurance Losses by Make and Model (iihs.org)