Lower Your 2002 Mitsubishi Eclipse Insurance Quotes

Trying to find better insurance rates for your Mitsubishi Eclipse? Finding cheap insurance on the web is rather challenging for consumers new to price shopping online. With dozens of insurance companies available, how can you effectively compare them all to find the best price?

If you currently have car insurance, you will be able to reduce your rates substantially using these methods. This article will help educate you on how to effectively get price quotes. But consumers do need to understand the way companies sell online and apply this information to your search.

Why your Mitsubishi Eclipse might be costing you more

It’s important that you understand some of the elements that come into play when calculating the rates you pay for car insurance. Knowing what determines base rates allows you to make educated decisions that can help you get lower car insurance prices.

The list below includes some of the items companies use to determine your rates.

  • Low deductibles can be expensive – Physical damage deductibles represent how much money you are willing to pay before a claim is paid by your company. Insurance for physical damage to your car, also known as collision and other-than-collision, protects your car from damage. Some examples of claims that would be covered could be colliding with a building, collision with an animal, and burglary. The more expense the insured has to pay upfront, the lower your rates will be on Eclipse coverage.
  • Credit scores impact car insurance rates – Your credit score is a big factor in determining your rates. So if your credit is lower than you’d like, you could potentially save money when insuring your 2002 Mitsubishi Eclipse by repairing your credit. Drivers who have good credit tend to be better drivers and file fewer claims than those with poor credit.
  • Do men or women drive better? – Statistics demonstrate that men are more aggressive behind the wheel. However, don’t assume that men are WORSE drivers than women. Men and women cause accidents in similar numbers, but the men cause more damage and cost insurance companies more money. Men also statistically have more aggressive citations like reckless driving and DUI.
  • Pleasure use or commuting – Driving more miles each year the more you’ll pay to insure your vehicle. Most insurance companies rate vehicles based upon how you use the vehicle. Vehicles used primarily for pleasure use can get a lower rate than those used for commuting. Double check that your car insurance coverage shows the proper vehicle usage, because it can save money. Incorrect usage on your Eclipse can result in significantly higher rates.

Discounts are available to cut your rates

Car insurance can cost a lot, but there are discounts available that you may not know about. Certain discounts will be applied at quote time, but some may not be applied and must be specifically requested before being credited.

  • Multiple Policy Discount – If you have multiple policies with one insurance company you may save up to 20% off your total premium.
  • College Student – Any of your kids living away from home attending college and do not have access to a covered vehicle may qualify for this discount.
  • Payment Discounts – If paying your policy premium upfront instead of paying each month you may reduce your total bill.
  • Anti-lock Brake Discount – Vehicles equipped with ABS or steering control can avoid accidents and therefore earn up to a 10% discount.
  • Senior Citizens – If you qualify as a senior citizen, you may be able to get a small decrease in premiums on Eclipse coverage.
  • More Vehicles More Savings – Buying coverage for multiple cars or trucks on one policy qualifies for this discount.

It’s important to note that most of the big mark downs will not be given to the entire policy premium. Most only reduce the price of certain insurance coverages like collision or personal injury protection. Even though it may seem like adding up those discounts means a free policy, you’re out of luck. Any qualifying discounts will help reduce the cost of coverage.

Car insurance companies that may have these benefits are:

Check with every prospective company which discounts you may be entitled to. Some discounts may not be available in your area.

The fine print in auto insurance ads

Allstate, GEICO and Progressive continually stream ads in print and on television. All the companies say the same thing about savings after switching your coverage to them. How do they all make almost identical claims? This is how they do it.

All the different companies have a preferred profile for the driver that makes them money. An example of a driver they prefer could possibly be between 30 and 50, has no prior claims, and chooses high deductibles. Any new insured who matches those parameters will get the preferred rates and is almost guaranteed to save when they switch companies.

Drivers who fall outside these standards will be charged a more expensive rate which usually ends up with the customer not buying. The ad wording is “drivers who switch” not “people who quote” save money. That’s the way insurance companies can confidently make those claims.

That is why drivers should get quotes from several different companies. It’s impossible to know which company will provide you with the cheapest Mitsubishi Eclipse insurance rates.

Everyone needs different coverages

When it comes to choosing the right insurance coverage for your vehicles, there really is no single plan that fits everyone. Coverage needs to be tailored to your specific needs.

These are some specific questions may help highlight whether you might need an agent’s assistance.

  • Am I covered when driving someone else’s vehicle?
  • Am I covered if I break a side mirror?
  • Do I need higher collision deductibles?
  • Should I buy more coverage than the required minimum liability coverage?
  • Why do I only qualify for high-risk insurance?
  • Is business equipment covered while in my vehicle?
  • Do I need rental car coverage?
  • Can my teen driver be rated on a liability-only vehicle?
  • Is my Mitsubishi Eclipse covered if I use it for business?
  • Should I put collision coverage on all my vehicles?

If you’re not sure about those questions but you think they might apply to your situation then you might want to talk to an insurance agent. If you don’t have a local agent, take a second and complete this form.

Insurance coverages explained

Having a good grasp of your insurance policy helps when choosing appropriate coverage and proper limits and deductibles. The coverage terms in a policy can be ambiguous and coverage can change by endorsement.

Collision – This coverage will pay to fix damage to your Eclipse resulting from a collision with another vehicle or an object, but not an animal. You will need to pay your deductible then your collision coverage will kick in.

Collision coverage protects against things like driving through your garage door, sustaining damage from a pot hole, scraping a guard rail and crashing into a building. Collision is rather expensive coverage, so consider removing coverage from lower value vehicles. Drivers also have the option to bump up the deductible to save money on collision insurance.

Coverage for uninsured or underinsured drivers – This coverage provides protection when other motorists do not carry enough liability coverage. This coverage pays for medical payments for you and your occupants as well as damage to your Mitsubishi Eclipse.

Because many people carry very low liability coverage limits, their limits can quickly be used up. So UM/UIM coverage should not be overlooked. Normally these limits are set the same as your liablity limits.

Comprehensive insurance – This pays to fix your vehicle from damage from a wide range of events other than collision. You first have to pay a deductible and then insurance will cover the rest of the damage.

Comprehensive coverage protects against claims such as damage from getting keyed, a tree branch falling on your vehicle, theft and hitting a bird. The most you can receive from a comprehensive claim is the cash value of the vehicle, so if the vehicle is not worth much consider dropping full coverage.

Coverage for medical expenses – Med pay and PIP coverage reimburse you for immediate expenses for X-ray expenses, chiropractic care and EMT expenses. The coverages can be used to cover expenses not covered by your health insurance plan or if you do not have health coverage. Coverage applies to you and your occupants in addition to if you are hit as a while walking down the street. Personal injury protection coverage is not universally available but can be used in place of medical payments coverage

Liability auto insurance – This coverage can cover damage or injury you incur to a person or their property that is your fault. It protects YOU from claims by other people, and doesn’t cover your injuries or vehicle damage.

Coverage consists of three different limits, bodily injury for each person, bodily injury for the entire accident, and a limit for property damage. As an example, you may have values of 100/300/100 which means $100,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, a per accident bodily injury limit of $300,000, and $100,000 of coverage for damaged propery. Some companies may use a combined limit that pays claims from the same limit rather than limiting it on a per person basis.

Liability can pay for claims like attorney fees, loss of income, medical expenses, repair costs for stationary objects and funeral expenses. How much liability coverage do you need? That is your choice, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase as high a limit as you can afford.

Make a quick buck

Low-cost 2002 Mitsubishi Eclipse insurance is available from both online companies as well as from independent agents, and you need to price shop both in order to have the best chance of saving money. There are still a few companies who don’t offer online price quotes and most of the time these smaller companies sell through independent agents.

Throughout this article, we presented many ways to shop for insurance online. The key concept to understand is the more companies you get rates for, the better your comparison will be. You may be surprised to find that the lowest premiums are with the least-expected company.

When trying to cut insurance costs, make sure you don’t buy less coverage just to save a little money. There are too many instances where someone sacrificed uninsured motorist or liability limits only to find out that a couple dollars of savings turned into a financial nightmare. The aim is to find the BEST coverage at an affordable rate while still protecting your assets.

More detailed car insurance information is located at these sites: