Save on 2004 Volvo S40 Insurance Rates

Searching for low-cost insurance for a Volvo S40 can be a painful process, but you can use a few tricks to save time. There is a better way to buy insurance so we’re going to tell you the quickest way to compare rates for a new or used Volvo and get the lowest possible price from local insurance agents and online providers.

It’s a great practice to check insurance prices every six months because insurance rates are usually higher with each renewal. Just because you found the lowest rates on S40 coverage a year ago there is a good chance you can find better rates now. There is a lot of bad advice regarding insurance on the web, but with this article, you’re going to get some proven techniques to find affordable insurance.

Volvo S40 insurance rates have many determining factors

An important part of buying insurance is that you know the rating factors that help determine the price you pay for car insurance. When you know what positively or negatively influences your rates enables informed choices that can help you get much lower annual insurance costs.

  • How’s your driving record? – Your driving citation history has a huge affect on how much you pay. Just one speeding ticket can bump up the cost by as much as thirty percent. Drivers who don’t get tickets have lower premiums than people who have multiple driving citations. Drivers who have severe citations such as DUI or reckless driving may need to submit a SR-22 or proof of financial responsibility with their state DMV in order to drive a vehicle legally.
  • Where you live is a factor – Living in a small town has it’s advantages when buying car insurance. Less people living in that area means fewer accidents and a lower car theft rate. Urban drivers tend to have congested traffic and longer commute times. Longer commute distances can result in more accidents.
  • Consolidate policies to earn discounts – Some insurers provide better rates to insureds who consolidate policies with them. It’s known as a multi-policy discount. This can amount to five, ten or even twenty percent. Even if you’re getting this discount you may still want to compare other company rates to verify if the discount is saving money.
  • Being married can save on car insurance – Being married actually saves money on your policy. It usually means you are more responsible it has been statistically shown that drivers who are married are more cautious.
  • Don’t get talked into coverage you don’t need – There are quite a few additional coverages that can waste your money if you aren’t careful. Things like personal injury protection, accident forgiveness and membership fees may be wasting your money. They may seem like a good idea at first, but your needs may have changed so remove them from your policy.
  • Don’t cancel a policy without a new one in place – Letting your insurance expire will be a sure-fire way to pay more for car insurance. Not only will you pay more, but being ticketed for driving with no insurance may earn you a revoked license or a big fine.
  • Credit scores impact car insurance rates – Having a bad credit score is a important factor in your rate calculation. So if your credit is lower than you’d like, you could save money insuring your 2004 Volvo S40 by spending a little time repairing your credit. People with high credit scores tend to be more responsible than those with poor credit.
  • Males pay more for insurance – The statistics show that women are safer drivers than men. Now that doesn’t mean women are BETTER drivers than men. Both sexes tend to get into accidents in similar numbers, but men tend to have more serious accidents. Men also have more aggressive citations such as reckless driving.

How to Compare Car Insurance Quotes

Most companies give coverage price quotes on the web. Getting online rates doesn’t take a lot of time as you just type in your personal and coverage information as requested by the quote form. When complete, the company’s rating system makes automated requests for reports for credit and driving violations and returns a price quote determined by many factors.

Online price quotes makes comparing rates easy, but the process of having to visit many different websites and type in the same information can be a bit tiresome and repetitive. But it is imperative to compare as many rates as possible if you want to find the lowest price.

The easy way to compare rates

The quickest way to compare car insurance pricing is to use a quote form that gets price quotes from several companies at one time. This type of form saves time, eliminates form submissions, and makes price shopping online a little more enjoyable. Immediately after you send the form, it gets priced with multiple companies and you can pick any or none of the quotes returned. If one or more price quotes are lower than your current rates, you can click and sign and purchase coverage. It just takes a couple of minutes and you’ll know if lower rates are available.

To save time and fill out one form to compare multiple rates now, click here to open in new window and begin entering your coverage information. If you have a policy now, it’s recommended you enter the coverages exactly as shown on your declarations page. Doing this guarantees you will get a fair comparison for similar insurance coverage.

Are insurance companies telling the truth?

Consumers can’t ignore all the ads for car insurance savings by Allstate, GEICO and Progressive. They all seem to have a common claim that you can save if you switch to their company.

But how can every company claim to save you money? This is how they do it.

All the different companies have a preferred profile for the driver they prefer to insure. For instance, a desirable insured might be profiled as a mature driver, owns a home, and drives newer vehicles. Any driver who meets those qualifications will get very good rates and as a result will probably save quite a bit of money when switching.

Potential customers who are not a match for this ideal profile will be charged a more expensive rate which leads to the driver buying from a lower-cost company. Company advertisements say “drivers who switch” not “everybody who quotes” save that much. This is how insurance companies can make those claims. That is why you should compare as many rates as you can. It is impossible to predict which insurance companies will provide you with the cheapest Volvo S40 insurance rates.

Take advantage of discounts

Companies do not list all available discounts very clearly, so we break down some of the best known and the more hidden savings tricks you should be using. If you’re not getting every credit available, you’re just leaving money on the table.

  • Auto/Life Discount – Some companies give lower rates if you buy a life insurance policy as well.
  • Sign Online – A handful of insurance companies will discount your bill up to fifty bucks for buying your policy online.
  • Passive Restraints – Factory air bags can get savings of more than 20%.
  • Seat Belts Save more than Lives – Requiring all passengers to wear their seat belts can save 10% or more off your PIP or medical payments premium.
  • Military Discounts – Being deployed with a military unit may qualify for rate reductions.
  • Homeowners Savings – Owning a home can save you money because owning a home demonstrates responsibility.
  • Save with a New Car – Insuring a new car can cost up to 25% less due to better safety requirements for new cars.

It’s important to note that most of the big mark downs will not be given to the entire policy premium. Most only apply to specific coverage prices like medical payments or collision. So even though it sounds like all the discounts add up to a free policy, insurance companies aren’t that generous.

To see a list of insurance companies with discount insurance rates, click this link.

How to know if you need help

When it comes to buying proper insurance coverage for your personal vehicles, there really is not a one size fits all plan. Coverage needs to be tailored to your specific needs.

For example, these questions could help you determine whether you would benefit from an agent’s advice.

  • Is my nanny covered when driving my vehicle?
  • What is UM/UIM insurance?
  • What is medical payments coverage?
  • Do I have coverage when making deliveries for my home business?
  • What vehicles should carry emergency assistance coverage?
  • Does car insurance cover theft of personal property?
  • How do I insure my teen driver?
  • Am I covered if my car is in a flood?
  • Does my medical payments coverage pay my health insurance deductible?

If you’re not sure about those questions, then you may want to think about talking to an agent. If you don’t have a local agent, take a second and complete this form. It’s fast, free and may give you better protection.

Car insurance 101

Knowing the specifics of your car insurance policy can be of help when determining the right coverages and proper limits and deductibles. Car insurance terms can be confusing and nobody wants to actually read their policy.

Liability insurance

This will cover damages or injuries you inflict on other people or property. This coverage protects you from legal claims by others, and doesn’t cover your own vehicle damage or injuries.

Liability coverage has three limits: bodily injury for each person injured, bodily injury for the entire accident and a property damage limit. As an example, you may have liability limits of 25/50/25 that means you have $25,000 in coverage for each person’s injuries, a total of $50,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and a total limit of $25,000 for damage to vehicles and property.

Liability insurance covers things such as repair costs for stationary objects, pain and suffering, medical services and bail bonds. How much liability should you purchase? That is a personal decision, but it’s cheap coverage so purchase as high a limit as you can afford.

Comprehensive or Other Than Collision

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

Comprehensive coverage protects against claims such as hail damage, damage from flooding, hitting a deer and rock chips in glass. The most your car insurance company will pay is the cash value of the vehicle, so if the vehicle is not worth much consider dropping full coverage.

Auto collision coverage

This coverage covers damage to your S40 resulting from colliding with an object or car. A deductible applies then the remaining damage will be paid by your insurance company.

Collision coverage protects against claims like crashing into a ditch, driving through your garage door, damaging your car on a curb, sideswiping another vehicle and scraping a guard rail. Paying for collision coverage can be pricey, so you might think about dropping it from lower value vehicles. Drivers also have the option to increase the deductible to get cheaper collision coverage.

UM/UIM Coverage

This protects you and your vehicle when the “other guys” either have no liability insurance or not enough. Covered claims include hospital bills for your injuries and also any damage incurred to your 2004 Volvo S40.

Since a lot of drivers have only the minimum liability required by law, their limits can quickly be used up. This is the reason having UM/UIM coverage is very important.

Medical costs insurance

Med pay and PIP coverage kick in for immediate expenses like pain medications, dental work, ambulance fees, funeral costs and chiropractic care. They are often utilized in addition to your health insurance plan or if you are not covered by health insurance. They cover not only the driver but also the vehicle occupants as well as if you are hit as a while walking down the street. PIP coverage is not universally available and gives slightly broader coverage than med pay

Quote more, save more

Consumers who switch companies do it for many reasons like high prices, unfair underwriting practices, high rates after DUI convictions or even not issuing a premium refund. It doesn’t matter why you want to switch choosing a new insurance company is not as hard as you think.

The cheapest 2004 Volvo S40 insurance can be sourced both online as well as from independent agents, so you should be comparing quotes from both to have the best chance of lowering rates. Some insurance companies don’t offer online quoting and many times these smaller companies only sell through independent insurance agents.

As you prepare to switch companies, make sure you don’t reduce needed coverages to save money. In too many instances, an accident victim reduced physical damage coverage and discovered at claim time that the small savings ended up costing them much more. The proper strategy is to buy the best coverage you can find at the best price while not skimping on critical coverages.

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