There is a lot of misleading information out there about car insurance that gets repeated so often people believe it to be true. However, most of these so called car insurance myths neglect vital facts and more importantly facts that could save you money. Since these misconceptions often influence what a person buys and drives for a car, which is a big decision, taking a closer look at car insurance myths is a good idea.
5 Car Insurance Myths Debunked
- Both New and relatively New Cars cost more to insure: While this is generally true as cars depreciate in value over time, there are many factors involved in determining rates for auto insurance for a given make or model and the replacement cost of a vehicle is a relatively small piece of that. Better safety features and a steady insurance track record can potentially result in a new car having a lower rate than your current vehicle. Living in a saving neighborhood with lower crime can also drastically lower car insurance rates.
- The color of the car changes insurance rates: The truth is your insurance company does not know what color your car is and probably doesn't care. They don’t ask and no, the VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) does not indicate a color. Bright red or plain white, if the same make, model and driver are involved the same rate will result for insurance.
- Sports cars get more speeding tickets and will make rates go up: Not true, 9 of the top 10 models in terms of speeding tickets are non-performance vehicles. Insurers are interested in how many speeding tickets you have, not how many a type of car might get. Rates for sports cars are higher based on horsepower and insurance claims records, not the likelihood of picking up a ticket.
- Tickets in other states do not change insurance: Not only do insurance companies regularly find these tickets, but if they find them after the event has occurred you may be dropped from coverage completely or they may refuse to pay a claim as it was a fraudulently obtained policy. It is expensive regardless so make sure your insurance will pay if a claim needs to be filed by being above board to start with.
- Full or comprehensive coverage insurance means they pay for everything: Full coverage insurance is a loosely defined term to mean both liability coverage and loss coverage. With comprehensive coverage damage to your car in an accident, theft, and fire are typically covered. Glass coverage, towing and rental coverage, theft of property in the vehicle, etc. are areas that may or may not be included. To compare policies and premiums you need to look at each of these things, not simply request a quote for full or comprehensive coverage as that definition can be very different from one policy to another.
Policy limits also exist in every policy so even if the same things are covered but one insures for a total of $10,000 medical coverage (a 3 day stay or less sometimes in a hospital) and the other for $100,000 then the rates are different and rightly so. Often super cheap policies are dropping all coverage to the minimum legal amounts for a state. Saving $30 every 6 months is not a bargain at the risk $90,000 in medical bills if the situation would warrant the latter.
Most full service insurance agents will happily take the time to go over different options available to you in car insurance from ways to cut the cost down to ways maximize protection in the areas of coverage you need. AXA is an example of a website that allows you to tailor a policy online and then have an actual agent review the policy to address any questions. Many online insurance companies now will allow you to print all the policy details to compare accurately. Doing the investigation before shopping for your new car or used car can save you a lot of frustration with car insurance down the road, Literally and figuratively speaking.