How to Save on Mercury Milan Insurance in Raleigh

Really, the only way to get more affordable auto insurance rates in Raleigh is to start doing an annual price comparison from companies who provide auto insurance in North Carolina.

1. Spend some time learning about policy coverages and the things you can control to keep rates low. Many risk factors that increase rates such as multiple speeding tickets and poor credit history can be amended by making minor changes in your lifestyle. Keep reading for more details to find cheap prices and earn a bigger discount.
2. Request rate estimates from independent agents, exclusive agents, and direct companies. Exclusive and direct companies can only give prices from one company like GEICO or Farmers Insurance, while agents who are independent can provide price quotes for many different companies. Select a company
3. Compare the price quotes to the price on your current policy and see if you can save money. If you can save money and change companies, make sure the effective date of the new policy is the same as the expiration date of the old one.

A good piece of advice is to try to use similar coverage information on each price quote and to quote with every insurance company. This ensures a level playing field and a good representation of prices.

A study showed that the vast majority of consumers kept buying from the same company for a minimum of four years, and approximately 38% of consumers have never taken the time to shop around. Raleigh drivers could save roughly $100 a year just by comparing rates, but they feel it’s too difficult to compare other rate quotes.

Reducing your insurance rates is not rocket science. The only thing you need to do is take a few minutes comparing price quotes online with multiple companies.

The following companies are our best choices to provide price comparisons in North Carolina. If your goal is to find cheap auto insurance in Raleigh, NC, we recommend you visit as many as you can in order to find the cheapest rates.

Do you qualify for discounts?

Some companies don’t always list their entire list of discounts in an easy-to-find place, so below is a list a few of the more well known and also the lesser-known discounts that you can inquire about if you buy Raleigh car insurance online.

• Mature Driver Discount – Older drivers may be able to get lower premium rates.
• Discounts for Multiple Vehicles – Having all your vehicles on one policy qualifies for this discount.
• Payment Discounts – If you pay your entire premium ahead of time as opposed to paying monthly you may have a lower total premium amount.
• Government Employees – Active or former government employment may qualify for a discount when you quote Raleigh car insurance depending on your insurance provider.
• Claim-Free Discount – Claim-free drivers pay less in comparison with bad drivers.
• Good Students Pay Less – Excelling in school can save 20 to 25%. The discount lasts well after school through age 25.
• Own a Home – Owning a house in Raleigh may trigger a policy discount on insurance because owning a home shows financial diligence.
• Discount for Passive Restraints – Factory air bags and/or automatic seat belt systems may earn rate discounts up to 30%.
• New Vehicle Savings – Insuring a new Milan can get you a discount since new model year vehicles have better safety ratings.

Discounts reduce rates, but you should keep in mind that most discounts do not apply to the overall cost of the policy. Some only reduce specific coverage prices like liability, collision or medical payments. Just because you may think it’s possible to get free car insurance, company stockholders wouldn’t be very happy.

The example below illustrates the difference between Mercury Milan insurance rates with and without discounts applied to the rates. The costs are based on a female driver, no accidents, no driving violations, North Carolina state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $1,000 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The second shows the rates with claim-free, multi-policy, homeowner, safe-driver, marriage, and multi-car discounts applied.

A list of insurance companies and their possible discounts are shown below.

• GEICO may have discounts that include air bags, membership and employees, defensive driver, good student, and five-year accident-free.
• Travelers policyholders can earn discounts including early quote, student away at school, save driver, continuous insurance, driver training, and multi-car.
• Farm Bureau offers discounts including youthful driver, safe driver, good student, 55 and retired, multi-vehicle, and multi-policy.
• Liberty Mutual offers premium reductions for new vehicle discount, good student, hybrid vehicle, newly married, new move discount, safety features, and teen driver discount.
• American Family discounts include good driver, Steer into Savings, TimeAway discount, early bird, and good student.
• Progressive offers discounts for good student, online signing, online quote discount, multi-vehicle, multi-policy, continuous coverage, and homeowner.

When quoting, ask each company which discounts you may be entitled to. A few discounts may not apply in Raleigh.

Coverage analysis

The coverage information shown below showcases detailed analysis of insurance prices for Mercury Milan models. Having knowledge of how insurance policy premiums are figured helps drivers make informed coverage decisions.

Price data assumes single male driver age 40, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $500 deductibles, and North Carolina minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include claim-free, homeowner, multi-policy, safe-driver, and multi-vehicle. Price information does not factor in zip code location which can raise or lower prices considerably.

Car insurance deductibles

One of the most common car insurance questions is how high should the deductibles for physical damage be. The following tables may help to conceptualize the rate difference between low and high insurance deductibles. The first table uses a $100 deductible and the second price grid uses a $500 deductible.

Prices above based on married male driver age 30, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, and North Carolina minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include homeowner, multi-policy, safe-driver, claim-free, and multi-vehicle. Premium amounts do not factor in zip code location which can affect prices noticeably.

Using the premium rates above, we can conclude that using a $100 deductible will cost in the ballpark of $19 more each month or $228 each year than selecting the higher $500 deductible. Since you would have to pay $400 more to settle a claim with a $500 deductible as compared to a $100 deductible, if you tend to go at a minimum 21 months between claims, you would save more money if you choose the higher deductible.

Difference between full coverage and liability only rates

The information below compares Mercury Milan car insurance costs when comparing full coverage to liability only. The rate quotes are based on a clean driving record, no claims, $100 deductibles, drivers are single, and no discounts are applied to the premium.

Should you pay for full coverage or liability only?

There is no written rule to exclude physical damage coverage, but there is a general guideline. If the annual cost of your full coverage insurance is more than around 10% of the replacement cost of your vehicle minus the policy deductible, then you may want to consider only buying liability coverage.

For example, let’s say your Mercury Milan book value is $5,000 and you have $1,000 policy deductibles. If your vehicle is severely damaged, you would only receive $4,000 after paying the physical damage deductible. If premium cost is more than $400 a year for full coverage, then it might be time to consider dropping full coverage.

There are a few situations where buying only liability insurance is not a good idea. If you haven’t paid off your loan, you are required to maintain full coverage in order to prevent the bank from purchasing higher-priced coverage. Also, if you don’t have enough money to buy a different vehicle in case of an accident, you should keep full coverage in place.

Seven factors that impact insurance premiums

Multiple criteria are used in the calculation when pricing auto insurance. Some are pretty understandable such as your driving record, although others are less apparent like your continuous coverage or your financial responsibility.

The items below are a partial list of the pieces used by your company to calculate your rate level.

• Excellent credit saves on insurance – An insured’s credit rating can be an important factor in determining what you pay. Drivers who have high credit ratings tend to file fewer claims and have better driving records than those with poor credit scores. So if your credit history can be improved, you could pay less to insure your Mercury Milan by improving your credit score.
• Safer occupants lowers insurance rates – Vehicles with high crash test scores tend to be cheaper to insure. Vehicles engineered for safety reduce occupant injuries and fewer serious injuries means less claims paid and thus lower rates.

• Which gender costs less? – Over the last 30 years, statistics show females are less aggressive when driving. This data doesn’t prove that females are better at driving than males. Males and females get in fender benders in similar percentages, but the males get into accidents with more damage. Men also have more aggressive citations such as reckless driving.

  The diagram below visualizes the comparison of Mercury Milan car insurance costs for male and female drivers. The premiums are based on no driving violations, no at-fault accidents, comp and collision included, $100 deductibles, drivers are not married, and no additional discounts are factored in.

• Your career may increase rates – Did you know your career choice can influence rates? Occupational choices like real estate brokers, social workers, and dentists generally pay the highest rates attributed to intense work-related stress and lots of time spent away from family. Conversely, occupations like scientists, students and retirees generally pay rates lower than average.
• Liability is critical – The liability section of your policy will afford coverage in the event that you are determined to be liable for causing personal injury or damage in an accident. Your liability coverage provides for a legal defense to attempt to prove you were not liable. It is affordable coverage compared to insuring for physical damage coverage, so do not cut corners here.

• Teenagers are high risk – Beginning drivers in North Carolina have been known to be inattentive and easily distracted when at the wheel of a vehicle so they pay higher insurance rates. Parents adding a teen driver onto your insurance can really hurt. Older people are viewed as being more responsible, tend to cause fewer accidents, and are generally more financially stable.

  The following data uses these variables: single driver, full coverage with $250 deductibles, and no discounts or violations.

• Car plus home equals more savings – The majority of insurers will give a discount to people that buy multiple policies in the form of a multi-policy discount. Discounts can be anywhere from five to ten percent in most cases. Even with this discount, you may still want to get quotes from other companies to confirm you are receiving the best rates possible. Consumers may save even more than the discount even if you have your coverage with different companies

Local Raleigh auto insurance agents

Some consumers would prefer to buy from a licensed agent and that can be a great decision Experienced insurance agents are trained risk managers and help in the event of a claim. The biggest benefit of comparing auto insurance online is you may find lower rates and still have an agent to talk to. Supporting local insurance agents is still important in Raleigh.

For easy comparison, once you complete this simple form, your insurance coverage information gets sent to participating agents in Raleigh who will give competitive quotes for your auto insurance coverage. It simplifies rate comparisons since you won’t have to visit any agencies since price quotes are sent to you. If for some reason you want to compare prices from a particular provider, feel free to jump over to their website and complete a quote there.

If you need to find a good Raleigh insurance agent, there are a couple of different agency structures and how they are distinctly different. Agents may be either exclusive or independent (non-exclusive). Either type can insure your vehicles properly, but we need to point out how they are different since it could factor into buying decisions.

Independent Auto Insurance Agents (or Brokers)

Agents in the independent channel do not work for one specific company and that gives them the ability to insure with a variety of different insurance companies and possibly get better coverage at lower prices. To transfer your coverage to a different company, the business is moved internally and you stay with the same agent. When comparing auto insurance rates, it’s a good idea to get quotes from multiple independent agents for maximum quote selection. They also have the ability to place coverage with smaller mutual companies which may have better rates.

Featured below is a short list of independent insurance agents in Raleigh that may be able to provide price quotes.

• Carolina Insurance Professionals
  5540 Centerview Dr – Raleigh, NC 27606 – (919) 285-4732 – View Map
• Green and Wooten Insurance
  800 Salem Woods Dr – Raleigh, NC 27615 – (919) 870-0021 – View Map
• Blackmon Insurance
  3416 Poole Rd # 110 – Raleigh, NC 27610 – (919) 231-8131 – View Map

View more agents

Exclusive Auto Insurance Agencies

Exclusive agencies write business for a single company such as Farmers Insurance or State Farm. These agents are not able to provide rate quotes from other companies so you need to shop around if the rates are high. Exclusive agents receive a lot of sales training on the products they sell which helps overcome the inability to quote other rates. Consumers sometimes use the same agent mainly due to loyalty to the company and the convenience of having a single billing for all their coverages.

The following are exclusive agencies in Raleigh that can give you rate quotes.

• Allstate Insurance: Brandon Reece
  9204 Falls of Neuse Rd Ste 100 – Raleigh, NC 27615 – (919) 329-2580 – View Map
• Danny Newton – State Farm Insurance Agent
  6021 Poyner Village Pkwy #109 – Raleigh, NC 27616 – (919) 875-1955 – View Map
• Amanda Hagood – State Farm Insurance Agent
  5910 Duraleigh Rd #135 – Raleigh, NC 27612 – (919) 834-3615 – View Map

View more agents

Selecting an car insurance agent should depend on more than just a low price. Below are some questions you should ask.

• Do they offer claims assistance after hours?
• Is every driver in your family covered?
• Will the company cover a rental car if your car is getting fixed?
• Is working in the agency their full-time job?
• Do they see any coverage gaps in your plan?
• Is the agent and/or agency licensed to do business in North Carolina?

When in doubt talk to an agent

When it comes to buying coverage online or from an agent, there is no single plan that fits everyone. Every insured’s situation is different so your insurance should reflect that
For example, these questions could help you determine if your insurance needs would benefit from an agent’s advice.

• Is upholstery damage covered by car insurance?
• How much liability coverage do I need in North Carolina?
• Which companies will insure high-risk drivers?
• Is my camper covered for physical damage?
• Can I get a multi-policy discount?
• Where can I find DUI or SR-22 insurance?
• If my pet gets injured in an accident are they covered?
• Am I covered when pulling a rental trailer?
• Is my state a no-fault state?

If it’s difficult to answer those questions, you might consider talking to an insurance agent. To find an agent in your area, fill out this quick form or go to this page to view a list of companies. It’s fast, doesn’t cost anything and can help protect your family.

A little work can save a LOT of money

We just showed you quite a bit of information on how to save on Mercury Milan insurance in Raleigh. The most important thing to understand is the more rate quotes you have, the better your chances of lowering your rates. Consumers may even find the lowest prices are with the least-expected company. Regional companies often have lower rates on specific markets as compared to the big name companies such as State Farm and Allstate.

Budget-conscious Mercury Milan insurance is definitely available on the web and with local Raleigh insurance agents, and you should compare rates from both to have the best rate selection. Some insurance providers do not offer the ability to get quotes online and these small insurance companies prefer to sell through local independent agencies.

For more information, take a look at the resources below:

• Insurance losses by make and model (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)
• Who Has Cheap Car Insurance for Immigrants in Raleigh? (FAQ)
• Who Has Cheap Raleigh Car Insurance for a Company Car? (FAQ)
• What Auto Insurance is Cheapest for Drivers with Accidents in Raleigh? (FAQ)
• How Much is Auto Insurance After a Speeding Ticket in Raleigh? (FAQ)
• Auto Insurance FAQ (Farmers Insurance)
• What Determines the Price of My Auto Insurance Policy? (Insurance Information Institute)