Appleton Car Insurance

Insurance for your automobile can be a large portion of your budget. Fitting premiums for car insurance into the budget along with payments on the car can be difficult.

To do this, a clear knowledge of the concepts behind car insurance is necessary as well as judicious comparison-shopping.

Insurance rates vary from company to company within the same state because a factor in rate development is the loss experience of each particular company.

Be sure to always compare insurance rates before making any decisions. Using a FREE tool, such as the one at the top of this page, is a great way to start your comparisons!

Insurance You Need, Legally, on Your Car

All states require automobile insurance as a requirement for using the highways in the state and obtaining a drivers license. Wisconsin is one of those states. Maintaining automobile insurance extends financial responsibility in the event of an accident to include the insurance company's assets.

Most of us would not be able to afford to pay the amount of judgments and insurance accepts your responsibility of payment up to the stated limits of liability for the payment of a premium.

Therefore, we trade premiums for the assurance that the insurance will pay the amount we cannot.

What limits of liability does Wisconsin require?

Each state in the U.S. has its own motor vehicle laws as well as its own insurance laws.

The required limits of liability are set by the state, so consult the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) to get a link to your own state's website. In Wisconsin, you can contact the Commissioner of Insurance through the state website.

Limits of Liability that You Should Carry

Wisconsin's liability laws require these limits of liability:

• $50,000 bodily injury liability which covers your legal responsibility, if any, in the event of an accident for injury or death to one person
• $100,000 bodily injury liability for more than one person
• $15,000 property damage liability for any legal responsibility for property damage that occurs in an accident
• $100,000 per person/$300,000 per accident bodily injury coverage if you are struck by an underinsured or uninsured motorist – national statistics indicate that up to 17% of drivers on the road do not have insurance.

Some states require that medical payment coverage be offered along with insurance to defray any costs for emergency medical care that may not be covered by your health insurance.

Practical Limits of Liability

Since state laws were established some years ago, they have not been updated to reflect inflation, so the following limits of liability are recommended to protect you adequately:

• $100,000 bodily injury liability for one person/$300,000 for more than one person in any one accident
• $50,000 property damage liability
• $5,000 medical payments coverage – however, consider more coverage if there is a strong possibility of the necessity for air transport to emergency centers.
• $100,000/$300,000 uninsured motorists coverage – this coverage ordinarily is the same as that offered for bodily injury liability

Depending upon where you live, these limits may protect you adequately, but some states have a higher incidence of lawsuits than others do.

The auto insurance you purchase also pays for attorney's fees and court costs, so be sure it protects your assets. Your insurance agent can recommend an umbrella liability policy to add to your liability coverage if necessary.

Protection for Your Automobile(s)

Liability coverage does not give you any protection for your own vehicle, so it is necessary to purchase another type of insurance to protect it. There are two types of physical damage coverage:

• Collision coverage – pays for damage from a collision with another vehicle or object
• Comprehensive coverage – pays for damage from the following perils: vandalism, theft, fire, water, hail, glass breakage, wind, and falling objects.

Recognize that there are certain limits and exclusions applying to theft, particularly of electronic devices from the vehicle. Comprehensive and collision coverage also provide protection for the lien-holder on the vehicle, so lenders require this coverage.

Deductibles

A deductible is applied to both comprehensive and collision ordinarily. The amount of this deductible is up to both the lien-holder and the purchaser of the insurance.

It is recommended that you consider the amount of the deductible carefully to make certain that you can afford the cost of the deductible.

Shopping for Insurance

Price is, of course, the reason individuals shop for insurance, but it is necessary to consider other aspects of insurance. Purchase insurance from someone who is licensed as an insurance agent and company licensed in your state.

Check the Wisconsin Insurance website for a section indicating licensing and complaints for agents and companies in the state.

Licensing is important, but so also is the reputation and financial stability of the insurance company you are examining. You can check these by checking the following sites:

• National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) and The Center for Insurance and Policy Research (CIS)
• A. M. Best Company
• Standard and Poor's Rating Services
• Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance company lookup

Checking financial stability is useful because catastrophic losses can place strains on the assets of an insurance company. Complaint ratios and ratings can help you determine how well a particular insurance company handles claims and paperwork. It is always wise to check with friends, relatives, and co-workers with regard to their experiences with agents and companies.

Getting a Quotation

Collect the information you will need for quotations and have it ready once you have chosen at least three insurance companies to approach. The information you will need is:

• Name, address, drivers license numbers, and occupations of all licensed drivers in the household
• Current driving records – it helps to know what year traffic offenses have occurred
• Marital status and which cars each person drives
• Purpose of use of each vehicle and how far it is driven daily as well as estimated annual mileage
• Make, model, and VIN number for every vehicle owned
• Desired coverage – make sure it is the same for each company

You should request quotations by e-mail or in writing to ease comparisons. Make sure the quotations are for the same coverage.

Additional Coverage You May Find Useful

Towing and roadside assistance are useful to have, but it may be best to purchase this type of coverage through an automobile association.

Claims for this under your insurance policy could affect the policy adversely.

Saving Money on Insurance Policies

Many insurance companies on automobile insurance offer a number of discounts and you can request them. Discounts that may be available are:

• Multi-car discounts – for two or more vehicles
• Multi-policy discounts – if you carry two or more policies with the same insurance company
• Good student discounts – for full-time students with a Grade Point Average of a B or above
• Low mileage – driving few miles either to or from work or as an annual average
• Some companies offer discounts for belonging to certain organizations or alumni associations, but it is worth asking.
• Clear driving records help your possibilities of getting preferred customer rates.
• Keeping your credit rating at an optimal level will also help with preferred customer rates.

Carefully assess the varying quotes to determine both the best rates and the best insurance company for your purposes.

Use our FREE comparison tool below to start your search today!