Each year a letter appears from your insurance provider with an agreement to restore your auto insurance coverage. That gives you a great opportunity to make sure you get the best deal for the coverage you want.
While you can look around at any time for auto insurance estimates, there’s a reason your current plan and premiums are different from what’s available from a variety of other insurance providers because your resurrection day is getting closer and closer perhaps to your benefit.
Almost all auto insurance coverage lasts for one year. When the call is over, you have the option to renew that plan or switch to a plan offered by another provider.
A major factor in making the effort to keep your current rates and plans rather than immediately renewing them is to see if you can get the same coverage from another insurance provider for a lower price. Additionally, there may be changes to your current plan such as a price increase or plan terms may have changed.
Why did the increase in awakening rate occur?
Tariff increases can occur due to various factors:
- You may have a speeding ticket or traffic penalty or error error in your records.
- The insurance company may have made rate changes to your plan based on your risk account.
- If you include a new driver to your plan.
- If you increase your coverage limit.
- There may be a price increase for all company plans as well if you don’t file a claim and don’t have a pimple on your driving record. That could be due to the impact of insurance fraud, an increase in claims duty in your area, or general changes in the insurance market.
Regardless of what the factors were, now was the time to have a look. While a ticket or accident will follow you to another insurance company, they may not charge you the same for the same event as your current company. The price increase on your revival is not something you need to agree to.
Benefits of reviving awakening
When you decide to look around and switch to a new insurance company on your resurrection day, you save more than the difference a premium reduction can make.
To begin with, insurance providers often charge a fine for canceling your plan in the middle of a call. Some companies do not charge a fee but will use a system called short score where the money returned to you is not a fully prorated amount that you have to get back. This is another way to penalize you for completing plans before a rated call. When you switch to a new company on your awakening day instead of renewing your old plan, you avoid the risk of a penalty or short score.
Switching at revival time means you start paying for the new company instead of updating with the old one. It keeps resettlement as stable as you plan in your budget. But be sure to notify your insurance provider in advance in writing that you will not be renewing with them. This way, there is no chance of you ending up with an insurance termination notice on your record for lost payments.
Questions to ask yourself if you decide to restore your package
Suppose you compare estimates from different insurance providers but choose to stick with your current provider. Quite reasonable. But before you secure yourself for the next 12-month call, consider what changes might occur in your life or driving practice, as those changes could affect your premium. Ask yourself:
- Did you include a new driver for your plans?
- Do you commute to work or do you work from home and drive fewer kilometers each year?
- Do you or do you need to change your coverage or limit of coverage?
- Do you use your vehicle for business purposes such as providing food?
- Do you put winter tires on your vehicle when the cold weather hits?
- Are there any changes or improvements to your vehicle such as including an anti-theft device?
- Have you included a 2nd vehicle for your plan?
You must also notify your broker or provider of any changes to your personal information such as:
- Change of address if you move from where you live may affect the rate you earn.
- If you used to park in a private garage but are currently parking on the highway or vice versa.
- Any traffic tickets, penalties, accidents (also minor ones) or license suspension.
- If you modify your vehicle in any way. For example, have you tinted the windows of your house or have you changed the engine?
If you’re not ready to make the switch
While the revival offers a great opportunity to look around, that doesn’t mean you should get the buttons. If you don’t find a better deal at revival time, you can still come back and come up with a price in the future. Shopping for car insurance is free, and that doesn’t mean you have to switch insurance providers.
Getting an estimate is always a great way to keep up to date with what’s available to you. This may be your current plan is the best option but making the effort to get an estimate can give you the assurance of knowing that you have the plan you need at one of the most affordable costs.