There are a number of auto insurance discounts available to Texas drivers. TDI allows providers significant leeway in the structuring of discounts, so it is a good idea to ask which ones available when you are getting an auto insurance quote from any company. Discounts for good grades or nonsmokers are just a few examples of the ways you might be able to save money on your Texas auto insurance.
1. Airbags and other passive restraints such as automatic seatbelts are limited to discounting only coverage's affecting the driver and passengers in the insured vehicle. Clearly these features cannot prevent a accident or theft event hence no discounts are provided for liability, collision, comprehensive and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage's. Personal injury protection and medical coverage's are discounted if airbags and passive restraints exist. Your vehicle's identification number will indicate if the auto has these features.
2. Young drivers need all the help they can get concerning discounts and two of the best discounts have to do with their scholarly efforts. The academic discount normally is offered along with the above-mentioned drivers education course discount and combined could reduce a young drivers rate up to near 30%. Be sure to ask your agent exactly what is required to acquire this discount and what supporting documents are necessary to maintain it. Industry statistics prove students with higher grades tend to be more conscientious drivers.
The "away at school" discount is quite important in that it provides a reduction in premium cost while still allowing the student to be covered under the parent or family members policy. This critical coverage fact should be noted, removing a student from the policy to avoid additional rates when the student is away could result in a severe liability claim if the student causes a accident while driving someone else's car.
If the student is still dependent on the parent or family member while away at school the lawsuit could find it's way back to the parent or family member as responsible guardian. The amount of this discount is substantial so every insured with a out of household student should attempt to qualify.
3. Multiple auto discounts extend to all coverage's sometimes, making this discount the most far reaching of all. On occasion spouses of the same household will attempt to avoid combining policies, believing one party's misfortune may create rating issues for both. Although this may be true in some cases, normally the insurer would rather have the additional premium, even with the higher risk, hence the opportunity for savings are greater together than apart. Many insurers will not grant the multiple auto discounts to policies containing young drivers as they believe the required premium for the young driver risk does not justify any additional discounting.
4. Seniors should always verify with their agency annual mileage and age discounts. These discounts can be substantial should be closely evaluated since they may increase or decrease depending on usage. Senior citizens should also be aware that some carrier began increasing rates due to age at a certain level also. Discussing this with the agent beforehand makes shopping easier should these discounts diminish and also make for good negotiation tools if the agency has other lines of insurance with the insured.
If you are interested in seeing if you can obtain one or more of these discounts, the best way to find out is to contact an agency like TAHI that specializes in statewide, multi-line coverage and who is willing to take the time to determine your auto insurance discount eligibility through an individual driver rating system.
