If saving money is your primary concern, then the best way to find low-cost prices for Mercury Sable insurance in Santa Ana is to start doing a yearly price comparison from insurance carriers who provide car insurance in California. This can be done by completing these steps.
- Gain an understanding of what coverages are included in your policy and the factors you can control to prevent rate increases. Many rating criteria that drive up the price like careless driving and a substandard credit history can be amended by making minor changes in your lifestyle. Later in this article we will cover instructions to get affordable coverage and find discounts that you may qualify for.
- Compare rates from independent agents, exclusive agents, and direct companies. Exclusive agents and direct companies can only provide price estimates from one company like GEICO or State Farm, while independent agencies can provide rate quotes from many different companies.
- Compare the new rate quotes to the price on your current policy to see if a cheaper price is available. If you find a better price, make sure coverage does not lapse between policies.
A good piece of advice is to use similar limits and deductibles on each quote and and to get rates from as many different companies as possible. This guarantees an apples-to-apples comparison and maximum price selection.
Unimaginable but true, almost 70% of insureds have purchased from the same company for at least four years, and approximately 38% of consumers have never shopped around. Most drivers in California could pocket roughly $500 a year by just shopping around, but they think it's difficult to compare rates online.
If you have a policy now or need new coverage, use these techniques to get lower rates without sacrificing coverage. Quoting and comparing rates for the best car insurance in Santa Ana is not as confusing as people think. Smart shoppers just have to know the most efficient way to compare rate quotes online from multiple companies.
The companies shown below can provide free rate quotes in Santa Ana, CA. If the list has multiple companies, it's a good idea that you get price quotes from several of them to get the lowest price.
Best reasons to buy car insurance in California
Despite the high cost of buying insurance for a Mercury Sable in Santa Ana, car insurance serves several important purposes.
- Just about all states have mandatory insurance requirements which means you are required to buy a specific minimum amount of liability protection in order to drive the car. In California these limits are 15/30/5 which means you must have $15,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $30,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $5,000 of property damage coverage.
- If your Mercury has a lienholder, it's most likely the lender will stipulate that you have comprehensive coverage to ensure loan repayment if the vehicle is totaled. If you default on your policy, the lender may insure your Mercury at a more expensive rate and make you pay a much higher amount than you were paying before.
- Insurance safeguards both your Mercury Sable and your personal assets. It will also pay for many types of medical costs for both you and anyone you injure as the result of an accident. Liability coverage, the one required by state law, will also pay attorney fees if you are named as a defendant in an auto accident. If your Mercury gets damaged, collision and comprehensive (also known as other-than-collision) coverage will pay all costs to repair after the deductible has been paid.
The benefits of buying car insurance outweigh the cost, especially for larger claims. But the average driver in California is overpaying more than $820 a year so it's recommended you shop around every year to save money.
Insurance policy coverages for a Mercury Sable
Understanding the coverages of your insurance policy helps when choosing the best coverages and the correct deductibles and limits. Policy terminology can be ambiguous and reading a policy is terribly boring.
Liability auto insurance
Liability coverage protects you from damages or injuries you inflict on other people or property that is your fault. Liability coverage has three limits: bodily injury per person, bodily injury per accident and property damage. You commonly see liability limits of 15/30/5 which stand for $15,000 bodily injury coverage, a per accident bodily injury limit of $30,000, and property damage coverage for $5,000. Occasionally you may see one limit called combined single limit (CSL) that pays claims from the same limit with no separate limits for injury or property damage.
Liability can pay for things like funeral expenses, medical services, court costs, loss of income and bail bonds. The amount of liability coverage you purchase is a personal decision, but buy as much as you can afford. California state law requires minimum liability limits of 15/30/5 but it's recommended drivers buy higher limits.
The illustration below demonstrates why the minimum limit may not be adequate coverage.
UM/UIM (Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist) coverage
This coverage protects you and your vehicle when the "other guys" either are underinsured or have no liability coverage at all. Covered losses include medical payments for you and your occupants and damage to your Mercury Sable.
Because many people only purchase the least amount of liability that is required (15/30/5 in California), it only takes a small accident to exceed their coverage. So UM/UIM coverage is important protection for you and your family. Frequently these coverages do not exceed the liability coverage limits.
Medical payments and PIP coverage
Coverage for medical payments and/or PIP kick in for bills for pain medications, dental work, EMT expenses and rehabilitation expenses. The coverages can be used to cover expenses not covered by your health insurance plan or if you do not have health coverage. It covers all vehicle occupants and will also cover getting struck while a pedestrian. PIP is not available in all states but it provides additional coverages not offered by medical payments coverage
Collision insurance
Collision coverage covers damage to your Sable resulting from colliding with another car or object. You will need to pay your deductible and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.
Collision insurance covers claims such as colliding with another moving vehicle, hitting a mailbox and scraping a guard rail. Paying for collision coverage can be pricey, so consider removing coverage from vehicles that are 8 years or older. Drivers also have the option to increase the deductible on your Sable to bring the cost down.
Comprehensive auto coverage
This pays for damage caused by mother nature, theft, vandalism and other events. You first must pay your deductible then your comprehensive coverage will pay.
Comprehensive coverage pays for claims like damage from getting keyed, hail damage, vandalism, a broken windshield and damage from a tornado or hurricane. The most you can receive from a comprehensive claim is the market value of your vehicle, so if the vehicle's value is low it's probably time to drop comprehensive insurance.
California car insurance companies ranked
Picking the top insurer can be rather challenging considering how many different insurance companies sell coverage in Santa Ana. The ranking data shown below could help you select which car insurance companies to look at comparing rates with.
Top 10 Santa Ana Car Insurance Companies Ranked by Customer Satisfaction
- Titan Insurance - 95%
- USAA - 94%
- AAA of Southern California - 92%
- AAA Insurance - 91%
- Nationwide - 90%
- State Farm - 90%
- The Hartford - 89%
- GEICO - 89%
- The General - 88%
- 21st Century - 88%
Top 10 Santa Ana Car Insurance Companies Ranked by Customer Service
- AAA of Southern California
- GEICO
- State Farm
- The Hartford
- Mercury Insurance
- The General
- Progressive
- Allstate
- AAA Insurance
- American Family