I read on www.consumerreports.org that According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, car insurance rates rose more than 5% in the past year. Lower gas means more driving, which means more claims and more costs for the insurance companies.
Here are a few ways to help with that…
 

1. Shop your insurance. Many people will get an auto policy, set it up on a draft and forget about it. Super easy right?! They don’t realize every 6 months it might be going up a little, and over time it has gone up a lot! So shop around, get some quotes and see what happens!
2. Don’t file small claims. Most deductibles are around $500. So if you have a claim that is not much higher than the deductible, don’t file it.
3. If you get a ticket, keep it off your record. Do defensive driving, deferred adjudication or get an attorney. Tickets will make your rate go up, and if you get too many in Texas your license could get suspended.
4. Take defensive driving anyway. Some auto carriers give discounts if you have recently taken it, and a Saturday afternoon in the class could save you $$ on your auto insurance. Talk to your agent and see if that qualifies as a discount.
5. Talk to your agent about the new monitoring devices some insurance carriers are offering. They track your driving habits and you could get a discount for trying them out.
6. Check on a bundle discount. If you haven’t already, check rates on putting home/renters and auto insurance with the same carrier to get the discount.
7. If you have teens, make sure they make good grades! Most carriers offer good student discounts!
8. Make sure you have good credit! Your credit score is a factor in your insurance rate with most carriers. The better your credit, typically the better your insurance rate.

An independent agent is always a good idea, because they have access to more than 1 insurance company and they can help you find these discounts and what works best for you and your family.
www.CorinInsurance.com
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According to the Texas Department of Transportation, there is a reportable crash in Texas every 71 seconds. With that being said, it is important to know what to do after an accident!
 

1. Make sure everyone is ok. Call 911 immediately if the situation calls for it.  
2. If it is not serious enough to call 911, first thing you will want to do is take photos of everything. Your car, their car, the scene, insurance cards, license plates, and anything else you can see or think of.
3. Call the police, and wait for them to arrive to file a report. You will want the information from them to get a copy of the report later.
4. If the other party is at fault, call their insurance company immediately with the information from their insurance card and report the claim.  The claims department should take it from there…

There are many different types of situations when it comes to an accident. The important thing is to drive safe, watch the road and make sure there are no distractions when you’re driving. Stay safe!
 If you have questions, we are here to help!
www.CorinInsurance.com