When buying auto insurance in Barrington, there are a lot of options and selecting the best Barrington auto insurance agent for your needs is not as easy as just randomly choosing from the yellow pages. You require an excellent agent, and also want to find the best price on auto insurance.
Since consumers have many choices of insurance companies, it’s difficult to find the most affordable insurer.
Compare online but buy from a local Barrington agent
Good agents can help determine the best coverages and help file insurance claims. One of the great benefits of getting online price quotes is you may find lower rates and still choose a local agent.
To help locate an agent, after submitting this simple form, your information is instantly submitted to local insurance agents who will compete for your coverage. You won’t need to leave your house because quoted prices will be sent directly to your email. Now that’s easy!
Deciding on an auto insurance agent should depend on more than just the price. These are valid questions to ask:
- How are they compensated?
- Will your rates increase after a single accident?
- What insurance companies do they work with?
- Is vehicle mileage a factor when determining depreciation for repairs?
- How much can you save by raising your physical damage deductibles?
- Do they have any clout with companies to ensure a fair claim settlement?
Captive and independent Barrington insurance agents
When looking for an insurance agent, there are two different types of agents that you can select. Agents can either be independent (non-captive) or captive. While both can properly insure your vehicles, but it’s good to learn how they are different because it can influence the type of agent you choose
Captive Agents
This type of agents have only one company to place business with like Allstate, State Farm and Farmers Insurance. They generally cannot shop your coverage around so they have to upsell other benefits. They receive extensive training on their products and sales techniques which helps them sell insurance even at higher premiums. Consumers often choose to use a captive agent mainly due to loyalty to the company and strong financial ratings.
Independent Agents (or Brokers)
Independent insurance agents are not locked into one company so they have the ability to put coverage with lots of companies and potentially find a lower price. If your agent finds better pricing, the business is moved internally and that require little work on your part.
When comparison shopping, it’s a good idea to get quotes from multiple independent agents to get the best comparison.Many can place coverage with smaller regional carriers which can be an advantage.
Below are independent insurance agents in Barrington willing to provide price quote information.
- Avery Smith Insurance – 237 New Meadow Rd – Barrington, RI 02806 – (401) 245-8100
- Marc J Di Salvo Insurance – 7 George W Finnerty Rd – Barrington, RI 02806 – (401) 245-2264
For a full directory of licensed insurance agents in Barrington, please click here.
Once you have received reasonable responses to any questions you have and an affordable coverage quote, you’ve probably found an auto insurance agent that meets your needs to properly service your auto insurance policy.
Aren’t online-only companies cheaper?
Insurance agents are indespensible for some people, but you can also find affordable Rhode Island auto insurance direct over the internet. A few companies who have local Barrington agents also allow consumers to get a quote and buy online, so this should also be taken into consideration if you prefer to buy online.
If you’re worried about not having an insurance agent’s advice when shopping online, don’t let it bother you. Auto insurance companies that require consumers to choose their own coverages have toll-free phone numbers and other options you can use to get advice on coverages. Consumers also can use help pages and frequently asked questions you can access prior to buying.
The only method to determine if local insurance agents or online providers are cheaper is to compare price quotes from both. You can actually get different rates for the identical company from their agents and their website. It’s just impossible to know where you can get the lowest rates until you actually compare rates utilizing both methods.
Are online premiums lower? Many people think so, but it’s hard to say for sure since there are so many factors that are calculated into your premium. Many people think that purchasing direct online reduces premiums because there is no agent. In many cases, the cost of constant advertising is expensive so rates may not be all that different from traditional agents.
Online plus local equals savings
Consumers who switch companies do it for a variety of reasons including delays in paying claims, lack of trust in their agent, questionable increases in premium or denial of a claim. It doesn’t matter why you want to switch switching auto insurance companies is pretty easy and you might even save some money in the process.
As you shop your coverage around, never buy lower coverage limits just to save a few bucks. There are many occasions where an insured cut uninsured motorist or liability limits only to regret at claim time that their decision to reduce coverage ended up costing them more. Your aim should be to purchase plenty of coverage at the best price, not the least amount of coverage.
For more Rhode Island auto insurance information
Even more information is located at the Rhode Island Division of Insurance Regulation website. Rhode Island consumers can report car insurance fraud, read industry bulletins, find out industry alerts, and view agent and company licensing information.
