When shopping for car insurance, selecting the best Windham insurance agency for your needs is harder than just randomly choosing from the yellow pages. It’s highly likely you’re looking for a highly trained agent, but you also want great rates as well.
With insurance companies like American Family, Allstate, State Farm and independent agents having offices in Windham, it’s hard to tell which provider will provide the best service and rates. Thankfully, you can use online price quotes to get a list of agencies and thier coverage prices.
How to buy car insurance from an agent in Windham
Licensed agents can help determine the best coverages and help submit paperwork. The biggest benefit of getting online price quotes is you may find the lowest rates and still choose a local agent. Buying from small agencies is especially important in Windham.
To help locate an agent, after submitting this quick form, your information is instantly submitted to agents in your area who will give you bids for your business. You never need to leave your house due to the fact that quote results will go directly to your email. Now that’s easy!
Compare rates from both independent and captive car insurance agents
When looking for a reliable agent, you need to know there are two types of agencies to choose from. Insurance agencies in Windham are classified as either captive or independent (non-captive). Either one can do a good job, but it’s worth mentioning the difference between them since it can impact your agent selection.
Independent Agents
Independent agencies do not work for one specific company so they can insure your vehicles with lots of companies and potentially find a lower price. To transfer your coverage to a different company, the business is moved internally and you don’t have to find a new agent.
When shopping rates, you should always get quotes from several independent insurance agents to ensure the widest selection of prices.
Below is a list of independent agencies in Windham that may be able to provide pricing information.
Lake Region Agency – 726 Roosevelt Trl – Windham, ME 04062 – (207) 892-3544
Horace Mann Insurance Co – 936 Roosevelt Trl # 2 – Windham, ME 04062 – (207) 894-7900
Nadeau Insurance and Financials – 781 Roosevelt Trl – Windham, ME 04062 – (207) 893-1776
Captive Insurance Agents
Captive agents are contracted to one company like State Farm, AAA, Farmers Insurance or Allstate. These agents are not able to compare other company’s rates so they have no alternatives for high prices. These agents are trained well on their products and sales techniques and that can be a competitive advantage.
Listed below is a short list of captive agencies in Windham that are able to give price quotes.
State Farm Insurance – 13 Storm Dr – Windham, ME 04062 – (207) 892-2864
Allstate Insurance – 778 Roosevelt Trl – Windham, ME 04062 – (207) 892-8501
To view a complete directory of car insurance agents in Windham, go to this page.
Picking an auto insurance agent shouldn’t rely on just the bottom line cost. Ask your prospective agent these questions:
- Which members of your family are coverage by the policy?
- Do they specialize in personal lines coverage?
- Is the agent and/or agency licensed to do business in Maine?
- How long has their agency been open in Windham?
- Which insurance companies are they affiliated with?
After getting reasonable responses and a good coverage price, it’s possible that you found an auto insurance agent that meets your needs to provide car insurance coverage.
Consider all buying options to save money
Auto insurance agents serve a purpose, but you also have the option of buying directly from online companies. A few companies, such as State Farm, Allstate and Farmers, who employ agents also permit you to buy a policy online, so keep that in mind if you are the do-it-yourself type.
If you’re concerned about not having someone to ask questions, that shouldn’t be an issue. Auto insurance companies provide phone numbers and online resources to answer your questions. In addition, they usually offer live help and 24/7 access to clarify any questions you may have.
Is it cheaper to buy car insurance online? It’s hard to say exactly since there are so many factors that influence the price you pay. It’s a logical assumption that buying car insurance online cuts out the middleman. For most companies selling online, however, advertising budgets are huge and this drives up their premium costs.
The only way to determine if local insurance agents or online providers are cheaper is to get rates from both and compare them. Lots of times people will get different prices from the same company when they use both methods. But it’s difficult to know whether the best rates are online or from an agent without quoting identical coverages both ways.
In the end, you save
When trying to cut insurance costs, it’s a bad idea to buy less coverage just to save a little money. In too many instances, an insured cut collision coverage to discover at claim time they didn’t purchase enough coverage. The proper strategy is to buy the best coverage you can find at a price you can afford.
People leave their current company for a number of reasons such as extreme rates for teen drivers, being labeled a high risk driver, high rates after DUI convictions and policy non-renewal. No matter why you want to switch, finding the right car insurance provider can be pretty painless.
Additional car insurance information can be found on the website for the Maine Bureau of Insurance. Click here for link. Maine drivers can download brochures, report car insurance fraud, and find disaster information.
