Amazingly, a large majority of drivers kept their policy with the same company for more than four years, and almost 40% of drivers have never compared insurance rates at all. Drivers in California can save about 35% each year by just comparing rate quotes, but they just feel it’s too hard to find affordable insurance by shopping around.
Truthfully, the best way to save on car insurance rates is to start doing an annual price comparison from companies who provide auto insurance in Oakland. Price quotes can be compared by following these steps.
- Learn about how insurance works and the measures you can take to prevent expensive coverage. Many risk factors that result in higher rates such as speeding tickets, accidents and poor credit history can be eliminated by making minor changes in your lifestyle.
- Compare prices from direct, independent, and exclusive agents. Direct and exclusive agents can only give prices from one company like GEICO and State Farm, while independent agents can give you price quotes from multiple insurance companies.
- Compare the new quotes to your existing coverage and see if there is a cheaper rate. If you find better rates, make sure coverage is continuous and does not lapse.
- Provide written notification to your current company to cancel your current coverage. Submit a signed application and payment for the new coverage. When you receive it, keep the new proof of insurance certificate in your vehicle.
One bit of advice is to use the same liability limits and deductibles on every price quote and and to get rates from as many companies as feasibly possible. This ensures an apples-to-apples comparison and and a good selection of different prices.
If you have a current auto insurance policy, you will be able to find better prices using the tips covered below. This article’s intent is to let you in on how car insurance quotes work and how to save the most money. But California drivers can benefit by having an understanding of the methods companies use to price online insurance.
All major insurance companies allow consumers to get insurance quotes on the web. Comparing BMW M6 insurance rates online is fairly straightforward as you just enter your coverage preferences on the page. When complete, their rating system collects your driving record and credit report and returns pricing information based on these and other factors.
Being able to quote online for BMW M6 insurance in Oakland makes it easy to compare insurance prices and it’s absolutely necessary to do this in order to find the best rate on insurance.
To quickly compare rates now, compare quotes from the companies shown below. If you have your current policy handy, we recommend you copy coverages and limits identical to your current policy. This guarantees you are getting an apples-to-apples comparison for similar coverage.
The car insurance companies shown below offer free quotes in Oakland, CA. To locate cheap car insurance in California, we suggest you visit several of them to get the cheapest price.
Rates and detailed analysis
The coverage table displayed below outlines detailed analysis of insurance rates for BMW M6 models. Being aware of how insurance quotes are formulated can assist in making decisions on the best policy to buy.
| Model | Comp | Collision | Liability | Medical | UM/UIM | Annual Premium | Monthly Premium |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M6 2-Dr Coupe | $424 | $1160 | $424 | $26 | $128 | $2,162 | $180 |
| M6 2-Dr Convertible | $454 | $1074 | $624 | $36 | $186 | $2,374 | $198 |
| Get Your Own Custom Quote Go | |||||||
Data based on single male driver age 50, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $500 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, multi-vehicle, homeowner, multi-policy, and claim-free. Information does not factor in specific garaging location which can increase or decrease auto insurance rates significantly.
The illustration below demonstrates how deductibles and can affect BMW M6 insurance costs for different insured age categories. Data assumes a single female driver, comp and collision included, and no discounts are taken into consideration.
BMW M6 insurance costs by age and gender
The example below shows the comparison of BMW M6 car insurance costs for male and female drivers. The rates are based on a clean driving record, no at-fault accidents, full physical damage coverage, $1,000 deductibles, marital status is single, and no discounts are factored in.
Comparison of full coverage and liability-only policies
The information below illustrates the difference between BMW M6 yearly insurance costs with liability coverage only compared to full coverage. The costs are based on no claims or driving violations, $100 deductibles, single marital status, and no discounts are applied.
Should you pay for full coverage?
There is no set rule for phasing out physical damage insurance, but there is a guideline you can consider. If the annual cost of your full coverage insurance is more than about 10% of the vehicle’s replacement cost less your deductible, then you might want to think about dropping full coverage.
For example, let’s pretend your BMW M6 book value is $6,000 and you have $1,000 deductibles. If your vehicle is severely damaged, the most your company would pay you is $5,000 after paying the physical damage deductible. If you are paying more than $500 a year for comprehensive and collision coverage, then it might be time to consider dropping full coverage.
There are some cases where buying only liability insurance is not a good plan. If you still owe a portion of the original loan, you have to keep full coverage as part of the loan requirements. Also, if you cannot afford to purchase a different vehicle in the even your car is totaled, you should not drop full coverage.
These discounts can lower your car insurance quotes
Some insurers don’t always publicize every discount they offer in a way that’s easy to find, so the below list has a few of the more well known as well as some of the hidden credits that may apply to you.
- Switch and Save Discount – Some car insurance companies give discounts for buying a policy prior to the expiration date on your current M6 insurance policy. It can save you around 10%.
- Pay Early and Save – If you can afford to pay the entire bill instead of monthly or quarterly installments you could save up to 5%.
- One Accident Forgiven – This isn’t a discount exactly, but companies like Liberty Mutual, GEICO and Allstate will forgive one accident without getting socked with a rate hike if you are claim-free before the accident.
- Good Grades Discount – This discount can be rewarded with saving of up to 25%. The good student discount can last up until you turn 25.
- Accident-Free Discounts – Drivers with accident-free driving histories get the best car insurance rates when compared to drivers with a long claim history.
Drivers should understand that some of the credits will not apply to the entire policy premium. Most cut the price of certain insurance coverages like liability, collision or medical payments. If you do the math and it seems like you would end up receiving a 100% discount, company stockholders wouldn’t be very happy.
The example below shows the comparison of BMW M6 insurance costs with and without discounts being applied to the rates. The prices are based on a male driver, no claims or violations, California state minimum liability limits, comp and collision included, and $100 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The second shows the rates with multi-car, marriage, homeowner, safe-driver, claim-free, and multi-policy discounts applied.
A few of the larger companies and some of the premium reductions they offer are detailed below.
- GEICO offers premium reductions for five-year accident-free, multi-policy, seat belt use, federal employee, and military active duty.
- USAA offers discounts for new vehicle, loyalty savings, vehicle storage, defensive driver, and multi-policy.
- Progressive has discounts for multi-vehicle, online signing, continuous coverage, online quote discount, and good student.
- American Family may include discounts for good student, defensive driver, mySafetyValet, bundled insurance, accident-free, early bird, and air bags.
- Esurance includes discounts for emergency road assistance, DriveSense, anti-lock brakes, Switch & Save, Pac-12 alumni, and good driver.
- Farmers Insurance may offer discounts for switch companies, electronic funds transfer, homeowner, good student, distant student, and alternative fuel.
- State Farm discounts include anti-theft, passive restraint, good driver, defensive driving training, multiple policy, and multiple autos.
If you are trying to find affordable Oakland car insurance quotes, ask all the companies which discounts they offer. Some of the earlier mentioned discounts may not be available in your area. If you would like to view car insurance companies that offer the discounts shown above in California, follow this link.
Best reasons to buy insurance in California
Despite the high cost, buying insurance is required in California but also provides important benefits.
- The majority of states have minimum liability requirements which means state laws require a specific minimum amount of liability insurance if you don’t want to risk a ticket. 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 you took out a loan on your M6, almost all lenders will require you to have insurance to ensure they get paid if you total the vehicle. If the policy lapses, the bank will be required to insure your BMW at a more expensive rate and make you pay a much higher amount than you were paying before.
- Insurance safeguards your BMW and your assets. It will also reimburse you for most medical and hospital costs for both you and anyone you injure as the result of an accident. Liability insurance will also pay for a defense attorney in the event you are sued. If damage is caused by hail or an accident, your insurance policy will pay to repair the damage minus the deductible amount.
The benefits of insuring your car are definitely more than the cost, specifically if you ever have a liability claim. Unknowingly, the average driver overpays more than $825 a year so we recommend shopping around at every policy renewal to ensure rates are inline.
California car insurance companies
Insuring your vehicle with a high-quality insurance company is difficult considering how many companies provide coverage in California. The ranking information shown below may help you pick which car insurance companies you want to consider buying from.
Top 10 Oakland Car Insurance Companies Ranked by Claims Service
- AAA of Southern California
- State Farm
- Esurance
- AAA Insurance
- Progressive
- Liberty Mutual
- GEICO
- Allstate
- Titan Insurance
- The Hartford
Top 10 Oakland 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%
Compare rates but buy from a local Oakland insurance agency
Some people prefer to talk to an insurance agent and that can be a great decision A good thing about comparing car insurance online is that drivers can save money and get better rates and still buy from a local agent. Putting coverage with small agencies is important especially in Oakland.
To help locate an agent, after submitting this quick form, the quote information gets sent to companies in Oakland who will gladly provide quotes for your coverage. There is no need to even leave your home due to the fact that quote results will go immediately to your email address. You can find better rates without having to waste a lot of time. If for some reason you want to quote rates from a specific car insurance provider, just navigate to their website and fill out the quote form the provide.
Two different types of auto insurance agents
If you are searching for an insurance agent, you must know there are a couple different types of agents from which to choose. Agencies in Oakland are either exclusive or independent agents depending on their company appointments.
Independent Agents
Independent insurance agents can sell policies from many different companies so they have the ability to put coverage through many different car insurance companies and get the cheapest rates. If prices rise, your policy is moved internally and you don’t have to do anything.
When comparing rates, it’s a good idea to include independent agents to have the most options to choose from. Many write coverage with smaller mutual companies which could offer lower prices.
Shown below is a small list of independent insurance agents in Oakland who may provide competitive price quotes.
- Bucheku Insurance Agency
1714 Franklin St Suite 305 – Oakland, CA 94612 – (510) 655-6969 – View Map - Susan Bernosky – Strahan Ins Services Inc
5940 College Ave a – Oakland, CA 94618 – (510) 450-9051 – View Map - Fred Loya Insurance
1620 High St STE B – Oakland, CA 94601 – (510) 434-1801 – View Map
Exclusive Car Insurance Agencies
These agents can only provide one company’s prices and examples are State Farm, AAA, and Liberty Mutual. Exclusive agents are unable to shop your coverage around so it’s a take it or leave it situation. Exclusive insurance agents are well schooled on the products they sell which helps them sell insurance even at higher premiums. Some consumers prefer to choose to use an exclusive agent primarily because of the prominence of the brand instead of buying on price only.
The following is a short list of exclusive agents in Oakland willing to provide comparison quotes.
- Farmers Insurance – Sharon Li
320 13th St #103 – Oakland, CA 94612 – (510) 986-1128 – View Map - Farmers Insurance – Anthony Sue
3333 Grand Ave #203 – Oakland, CA 94610 – (510) 465-1544 – View Map - Farmers Insurance: Howard Ruud
5956 MacArthur Blvd – Oakland, CA 94605 – (510) 635-0608 – View Map
Finding a good insurance agent is decision based upon more than just a cheap price quote. These are valid questions to ask:
- Do they offer accident forgiveness?
- Is the agency involved in supporting local community causes?
- Do they offer rental car reimbursement?
- If independent agents, which companies do they recommend?
- Is there any savings for paying the full premium?
- Does the agency have a current Errors and Omissions policy?
- How long has the business existed?
- Does the company have a local claim office in Oakland?
After you get satisfactory answers to your questions and locked in a price quote, you’ve probably found a car insurance agent that can be trusted to provide car insurance coverage.