Survey Shows 79% of Consumers Feel Auto Insurance is Too Expensive

Posted in Auto Insurance , Save on Auto Insurance

October 20th, 2009

A new survey conducted September 3 – 30, 2009 by LowerMyBills.com, a part of Experian, shows that of 2,022 online auto insurance shoppers, 79 percent believe they pay too much for auto insurance. The good news is that according to the survey, 54 percent of respondents have tried to reduce their auto insurance premium in the past year. So while there is a discontent with premiums, a little more than half are trying to do something about it.

Or are they? While some respondents have attempted to reduce their premiums, the survey also revealed that some show a great lack of understanding of ways to save for auto insurance. Here are a couple of details from the survey:

• Consumers don’t understand how to find the best coverage for their needs – According to the survey, while shoppers want to take advantage of lower premiums, they don’t know how to choose the right coverage options. In this case, 45 percent of respondents said they don’t know how to find the best coverage to fit their needs, 49 percent don’t know all of the discounts they qualify for, and 17 percent have never re-evaluated their coverage.
• Consumers deem auto insurance insignificant in import vehicle-related decision – The survey also showed that when shoppers make vehicle-related decisions that could ultimately lower their coverage, they don’t think to consider auto insurance. According to the survey, 38 percent said they don’t consider auto insurance premiums when purchasing a car and another 25 percent said they don’t consider insurance implications when deciding on traffic violations like running a red light or speeding.

Unfortunately, complaining about high insurance rates, yet doing little to help lower them, does nothing to curb expensive premiums. Hopefully consumers will view this survey as a realization that part of the responsibility of lowering insurance coverage lies in their hands – and as a result, they will take the necessary steps to do so.

Would you consider your auto insurance coverage expensive? What steps do you take to lower it?