What information do you need for a car insurance quote?

You don’t have to spend your entire day getting auto insurance quotes. If you’re looking for a competitive rate through a highly respected insurance company, you can easily get a rate quote in just minutes.

How accurate the rate quote that you receive is depends on how accurate the information that you provide is.  How do you get car insurance fast? With the right preparation, you can be sure that you are equipped with the right information when you’re making a consumer decision. Use the FREE tool above to compare car insurance rates and find the best options for your budget!

When Getting Car Insurance, What Information is Needed?

You might not need to give the agent your license plate number or your driver’s license number, you do need to give accurate information to get a quick rate quote both in person or online. If you’ve never gotten quotes on your own, you might not know what type of information you need to give.

Here’s a list of the information you’ll need:

• Name, gender, and marital status of each driver in the household –– compare car insurance rates by age and gender to get discounts.
• How many years each driver has been licensed in the US
• Year, make, and model of each car you’re listing
• Safety features and aftermarket features installed in each vehicle –– discounts for safety features in car insurance are common
• Approximately how many miles you drive to commute back and forth to work
• Vehicle usage, the primary driver for each car, and estimated annual mileage
• Dates of at-fault claims made against any other insurance policy within the last 3 to 5 years
• Dates of any minor or major moving violations you or drivers in your home have been convicted of in the last 3 to 7 years
• Credit rating and housing status, although some companies may let you get car insurance without a credit check
• Grades for students who are 25 and under in your home –– school grades affect car insurance
• Prior auto insurance company and how long you’ve carried insurance without a lapse
• Garaging zip code where each vehicle is kept when it’s not being driven

Keep in that insurance quotes aren’t guaranteed or binding. When you solicit a quote from a personal car insurance carrier, the estimates that are given are subject to change after the application is underwritten and the policy is ready to be issued.If the underwriter finds a ticket you didn’t mention or a claim, the rates may be very different.

Read More: What questions do car insurers ask?

Is there documentation that you can use to get the information that you need?

You can easily provide your name and address and other basic information that’s needed when you’re filling out a form for a quote. Unfortunately, some of the information isn’t information that you need to remember on a daily basis.The best way to prepare before you start to shop is to have the right paperwork with you. Here’s some of the documentation that will help:

Your Current Declarations Page

If you already have car insurance, your existing declarations page will include most of the information that you need to get an accurate quote.

A declarations page includes detailed information on how your policy is rated and what coverage you currently carry with your current insurer.

Some of the information that you can find on this reference tool includes:

• Current term
• Vehicle information
• Driver names and rating information
• Chargeable tickets and accidents on the policy
• Coverage options and the limits that you carry
• Annual mileage and usage that your premiums are based on

Motor Vehicle Report

If you don’t have existing insurance or you’re not sure if you have a recent conviction on your driving record, you should order your Motor Vehicle Report through the state.It only costs you a few dollars to get a copy of your electronic record and the record will show you exactly what the carrier will see when they verify your driving record.

Claims History Letter

Claims that have been reported in the last three years must be disclosed when you’re getting auto insurance quotes. Learn how to compare car insurance quotes for better rates.

No-fault claims may not impact your rates, but more than one at-fault claim can disqualify you from being a Good Driver.

If you’re not sure whether you have claims, you should ask your current carrier for a claims history letter so that you can check to see if past quotes are chargeable.

What type of information is used to determine your personal rates?

Auto insurance premiums are highly personalized. The carrier will do a thorough risk assessment and then they will determine how likely you are to cost the company money. This is why insurance companies ask so many questions when they are giving out insurance rate estimates. Some of the car insurance factors that can affect rates include:

• Driver’s age, gender, and date of birth
• Credit rating
• Zip code where the vehicle is parked
• Commute mileage and annual mileage
• Driving record
• Claims record
• Vehicle type and safety rating

Now that you know what information you need, you can start getting ready to obtain your quotes. (For more information, read our “Are car insurance quotes accurate?”).

If you don’t want to be on the phone all day, you can use the Internet and get dozens of quotes at once. Enter your personal information in the comparison tool and then proceed with the option that’s priced right.

In fact, you can enter your zip code below now to compare car insurance rates from multiple companies at once!

Case Studies: Information Required for Car Insurance Quotes

Case Study 1: The Smith Family

The Smith family consists of Mr. and Mrs. Smith and their two teenage children. To obtain a car insurance quote, they needed to provide information about each driver in their household, including their names, ages, and driver’s license numbers.

Additionally, they had to provide details about the cars they wanted to insure, such as make, model, year, and VIN numbers. The Smiths were also asked about any prior traffic violations, such as speeding tickets or accidents, and their insurance history, including previous claims and coverage limits.

Case Study 2: Young Driver, No Prior Insurance

Sarah, a 20-year-old college student, was getting her first car insurance quote. As she didn’t have a previous insurance policy, she had to provide more information to assess her risk. In addition to the standard driver and vehicle details, she needed to order her Motor Vehicle Report from the state to verify her driving record.

This report would provide accurate information about any past traffic violations, which could affect her insurance rates.

Case Study 3: Claims History Review

John, a middle-aged driver, wanted to switch insurance providers. To obtain accurate quotes, he needed to disclose any claims he had reported in the last three years. As he wasn’t sure if he had any past claims, he requested a claims history letter from his current insurance carrier. This letter provided a record of his claims, helping him determine if those claims would impact the rates quoted by other insurance companies.