Auto Insurance Discounts

Here at McDougall Insurance we have a page dedicated to describing some of the auto insurance discounts available to drivers, and have tackled some auto insurance myths and even what it’s like to get auto insurance in Kingston. We love our auto insurance here at McDougall Insurance, and have over 20 locations to service you and your auto insurance needs. But we realize that the path to the cheapest auto insurance is paved with discounts (not good intentions), so we decided to go into more detail about 5 of the major ones that will save you money.

Loyalty Discount

The loyalty discount is exactly what it says. It rewards loyalty. This sizable (10-20%) discount is an insurance company’s way of retaining business. The application and cancellation process for insurance companies is expensive and time consuming, and they make more money when their clients renew their policies year after year, without changing.

The loyalty discount is designed to encourage this behaviour, as it gives you a financial incentive to stay with the company. It is also a way for the insurance companies to pass the savings of being a loyal customer over to you, as they definitely save money if you aren’t constantly cancelling your policy.

This discount can sometimes be a flat rate discount that get tacked on when your insurance policy first renews (often called a “renewal discount”), but some can be progressive discounts that get larger as you spend more time with the company.

Multi-line Discount

One home, one auto. This is the mantra by which insurance companies live by. If you have a car, you probably have a home and vice-versa. This means the insurance companies have an opportunity to sell you two insurance policies instead of one, which they like (it is also more efficient to insurance your insurance policies with one company from a logistics point of view).

So they again try to encourage this behavior by instituting a multi-line discount, which you receive when you insure both your auto and home policies with one insurance company. Some have this discount extend further, to include watercraft, cottage or even business policies that you might have. Talk to your insurance broker if you want to know more!

Multi-vehicle Discount

If you have multiple cars, your insurance company would like to insure them. It makes more sense for insurance companies to insure your vehicles with just one policy (they are designed with multiple vehicles in mind), so it’s logical for them to offer you this discount.

They also don’t want to lose business by having you get your cars insured by a different provider, so this discount is a way for them to discourage that.

Generally the multi-vehicle discount is between 5-15%, and is a static number. So you can only get it once, it doesn’t add up if you get more cars. The discount for having two cars is the same for having twelve, so if you are a professional hockey player or oil mogul you’ll have to suffer with the rest of us.

Away at School/Good Student Discount

If you have a child (they prefer to be called “young adults” I’m told) in your family who is of driving age, you know just how expensive it is to add them on your policy. Even if they aren’t the principle driver, it still costs and arm and a leg to get them on there.

Thankfully, the insurance companies have come up with a few ways to address the high prices of young drivers, through the good student discount and the away at school discount.

The good student discount basically rewards good grades in school, as insurance companies have found that students with better grades in school tend to get into less accidents. The threshold for the good student discount tends to be an 80% average, and it applies to students in high school as well as university.

The away at school discount was designed with university/college students in mind, as they won’t be using your families vehicle for the 8 months of the year that they are away attending classes (at least that’s what they tell us they do). It chops a substantial amount of your child’s premium off your policy (more than 60% usually), as they only charge you for the four months your child is back home during the summer. To get this discount you’ll need to prove that the child is at school, and that the school is more than a certain distance away from your home (typically it’s 100 km).

Claims Free Discount

The claims free discount is probably the largest discount you’re going to get for your auto policy, as insurance companies really really really like it when you don’t have claims. These discounts can be large, often over 15%, and of course require a driving record without claims.

This discount can occasionally be finicky, as it can get confusing when you put in a claim that is not your fault (is it fair for you to lose the claims free discount?), as often it may not seem like an accident is your fault, but you are still charged with a claim (having a tree fall on your vehicle is not remotely your fault, but it still counts as a claim against you).

However, it is a valuable discount for those eligible, and if you invest in claims protection (also known as a driving record protector), you can keep it up and running for a long period of time – saving you money.

If you found this article useful and would like more ways to save money with your auto insurance, considering getting your insurance done through McDougall Insurance! With offices all over Eastern Ontario, McDougall Insurance works hard to get you the most efficient and effective insurance available. Give us a call at 1-800-361-0971 or get a quick online auto quote. Let us earn your business!