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To lower your GEICO car insurance rates, you can raise your deductible, keep your driving record clean, and ask your insurance agent about discounts. If those options don’t provide enough savings, you can also revisit your coverage or shop around for a better rate.

GEICO

, which stands for Government Employees Insurance Company, was originally founded to insure military and government personnel. Today, GEICO serves policyholders in every sector and occupation. Over 30 million vehicles on the road in America are insured by GEICO.

If you’re driving one of those GEICO-insured vehicles, you may be wondering if there’s a way to reduce your

car insurance

rates without losing out on your GEICO coverage. We’ll take a look at a few ways you can go about lowering your premiums!

How to lower GEICO car insurance rates

From fine-tuning your coverage to applying for discounts, there is a wide range of options if you’re looking for ways to lower your GEICO rates! Some will be easy, some will take a bit more work, but all will save you money when it comes time to pay your monthly insurance bill. Let’s dive in!

Revisit your insurance coverage

This should probably be your first step if you want to cut down your insurance premium. Call your GEICO agent, go online, or use GEICO’s app to go over your current insurance products and consider if you can cut back on types of coverage that don’t really apply to your driving situation.

The only coverage that you legally have to have is

liability car insurance

. The amount of bodily injury liability and property damage liability you’ll need will depend on your home state—in some states, you’ll have the choice if you want to sign up for

personal injury protection (PIP)

. In any case, your state-mandated minimums are the base of your auto insurance policy, and you won’t be able to legally drive without them.

Since cutting your liability insurance is not an option, focus on your add-ons. Full coverage—which includes collision and

comprehensive coverage

—is usually the next step up from basic liability insurance, which covers your vehicle in the case of an accident or other non-accident related damage. If you have an older car that isn’t worth as much as what you pay for insurance, you may want to consider if removing this coverage is in your wallet’s best interest.

It’s generally a good idea to

revisit your insurance coverage once every six months

to make sure you aren’t overpaying for coverage that you don’t really need. But remember—even though cutting back on your insurance policy can save you money on your monthly bill, it can cost you a lot more in the long run if you end up in an uncovered situation.

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Increase your deductible

Another way you can tweak your GEICO policy to reduce your rates is to increase your deductible. The deductible is the amount you pay out of pocket when making an insurance claim. For example, if your

catalytic converter is stolen

and the replacement is covered by comprehensive coverage, you’ll have to pay your deductible before the rest can be covered by your insurance.

Generally, the higher the deductible, the lower your insurance premium. If you feel comfortable increasing the deductible on your policy, it can make your monthly payments less of a burden. However, you’ll want to make sure you have the deductible amount on hand in case you need to

file a claim

—some people start a savings account to keep this money available.

But how much can a higher deductible save you with GEICO? Let’s say you bump your deductible up from $200 to $500—this could save you an average of 15 to 30% on a full coverage policy. Going up to $1,000 can save you up to 40%!

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Maintain a good driving record

As with most insurance companies, one of the most straightforward ways to lower your insurance rate is to maintain a clean driving record. Driving safely makes you less of a risk to insure, meaning that you won’t have to pay as much to stay covered.

With GEICO, being accident-free for five years or more can save you up to 22% on your car insurance! And if you feel confident in your driving habits, you can sign up for

GEICO’s DriveEasy

program to save even more!

The DriveEasy mobile app monitors your driving behavior and rewards safe habits. With GEICO’s program, you can save up to 25% on your premiums—if you show that you’re a safe driver! Here’s how the app works, including what it tracks:

Personal driving score: The app gives you a driving score to help you improve your habits throughout the program. Speeding or texting while driving will cause your score to go down.

Safe driving steaks: Your personal driving score will improve dramatically when you maintain a safe driving streak. Smooth driving, easy braking, and consistent speeds will count towards your streak!

Trip log: This makes it easier to review your driving habits, the amount of time you spend on the road, and the weather conditions—all factors that the app uses to apply a fair driving score.

The DriveEasy app comes down hard on

distracted driving

. If you have your phone in your hand while your speed is over six miles per hour, your driving score will go down. However, passive use—ike mounting your phone on the dash to use navigation or hands-free features—won’t impact your driving score.

Take a defensive driving course

If your driving record leaves a little to be desired, or you’re just looking for another way to reduce your insurance costs, you can take a defensive driving course to show GEICO that you take safe driving seriously.

Not only will a defensive driving course save you money on your insurance coverage, it will also give you a chance to brush up your knowledge of traffic laws and provide useful tools for preventing car accidents.

Before you sign up for a defensive driving course, make sure that the course is approved by GEICO—nothing worse than going through a whole course and realizing it’s not eligible! Also, the eligibility rules for GEICO’s defensive driver discount will vary depending on your state.

For example, to be eligible for GEICO’s defensive driving perk in

Illinois

, you have to be over 50 years old to qualify for a 5% reduction in your rates. In

Minnesota

, you also have to be over 50 to be eligible, but you’ll save up to 12%.

Online courses through Defensive Driving by IMPROV, the National Safety Council, or the American Safety Council are a good place to start looking for an online defensive driving course. Once you complete an approved course, you can send GEICO proof that you completed the course to gain a defensive driving discount!

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Ask about car insurance discounts

In addition to GEICO’s safe driver and defensive driving discounts, there are quite a few opportunities to qualify for reduced insurance premiums! GEICO has several categories of additional

discounts to apply for

. Here’s a quick overview of some of the discounts offered by GEICO plus the maximum percentage you can save on your monthly bill:

Vehicle Equipment: Air bags (23%), Anti-lock brakes (5%), Anti-theft system (23%), Daytime running lights (3%), New vehicle discount (15%)

Driving History & Habits: Good driver (22%), Seat-belt use (varies)

Driver's Education: Defensive driving (varies), other driver’s education course (varies), Good student discount (15%)

Driver Affiliations: Emergency deployment (25%), Federal employee (12%), Membership and employee (varies), Military discount (15%)

Customer Loyalty: Multi-vehicle (25%), Multi-policy (varies)

You can qualify for multiple discounts, so be sure to talk to your GEICO agent to see which ones you can apply to your insurance policy!

Shop around with other car insurance companies

If all of the above don’t provide enough savings with GEICO, you can always shop around for a new policy. One insurance agency may consider the same information when determining your auto insurance rates, but each company will calculate your premium slightly differently. Calling around to agents or filling out online forms may be tedious, but comparing rates between at least three other providers will give you a good sense of if you’re currently overpaying.

Some questions to ask insurance agents are how much you would pay for a six-month and 12-month premium, what you can expect for a deductible, and the limit of each coverage option that you’re interested in. With this information, you can see pretty easily which insurer will offer you the best rate.

You can also ask your family and friends for recommendations—the customer experience is just as important when comparing insurance companies. If you find a provider that’s better for your insurance needs, offers a better rate, and provides good customer service, that may be the one for you! Or, you may find that GEICO is the best choice for you—for now!

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FAQs

What is the cheapest GEICO auto insurance?

On average, GEICO is one of the most affordable insurance providers in America. Customers with accidents on their driving record or poor credit will most likely find the cheapest rates with GEICO. The cheapest GEICO insurance overall is liability-only coverage, which will vary from state to state.

Can you negotiate your car insurance premium with GEICO?

No. Car insurance is regulated at the state level, which means you can’t negotiate an adjusted price with your provider. However, you can save on your premiums by applying for discounts or increasing your deductible.