If you want to save the most money, the best way to find discount auto insurance rates in Irvine is to make a habit of comparing prices annually from different companies that insure vehicles in California.
- Step 1: Learn about how auto insurance works and the modifications you can make to prevent expensive coverage. Many risk factors that increase rates like accidents, traffic violations, and a substandard credit score can be amended by making lifestyle changes or driving safer.
- Step 2: Compare rates from exclusive agents, independent agents, and direct providers. Exclusive and direct companies can only give rate quotes from one company like GEICO or Farmers Insurance, while independent agents can quote prices from many different companies.
- Step 3: Compare the new rates to your existing coverage to see if a cheaper price is available. If you can save some money and switch companies, make sure the effective date of the new policy is the same as the expiration date of the old one.
- Step 4: Provide written notification to your current company to cancel the current policy and submit a signed application and payment to the newly selected company. When you receive it, store the proof of insurance paperwork above your visor, in the console, or in the glove compartment.
The most important part of shopping around is to try to compare the same coverage limits and deductibles on each quote and and to compare as many companies as you can. This enables a fair rate comparison and plenty of rates choose from.
It goes without saying that insurance companies want to keep your business as long as possible. Drivers who get price comparisons will probably buy a different policy because there is a good chance of finding discount prices. A recent survey revealed that people who routinely compared rates saved as much as $850 each year as compared to drivers who never compared prices.
If finding budget-friendly rates on insurance in Irvine is your objective, then learning a little about the best ways to shop for insurance coverage can help simplify the process.
The are a couple different ways to get quotes from companies that offer insurance in California. The best way to find competitive insurance rates consists of obtaining rate quotes online.
Just keep in mind that more quotes provides better odds of finding the best rates. Some smaller insurers do not give price estimates online, so you should also compare price estimates from the smaller companies as well.
The following companies can provide price quotes in California. If you wish to find cheaper car insurance in California, it’s a good idea that you visit two to three different companies to find the most affordable auto insurance rates.
Audi A8 insurance coverage information
The rate information shown next showcases estimates of insurance costs for Audi A8 models. Having a good understanding how insurance quotes are calculated can help guide drivers when making smart choices when comparing insurance rates.
| Model | Comp | Collision | Liability | Medical | UM/UIM | Annual Premium | Monthly Premium |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A8 4.2 Quattro 4-Dr Sedan | $362 | $778 | $500 | $30 | $150 | $1,820 | $152 |
| A8 4.2L Quattro 4-Dr Sedan | $392 | $860 | $500 | $30 | $150 | $1,932 | $161 |
| Get Your Own Custom Quote Go | |||||||
Data assumes single female driver age 50, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $500 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, multi-policy, homeowner, safe-driver, and claim-free. Price information does not factor in specific Irvine garaging location which can affect insurance rates substantially.
The chart below highlights how deductible selection and can influence Audi A8 insurance costs for each age group. The premiums assume a married male driver, full coverage, and no discounts are factored in.
Insurance rate increases from tickets or accidents
The illustration below shows how violations and at-fault accidents can increase Audi A8 insurance premiums for different age groups of insureds. The rates are based on a married female driver, comprehensive and collision coverage, $1,000 deductibles, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
Audi A8 insurance rates: Men versus women
The diagram below illustrates the difference between Audi A8 yearly insurance costs for male and female drivers. The rates are based on no violations or claims, comprehensive and collision coverage, $100 deductibles, single status, and no discounts are applied.
Rate comparison of full coverage and liability-only
The example below shows the comparison of Audi A8 car insurance costs with full coverage compared to only the California minimum liability coverage. The premiums are based on no violations or accidents, $100 deductibles, drivers are not married, and no policy discounts are applied.
Should you buy full coverage or liability only?
There is no exact formula to delete physical damage coverage, but there is a broad guideline. If the yearly cost for physical damage coverage is more than about 10% of the settlement you would receive from your company, then you might want to consider buying only liability coverage.
For example, let’s say your Audi A8 settlement value is $8,000 and you have $1,000 deductibles. If your vehicle is destroyed, you would only receive $7,000 after paying the physical damage deductible. If you are paying in excess of $700 a year for full coverage, then you may need to consider dropping full coverage.
There are some circumstances where dropping physical damage coverage is not a good plan. If you still owe money on your vehicle, you have to carry full coverage to protect the lienholder’s interest. Also, if your savings is not enough to buy a different vehicle in the even your car is totaled, you should not opt for liability only.
Car insurance is an important decision
Despite the high insurance cost for a Audi A8 in Irvine, car insurance is a good idea for several reasons.
- Almost all states have minimum mandated liability insurance limits which means state laws require a specific level of liability in order to drive the car. 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 have a loan on your A8, more than likely the lender will force you to have insurance to ensure the loan is repaid in case of a total loss. If you cancel or allow the policy to lapse, the bank will be required to insure your Audi at an extremely high rate and force you to reimburse them much more than you were paying before.
- Car insurance preserves not only your Audi A8 but also your assets. It will also pay for many types of medical costs for not only you but also any passengers injured in an accident. Liability coverage, the one required by state law, also covers legal expenses if you are named as a defendant in an auto accident. If damage is caused by hail or an accident, collision and comprehensive (also known as other-than-collision) coverage will cover the repair costs.
The benefits of buying car insurance more than cancel out the cost, especially with large liability claims. Despite what companies tell you, the average driver overpays more than $820 a year so it’s important to compare rates at every renewal to ensure rates are competitive.
Auto insurance discounts help lower rates for Audi A8 insurance in Irvine
Insurance can be prohibitively expensive, but you may find discounts to cut the cost considerably. Some of these discounts will be visible when you quote, but a few must be asked for prior to getting the savings.
- Discount for Life Insurance – Larger companies have a discount if you purchase a life policy as well.
- Telematics Devices – Insureds who allow data collection to track their driving habits by installing a telematics device such as Progressive’s Snapshot might get better premium rates if their driving habits are good.
- Own a Home – Owning your own home or condo may earn you a small savings because of the fact that having a home is proof of financial responsibility.
- Defensive Driving Course – Taking time to complete a course that instructs on driving safety is a good idea and can lower rates and easily recoup the cost of the course.
- New Car Discount – Adding a new car to your policy may earn a small discount due to better safety requirements for new model year vehicles.
- Waiver for an Accident – Not really a discount, but a few companies such as Progressive, Allstate, and Liberty Mutual will let one accident slide without getting socked with a rate hike so long as you are claim-free before the accident.
- More Vehicles More Savings – Buying a policy with multiple vehicles on a single policy could earn a price break for each car.
- Government Employee Discount – Employees or retirees of the government could provide a small rate reduction but check with your company.
- Low Mileage – Maintaining low annual mileage can earn substantially lower premium rates.
- Club Memberships – Joining qualifying clubs or civic groups is a good way to get lower rates on your next auto insurance statement.
As a disclaimer on discounts, many deductions do not apply to all coverage premiums. A few only apply to the cost of specific coverages such as liability and collision coverage. Just because it seems like all the discounts add up to a free policy, companies wouldn’t make money that way.
The example below compares Audi A8 car insurance rates with and without discounts. The premium estimates are based on a male driver, a clean driving record, no claims, California state minimum liability limits, full physical damage coverage, and $1,000 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The second shows the rates with safe-driver, multi-policy, claim-free, homeowner, multi-car, and marriage discounts applied.
Popular auto insurance companies and their offered discounts can be found below.
- GEICO may include discounts for multi-policy, membership and employees, good student, five-year accident-free, and anti-lock brakes.
- USAA includes discounts for good student, new vehicle, multi-policy, vehicle storage, and military installation.
- Progressive offers premium reductions for multi-vehicle, online signing, online quote discount, multi-policy, and good student.
- American Family offers discounts including Steer into Savings, multi-vehicle, good driver, mySafetyValet, TimeAway discount, and air bags.
- Esurance may have discounts that include defensive driver, Pac-12 alumni, homeowner, online shopper, multi-policy, and good student.
- Farmers Insurance has discounts for mature driver, teen driver, alternative fuel, electronic funds transfer, homeowner, bundle discounts, and good student.
- State Farm policyholders can earn discounts including driver’s education, multiple autos, passive restraint, defensive driving training, and safe vehicle.
Before you buy a policy, ask every company to give you their best rates. Some of the discounts discussed earlier might not be available to policyholders in your area. To find companies with significant discounts in California, click here.
When to have guidance from an insurance agency
A small number of people still like to sit down with an agent and that is a personal choice. One of the benefits of price shopping on the web is you may find lower prices and also buy local. And providing support for local insurance agencies is still important in Irvine.
For easy comparison, once you complete this form (opens in new window), your coverage information is instantly submitted to companies in Irvine who can give free rate quotes for your coverage. You never need to find an agent on your own due to the fact that quote results will go to you instantly. You can find lower rates and work with a local agent. If you need to get a price quote for a specific company, you can always visit that company’s website and give them your coverage information.
If you want to use a reliable insurance agent, you must know there are a couple different agency structures and how they differ in how they quote coverages. Agents in Irvine can be classified as either independent agents or exclusive agents.
Independent Insurance Agencies
Agents that choose to be independent are not employed by any specific company so they can insure your vehicles with multiple insurance companies depending on which coverage is best. If your agent finds better pricing, your policy is moved internally and you don’t have to do anything.
When comparison shopping, you will want to get rate quotes from at least one independent agent so that you can do a thorough price comparison. A lot of them also have access to companies that do not advertise much that may have much lower rates than larger companies.
The following is a short list of independent agencies in Irvine that may be able to give pricing information.
- Willis Insurance Services of CA Inc
18101 Von Karman Ave # 600 – Irvine, CA 92612 – (949) 885-1200 – View Map - Isu Insurance Services Irvine
18022 Cowan Ste 225 – Irvine, CA 92614 – (949) 419-2100 – View Map - AIS | Auto Insurance Specialists | Irvine
16969 Von Karman Ave #100 – Irvine, CA 92606 – (949) 660-7061 – View Map
Exclusive Insurance Agencies
These agents normally can only provide a single company’s rates and examples are Farmers Insurance and State Farm. They usually cannot compare other company’s rates so they really need to provide good service. Exclusive insurance agents are usually quite knowledgeable on what they offer which helps them sell on service rather than price. Consumers sometimes buy from exclusive agents mainly due to the brand legacy and solid financial strength.
The following is a list of exclusive insurance agents in Irvine that can give you price quotes.
- John Luithly – State Farm Insurance Agent
16277 Laguna Canyon Rd F – Irvine, CA 92618 – (949) 727-4442 – View Map - Sharon Leung – State Farm Insurance Agent
18004 Sky Park Cir #250 – Irvine, CA 92614 – (949) 252-0900 – View Map - State Farm: Richard Tay
14210 Culver Dr A – Irvine, CA 92604 – (949) 559-8866 – View Map
Selecting an auto insurance agent requires you to look at more than just the premium amount. Before buying a policy in Irvine, get answers to these questions.
- Will they take your side in the event of a claim?
- What insurance companies do they recommend if they are an independent agent?
- Does their agency support local causes in Irvine?
- Is there a local claims center in Irvine?
- If your car is in the repair shop, do you have coverage for a rental car?
Once you have received reasonable responses to any questions you have and the cheapest Audi A8 insurance in Irvine quotes, you have narrowed it down to an insurance agent that can be relied on to provide insurance coverage.
Car insurance company ratings
Insuring your vehicle with a good quality car insurance company can be a challenge considering how many companies sell coverage in Irvine. The company ratings below can help you pick which auto insurers to look at comparing rate quotes with.
Top 10 Irvine Car Insurance Companies by A.M. Best Rank
- USAA – A++
- Travelers – A++
- State Farm – A++
- GEICO – A++
- Esurance – A+
- Nationwide – A+
- Allstate – A+
- Mercury Insurance – A+
- Progressive – A+
- Titan Insurance – A+
Top 10 Irvine 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
Auto insurance policy coverages for an Audi A8
Understanding the coverages of your auto insurance policy helps when choosing appropriate coverage and the correct deductibles and limits. The coverage terms in a policy can be ambiguous and coverage can change by endorsement.
Collision – Collision coverage pays for damage to your A8 from colliding with another vehicle or an object, but not an animal. You will need to pay your deductible and the rest of the damage will be paid by collision coverage.
Collision insurance covers claims such as sustaining damage from a pot hole, crashing into a ditch and hitting a parking meter. Collision is rather expensive coverage, so consider dropping it from lower value vehicles. Drivers also have the option to bump up the deductible on your A8 in order to get cheaper collision rates.
Coverage for uninsured or underinsured drivers – Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist coverage provides protection from other drivers when they either have no liability insurance or not enough. This coverage pays for hospital bills for your injuries as well as damage to your Audi A8.
Since many California drivers only carry the minimum required liability limits (California limits are 15/30/5), their liability coverage can quickly be exhausted. That’s why carrying high Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage is a good idea. Frequently your uninsured/underinsured motorist coverages are set the same as your liability limits.
Coverage for medical expenses – Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and medical payments coverage reimburse you for bills for things like nursing services, dental work and ambulance fees. They are used to fill the gap from your health insurance policy or if you are not covered by health insurance. Coverage applies to both the driver and occupants as well as any family member struck as a pedestrian. Personal injury protection coverage is not universally available but can be used in place of medical payments coverage
Comprehensive auto insurance – This coverage will pay to fix damage OTHER than collision with another vehicle or object. A deductible will apply then the remaining damage will be covered by your comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive coverage protects against claims such as hitting a bird, fire damage, hail damage, a broken windshield and damage from flooding. The most you can receive from a comprehensive claim is the cash value of the vehicle, so if your deductible is as high as the vehicle’s value it’s not worth carrying full coverage.
Liability car insurance – This coverage provides protection from damages or injuries you inflict on other’s property or people that is your fault. This insurance protects YOU from legal claims by others, and doesn’t cover your injuries or vehicle damage.
It consists of three limits, per person bodily injury, per accident bodily injury, and a property damage limit. Your policy might show values of 15/30/5 which means a $15,000 limit per person for injuries, a limit of $30,000 in injury protection per accident, and property damage coverage for $5,000. Another option is a combined single limit or CSL which combines the three limits into one amount and claims can be made without the split limit restrictions.
Liability insurance covers claims such as structural damage, bail bonds, medical expenses, repair bills for other people’s vehicles and funeral expenses. How much coverage you buy is a personal decision, but consider buying higher limits if possible. California state law requires minimum liability limits of 15/30/5 but you should think about purchasing higher limits.
The illustration below demonstrates why buying minimum limits may not be high enough to adequately cover claims.
Cheaper auto insurance rates are out there
As you go through the steps to switch your coverage, it’s not a good idea to buy poor coverage just to save money. There are a lot of situations where an insured cut comprehensive coverage or liability limits only to regret at claim time they didn’t have enough coverage. Your aim should be to find the BEST coverage at the best cost.
Budget-conscious Audi A8 insurance is possible from both online companies in addition to local insurance agencies, so get free Irvine car insurance quotes from both of them to get a complete price analysis. A few companies may not provide online quoting and usually these regional carriers prefer to sell through independent insurance agents.
You just read a lot of techniques to compare Audi A8 insurance premium rates in Irvine. The key thing to remember is the more rate comparisons you have, the better chance you’ll have of finding the cheapest Audi A8 rate quotes. Consumers may even find the most savings is with a company that doesn’t do a lot of advertising.
Additional information
- Uninsured Motorist Statistics (Insurance Information Institute)
- Who Has Cheap Irvine Auto Insurance for Ride Shares? (FAQ)
- Who Has the Cheapest Irvine Auto Insurance for Drivers with a Bad Driving Record? (FAQ)
- Who Has the Cheapest Irvine Auto Insurance Quotes for a Honda Civic? (FAQ)
- Can I Drive Legally without Insurance? (Insurance Information Institute)
- Side Impact Crash Tests (iihs.org)