Do You Qualify for a Progressive Defensive Driving Discount or Other Available Discounts?

The average cost of car insurance will vary depending on where you live, your driving history, the type of vehicle you want to insure, and more. But regardless of these factors, the overall cost can range from hundreds to thousands of dollars per year.

Fortunately, many popular insurance companies offer different types of discounts to help decrease your premiums. In this article, you’ll learn about the Progressive defensive driving discount, as well as other discounts that Progressive offers. This can help you save on your Progressive policy if you qualify for any of these discounts.

What is a defensive driving discount?

A defensive driving discount may vary between the best car insurance companies, but it typically applies after you’ve taken certain driver safety courses. For example, if you take a defensive driving course through your state’s DMV or another accredited organization, you could qualify for a defensive driving discount from your car insurance provider.

Defensive driving courses are often available online or in person. The course materials may cover your state’s traffic laws and violations, types of alcohol- and drug-related offenses, defensive driving tips, tips on how to avoid accidents, and how to develop safe-driving behaviors. You might also need to pass an exam to get credit for completing the course.

Once you get completion credit for the defensive driving course, be sure to send over the necessary proof to your insurance provider to get your discount. Keep in mind that this discount may not be available for everyone, as availability can vary by state and insurance provider. Check with your insurance provider before taking the course to see whether it offers a defensive driving discount.

How to get a Progressive defensive driving discount

Each state has different rules and guidelines, so the process for getting a Progressive defensive driving discount may vary depending on where you live. In some states, this type of discount may not be available at all, whereas other states might restrict the discount to older adults. Defensive driving discounts are commonly available in many states for adults aged 55 or older.

To check whether a Progressive defensive driving discount is available in your state, call Progressive at 855-266-8485 to speak with an agent. They can let you know if the discount is available and what the requirements are. As part of the process, you’ll typically need to take and pass an eligible defensive driving course and email your completion certificate to Progressive in order to get this type of discount.

The potential discount offered by Progressive will likely vary, but this type of discount often runs between 5 and 15% on your coverage.

What other discounts does Progressive offer?

Progressive customers don’t have to solely rely on getting a Progressive defensive driving discount to save money on its policies. If you know how car insurance works, you’ll know that insurers often have multiple discounts available. In addition to its defensive driving discount, Progressive also offers these auto insurance discounts:

• Automatic payment
• Continuous insurance
• Distant student
• Good student
• Homeowner
• Multi-policy
• Multi-car
• Online quote
• Paperless
• Pay in full
• Sign online
• Snapshot
• Teen driver

Automatic payment

If you set up automatic payments for your car insurance premiums using a credit card or checking account, Progressive may give you a discount on your policy

Note: This discount can’t be combined with a pay-in-full discount.

Continuous insurance

If you switch to Progressive from another insurance provider, Progressive might offer you a discount based on how long you’ve been continuously insured.

Distant student

If you have a 22-year-old or younger full-time student on your policy who lives more than 100 miles away from your home and doesn’t have a vehicle at school, you might be able to qualify for this discount.

Good student

This student discount might apply if you have a full-time student on your policy who maintains a B-grade average or better.

Homeowner

If you own a home, whether it’s insured through Progressive or not, you could potentially qualify for this car insurance discount.

Multi-policy

Multi-policy, or bundling, discounts are often available when you have two or more policies with the same insurance provider. With Progressive, this could mean you bundle your auto and renters insurance policies, auto with motorcycle, or any other number of combinations.

Multi-car

If you have more than one vehicle on your Progressive auto policy, you might qualify for this discount.

Online quote

Getting a Progressive quote online or over the phone with a licensed Progressive agent might make you eligible for this discount.

Paperless

Choosing to receive your policy documents by email instead of through the traditional mail service could qualify you for this discount.

Note: This discount may depend on you signing your policy documents online.

Pay in full

You could receive this discount when you pay for your policy up front and in full. Most insurance policies are paid on a monthly basis, but taking this route combines all your monthly premiums together and immediately gets them out of the way.

Sign online

If you don’t mind signing your policy documents online, Progressive might offer you this discount. It’s as simple as that.

Snapshot

If you know what a safe driver discount is, this is the Progressive version. Snapshot might reward you for good driving habits and safe driving behavior by monitoring you while you drive. It does not use a camera to monitor your driving habits; instead, it uses a device or mobile app that tracks different types of activity in the car, such as accelerations, driving late at night, and texting.

If you follow Snapshot’s guidelines, you could potentially qualify for a bigger discount. Progressive says the average Snapshot user saves $145 per year on their car insurance policy.

Teen driver

If you have a teen (18 years or younger) on your policy, you could potentially qualify for this discount.

Other tips for lowering the cost of your car insurance

If you want additional savings apart from a defensive driving discount, consider other ways to save money on car insurance. This doesn’t have to involve discounts at all and might include your driving record activity or specific policies from different car insurance companies.

Here are a few ways to help lower the cost of your car insurance:

• Drive safe and legally. Being involved in car accidents and getting ticketed for traffic violations are things that stick to your driving record and are visible to car insurance companies. If you avoid accidents and tickets, you’re likely to pay less on your insurance premiums.
• Look for accident forgiveness. Certain insurance providers have an accident forgiveness policy where your rates won’t go up if an accident claim doesn’t cost more than a certain amount or you’ve been a loyal customer, accident-free, and without tickets for a few consecutive years.
• Shop around. If you think you can find better rates elsewhere, shop around and compare car insurance quotes. Every insurance provider wants your business, so it’s in their best interests to offer you the best rates they can.
• Negotiate a better rate. If you don’t want to switch providers, use an online marketplace to compare quotes from other car insurance companies. If you find lower rates, use that information to negotiate a better rate with your current provider.
• Consider your coverage. You might not need all the insurance coverage you currently have. Be sure to check your coverage limits and the different types of coverage you have to see whether you can reduce your coverage but still feel safe and comfortable with your policy. Getting a higher car insurance deductible is one change you can make that could lower your monthly premiums.
• Change your vehicle. If you drive a car that costs more to insure, going with a different option might save you money. Sports cars and other types of high-end vehicles often come with higher insurance premiums.

FAQs

The bottom line

If you want to save money on your Progressive car insurance policy, consider the many discounts Progressive offers. You could have plenty to choose from depending on where you live, including a defensive driving discount, homeowner discount, and multi-policy discount. In addition, safe driving behavior and Progressive’s accident forgiveness policies can help lower your rates even more.

Remember to frequently check rates from other car insurance companies as well. Even if you don’t plan on switching insurance providers, you might be able to negotiate a better deal with Progressive.

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