Car Insurance Quotes in Philadelphia: What to Have Ready and How to Compare

A car insurance quote is an estimate, not a promise. The Pennsylvania Insurance Department defines it as an estimate of the cost of insurance based on the information supplied to the agent or company, and adds that the amount may change depending on what the insurer finds during underwriting. Two things follow for anyone collecting quotes in Philadelphia: the first number is only as good as the facts behind it, and two quotes can only be compared if they are for the same thing.

This page is about the process: who can quote you, what to have in front of you, the decisions to settle first so that every quote matches, the paperwork Pennsylvania law attaches to a quote, and how a quote turns into coverage without leaving a gap.

Car Insurance Philly does not give quotes. It is a referral service, not an insurer, agent or broker, and it does not advise on coverage. When you call or send the request form, we take your request and connect you with a licensed Pennsylvania insurance agent. A quote comes only from that agent and the insurers the agent can sell, and the about page explains the arrangement.

Who can give you a quote

The Insurance Department describes three ways auto insurance is sold. An independent agent represents several insurance companies and can compare their policies for you. A captive agent represents one company only. And some companies sell directly by phone or online without using agents. One conversation with an independent agent can therefore produce more than one quote, while a captive agent or a direct company gives you one, and you repeat the exercise elsewhere to compare.

Whoever quotes you should be someone you can look up. The car insurance companies in Philadelphia page shows how to confirm a license with the Department before you hand over payment details.

What to have ready before the agent asks

The Insurance Department’s guide lists the basic information to have available on every driver in the household:

• Each driver’s name, age and marital status.
• Each driver’s record: accidents and moving violations.
• An estimate of the miles driven in a year.
• The full vehicle identification number, the VIN.
• The year of the vehicle and what it cost.
• Special equipment, such as antitheft devices and airbags.

Add three things of your own. First, the address where the car is actually garaged, because that is one of the things an insurer takes into consideration for the premium. Second, the declarations page of your current policy if you have one: it shows your coverages, limits, deductibles and the VIN in one place, which makes it easy to ask for a like-for-like price. Third, the name of the lender if the car is financed, since most banks or lenders require collision and comprehensive for a car loan.

Settle these four things first, so every quote matches

The Department’s rule of thumb is to get quotes from at least three companies, and to make sure they are for exactly the same coverages and limits. That only works if you know which coverages you are asking for before the first conversation. Four decisions have to be the same on every quote.

Decision	What to fix in advance	Why it changes the number
Liability limits	The bodily injury and property damage limits you want priced, at or above the state minimums of $15,000, $30,000 and $5,000	A quote at the minimum cannot be compared with one at higher limits. The Department suggests asking what more than the minimum would cost.
Tort option	Full tort or limited tort	The Insurance Department says limited tort can save 40 percent on a few major coverages. Two quotes with different tort options are not the same product.
First party benefits and uninsured motorist coverage	The amount of medical benefits, whether you want income loss benefits, whether you keep uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, at what limits, and stacked or not	Each is optional above the required $5,000 of medical benefits, so each changes what the quote includes.
Coverage for your own car	Collision and comprehensive, yes or no, and the deductible on each	The Department’s guide says that, generally, the higher the deductible, the lower the premium. A $500 deductible and a $1,000 deductible are different quotes.

If you are not sure about any of these, say so and ask the agent to price two versions. This site does not tell you which to pick. The best car insurance in Philadelphia page sets out what the law says about each, and cheap car insurance in Philadelphia explains what each one does to the bill.

Questions worth asking the agent

The agent will ask you questions to decide whether to insure you and at what price. The Insurance Department suggests you ask some back. These are drawn from its list:

• Are these liability limits high enough to cover me if I have an accident and I am at fault?
• How much would it cost me to buy more than the minimum amount of liability coverage?
• How much can I save with a higher deductible?
• What discounts are available, and can I qualify for one if I buy another policy from the same company?
• Will this policy cover me if I let someone else drive my car, or if I have an accident in a rental car?
• If the car is totaled, how is its value set?
• Can I choose any body shop, and does the policy pay for original manufacturer’s parts or aftermarket parts?
• If my car is disabled, will the policy pay for a rental car while it is being repaired, and is there a cap?
• What are the payment options, and is there an extra charge for paying monthly or quarterly?
• What coverage is available if I drive for a company such as Uber or Lyft?

The paperwork Pennsylvania attaches to a quote

A Pennsylvania application comes with notices and forms, several of which the vehicle code spells out word for word. Knowing them makes it easy to see what you are being asked to sign, and to notice if a quote was built on choices you never made.

Document	What it tells you or asks you
Notice of tort options	Describes limited tort and full tort, with the annual premium for the basic required coverage under each. You must sign to choose limited tort. If you sign nothing you are treated as having chosen full tort. A policy may not be issued until you have had the opportunity to choose.
Itemized invoice of minimum coverage	Lists the minimum coverage the state mandates and what it would cost you, with a statement that the law only requires liability and first party medical benefit coverages and that anything more is provided at your request.
Notice of available benefits and limits	Lists what the company must make available, such as medical benefits up to at least $100,000, income loss benefits, and bodily injury limits up to at least $100,000 and $300,000.
Notice of premium discounts	Says that discounts are available for passive restraints, passive antitheft devices and the driver improvement course.
Uninsured and underinsured motorist rejection forms	Signed only if you reject that coverage. Without a valid signed form, the statute treats the coverage as included at the bodily injury limits.
Stacking waiver	Signed only if you give up stacked limits on uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage. The form itself says the premium will be reduced.
Surcharge disclosure plan	Describes what would add a surcharge to your premium, the estimated increase and how many years it lasts. It must be given to you when you apply.

Read each one before signing. The statute says a person who signs the tort notice is bound by the election and is precluded from claiming to have been inadequately informed. The tort option and the uninsured motorist forms change the premium, so check them against what you asked for.

From quote to coverage: application, binder and underwriting

A quote puts nothing in force. Coverage comes from a policy, or from a binder, which the Insurance Department defines as a short-term agreement that provides temporary coverage until the policy can be issued or delivered. PennDOT accepts a copy of a valid binder issued by an insurance company licensed to sell motor vehicle liability insurance in Pennsylvania as proof of insurance. Ask the agent for the date and time coverage begins, and get it in writing.

Then comes underwriting. The Department describes it as the initial 60-day time frame in which the company processes and investigates the information on your application, and says the results determine acceptability and the premium. This is the stage at which a quote can change. A violation that was not mentioned, a driver in the household who was left off, or a garaging address that turns out to be different can each change the result.

The Department’s guide puts the responsibility plainly: you are ultimately responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the information on your application. Giving every company the same full facts at the start is what keeps the quotes comparable and the price from moving.

When the policy arrives, look at the declarations page. It carries the insurer’s full legal name, your name and address, the policy number, the effective and expiration dates, the premium, the coverages and deductibles, the vehicles and their VINs. Check it against the quote. The Department’s guide says to keep your proof-of-insurance card in your car at all times.

Switching companies without a gap

If a quote persuades you to change insurers, the dates matter. PennDOT counts a lapse from the date the old policy was canceled, so the new policy has to be in force by then for there to be no gap. A lapse of less than 31 days brings no suspension only if you prove the car was not driven during it. Otherwise a lapse brings a three-month registration suspension, and the car insurance in Philadelphia page sets out those rules.

Expect a letter. PennDOT explains that insurance companies are required to notify it when a policy is canceled, by you or by the insurer, but are not required to notify it when you take out a new one. It therefore sends a proof letter asking you to verify that new insurance is in place, and failing to respond results in suspension of the registration. The Insurance Department notes that PennDOT’s requests for proof are often related to switching auto insurance.

PennDOT says proof of the new insurance can be entered on its website, emailed, faxed or mailed to its Financial Responsibility Unit in Harrisburg. Its page on its insurance letters covers each situation, including what to send if the same company reinstated the policy.

How you pay changes the total

Two quotes with the same premium can cost different amounts over a year. The Department’s guide flags three things to ask about.

• The policy term. The most common terms are six months and one year. A policy sold for less than a year may ask for less money up front, but it is priced again at the end of the term. A company can only non-renew you on the annual anniversary of when the policy was first written, even if the term is shorter.
• Installment fees. Many companies let you pay over time, sometimes for an extra fee. The guide says to find out the installment fees.
• Premium finance. A premium finance company lends you the premium for a fee. The monthly payments may be easier, but the total could be larger, and the finance agreement often includes a limited power of attorney that gives the finance company some authority over the termination of your policy.

Once you are covered, the payment dates matter. Pennsylvania law does not require companies to extend a grace period, so an insurer that has not received the premium by the due date can cancel the policy.

Why two Philadelphia quotes for the same car can be far apart

Insurers submit their own rate filings to the Insurance Department, which counts more than 200 insurers in the state’s personal auto market, and the Department’s guide says cost can vary significantly among companies. In Philadelphia the address adds another layer. The Philadelphia Inquirer’s analysis of the data insurers report to the state shows the city in more than one zone, with West, South and Center City Philadelphia reported separately from the Northeast and Northwest. A car garaged in Point Breeze and the same car garaged in Bustleton may not be priced alike, and two companies may not treat either address the same way.

That is the case for collecting more than one quote, and for giving each company the real address. It is also why no website can state your premium in advance.

Signs that a quote is not what it seems

• A firm price given before anyone has asked about the drivers, the VIN or the address.
• A quote that is lower because it uses limited tort, leaves out uninsured motorist coverage or raises the deductible beyond what you asked for.
• Pressure to pay before you have seen the tort notice and the itemized invoice.
• Someone who will not give a name and a license you can look up with the Insurance Department.
• A promise that you are covered with no binder, policy number or ID card to show for it.
• A request to state an address where the car is not kept.

If something looks wrong, the Insurance Department’s Consumer Services Bureau takes questions and complaints through the portal linked from its complaints and help page.

Questions and answers