SEATTLE -- Car insurance is costly. According to Insurance.com, rates rose at a record pace in 2008 -- up about 8 percent nation-wide. The market has stabilized, even dropped a bit recently. But the average person pays about $1,800 for auto insurance these days. That can really put a dent in your budget. A new survey shows many people around here could dramatically lower their premium and still get top-quality claims service. When it comes to insurance, you want a company that charges a low premium and gives you top-notch service. You want to know they're both in your corner if you have an accident. And it turns out, you can have both. Every auto insurance company claims to have great rates. But the fact is there are dramatic differences. A recent survey by Puget Sound Consumers' CHECKBOOK magazine confirms that. "People can save a tremendous amount of money on auto insurance. Most people will save $300 or $400 and some will save a thousand dollars or more," said Robert Krughoff, president of CHECKBOOK magazine. "It just makes sense to shop around tomorrow and find an auto insurance company that gives you better rates and start saving that $500 or $1,000 immediately and I you chose the right company, getting top quality service.CHECKBOOK shopped for a married couple living in Seattle. The two were both in their mid 30s and owned two cars. Both had excellent credit and no accidents or traffic violations in the past five years. The average price for the same basic coverage was $1,557. Progressive was the cheapest at $1,130. The Hartford/AARP was the most expensive at $2,196. The price is only one factor when buying auto insurance. CHECKBOOK surveyed owners of local body shops and asked them this question: which company would you want to insure your vehicle. "Because these body shop owners see it all the time, which companies they have to fight, fight, fight to get just minimal repairs done and which companies will just do what needs to be done," said Krughoff. The body shop owners gave high marks to USAA, State Farm, Pemco, Mutual of Enumclaw, Grange and Amica Mutual. At the bottom of the list is Progressive. "Progressive tend to have fairly good rates, but in terms of what the body shop owners aid about whether they would want ot be insured by different companies, progressive came in very low on that front," Krughoff said. Progressive hasn't seen the survey, but a company spokesperson told me, "We work with thousands of independent body shops all around the country every day and our own surveys show we have very good relationships with these shops."The companies rated the highest in the CHECKBOOK survey of policy holders were Amica Mutual, Grange, Mutual of Enumclaw, PEMCO and USAA.A common misconception is that you have to wait for your policy term to end before you switch insurance companies. "You can change immediately," Krughoff said. "You can change companies any time you want. And supposed you've already paid in advance for a year of 10 months or something. The company you're leaving will give you that money back and you just go on with the new company."And there several other factors that can help you save -- increasing your deductible, for instance. "Take a $1,000 deductible if you can live with a $1,000 loss because that might save you a couple of hundred dollars a year in your premium. And on average, you're never going to make that up on claims," Krughoff said. You can also have your car and home insured by the same company, and make sure they know that. Get a multiple-car discount if you have two or more vehicles. And ask about good driver rates if no one in the family has had a serious accident or traffic violations in three years or more. If your son or daughter goes to college and won't be driving, that should lower your rate. You may even get a discount if you used to park your car on the street and now park in a garage. Maybe you're driving less because of a chance in your employment situation. Fewer miles means lower risk, especially if you're not on the road during morning or afternoon commute. If you find yourself in this situation, tell your insurance company. You should qualify for a discount
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