Cut Your Auto Insurance Rates by Telecommuting

Is there a link between discounts on car insurance and working from home? One of the challenges of living within a budget is finding affordable insurance rates. There are a number of factors that may qualify you for discounts or other incentives from your insurance provider, and knowing them can help you to save money.

One of the factors insurance companies consider is how much mileage you put on your car. So if you’re buying car insurance while working from home, you may find out that you qualify for a low-mileage car insurance rate now that you’re telecommuting. 

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So if your yearly commute to work is shorter than average, either because of short distance or a lower number of trips into the office you may get a discount. 

Can’t wait to find your cheaper telecommuting auto insurance premiums? For affordable auto insurance for telecommuters, enter your ZIP code into our FREE online tool above and get multiple auto insurance quotes so you’ll know how much you might pay for auto insurance.

How can telecommuting save money on auto insurance?

More driving means more risk. Less time on the road translates into less risk. So there is a direct correlation between annual mileage and insurance rates. In fact, low mileage discounts average around 18%, and most insurance companies are offering some sort of low-mileage relief. These are the scenarios that may result in savings:

• Telecommuting for work and/or school. If you are working or attending school remotely, you will spend very little time on the road, and you’ll be putting very little mileage on your car. 
• Occasional commuting. You may still physically commute to work or school, but you may not commute daily. Perhaps you connect remotely on some days, and on other days you have to go into the office or class. 
• Traveling home on the weekends. Maybe you commute just once weekly, staying overnight near to where you work or go to school. This would result in lower annual mileage and time spent on the road.
• Shorter than average commutes. Your daily commute may be shorter than average. Depending on the insurance company, according to KBB, a low-mileage commute is less than 20 miles each way or less than 7,000 miles annually.

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If you’re asking yourself, ‘Should I tell my car insurance I work from home,’ the answer is Yes. Even if you don’t work from home all the time, insurance rates for the occasional driver are lower too. 

Low mileage discounts are not the only way to save by telecommuting. You may also consider: 

• Pay-per-mile rates. Although the specifics vary from company to company, pay-per-mile insurance means the company charges you a low base rate and then an additional fee per mile you drive.
• Usage-based insurance. Usage-based insurance goes much farther than just factoring in mileage. These programs put a device in your vehicle or an app on your phone to track mileage, braking force, speeding, and other driving behavior that can impact your risk factor and increase or decrease your rates accordingly.

Take a look at this table to learn more about which of the major companies currently offer this type of insurance discount.

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As you can see when you look at the data, we only have the discount percentage information for a few of the companies that offer this type of discount.

Not only do these factors offer possible savings, but they put you in control of your rates and offer you flexibility.

See more details about pay-per-mile programs currently on the market in the table below.

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Saving on Car Insurance and Working from Home

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There are many factors insurance companies consider when offering low-mileage discounts and other vehicle-usage incentives. Lower mileage rates can be as little as 3% lower than the standard, or as much as 30%, depending on the company. The lower mileage rate is usually around 18% less expensive than standard mileage car insurance. 

To help you estimate how much you might save on auto insurance by telecommuting, take a look at the data in the table below, which shows how your commute can affect your auto insurance rates, all else being equal.

As you can see, commuting has some effect on rates, especially if you live in one of the areas with the most expensive commutes. On average, longer commutes mean rates that are about 2.33 percent higher than shorter commutes. Though, as we mentioned above, different companies handle commute-based rates differently.

Telecommuting Is a Great Way to Cut Your Rates 

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According to recent statistics from Findstack, 85% of managers believe that remote work is the new norm. So if you’re interested in reducing your insurance rates, either by telecommuting or reducing your daily commute, ask your employer if this is an option. After all, most remote workers also believe they are more productive working from home. 

Once you’ve established yourself in a home office reach out to check your insurance rates. Even if your insurance company doesn’t offer a specific discount for telecommuting, you can still save money if you are driving less often.

Don’t wait to get the best telecommuting auto insurance rates. Simply enter your ZIP code into our FREE quote tool below to get started.

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