Car insurance renewal is often automatic, but if your rate has gone up, your coverage needs have changed or you’re looking for savings, you should consider your options. We at the MarketWatch Guides team will explain how car insurance renewal works, as well as the differences between nonrenewal and cancellation. We’ll also give our recommendations for the best car insurance if you want to shop around.
Key Takeaways:
Compare Car Insurance Rates
Answer a few simple questions to save money on your policy
Check Availability With our comparison partner, 
×
Compare Car Insurance Rates
Get matched with a top provider and compare instant quotes in just a few clicks
With our comparison partner, 
Learn more about our methodology and editorial guidelines.
How Do You Renew Your Auto Insurance Policy?
Most insurance companies offer an automatic renewal option when the policy period ends, which is usually every six or 12 months. A provider that does will typically mail or email you a renewal notice about a month before your policy expires. Your rate or other terms may change, so look over your new ID cards and read the new policy documents before the renewal date.
What Happens If I Don’t Renew My Policy?
If your car policy expires, you might still be able to renew it. Do this as soon as possible, because a lapse in coverage can cause you to have increased rates once you’re insured again.
If you get into a car accident while your coverage is lapsed and you injure someone or damage property, you’ll have to pay any expenses out of pocket. The same applies if your car is damaged by a natural calamity like a flood or another situation out of your control.Your insurance company might be willing to reinstate your policy after you let your coverage lapse, but you’ll likely be charged a penalty. If you can’t renew, buy a new policy.
Car Insurance Cancellation vs. Nonrenewal
There are key differences between cancellation and nonrenewal of an insurance policy. The main one is that nonrenewal happens at the end of a policy term, but cancellation can happen at any time.
How Cancellation Works
Generally, insurance companies can’t cancel your policy if it’s been in effect for more than 60 days. These exceptions could apply:
- Your driver’s license gets suspended or revoked
- You don’t pay the premium
- You’ve misrepresented yourself
- You’ve committed fraud
- You were diagnosed with medical problems that could interfere with driving
If your policy gets canceled, try contacting the company to ask for reinstatement. Depending on the reason for cancellation, such as missing your payment within a grace period, you may be in luck. Your insurer might reinstate your policy, possibly with a higher premium.
What Happens If I Cancel My Car Insurance?
If you cancel your car insurance, you’ll usually get a prorated refund for any time you’ve paid ahead. But depending on your provider, you should be prepared for a short-rate cancellation. This type of cancellation discourages a customer from ending their policy before the expiration date because it entitles the insurance company to keep a greater percentage of the unearned premium amount.
How Nonrenewal Works
Nonrenewal happens when you or the insurer decide not to renew your policy. Some states require your insurance company to explain why it isn’t renewing your policy and to notify you about the decision within a certain amount of time.
If you’re unhappy with the provider’s decision, contact its consumer affairs division and your state’s insurance department.
An insurer might decline to renew your coverage for several reasons, such as these:
- Missed payments
- DUI
- Traffic violations
- Multiple claims
- The company offering fewer types of insurance
- The company reducing its service area
If you’ve missed payments, the company may only have to give you 10 to 20 days’ notice for nonrenewal. For circ*mstances out of your control, you’ll typically get at least 30 days’ notice. The amount of time required for notice of nonrenewal varies by state.
How To Decline Renewing Your Car Insurance Policy
To opt out of renewing your car insurance policy, follow these steps:
- To avoid a lapse in coverage, buy a new policy that takes effect one or two days before your current policy expires.
- Contact your current insurance provider to cancel.
- Confirm that the policy will expire when your current term ends.
- Get confirmation of the cancellation in writing to protect yourself in case you get charged for a new term.
When Should You Not Renew Your Policy?
Though you can switch car insurance companies at any point, the policy renewal period can be a good time to do it. Here are some reasons to consider getting car insurance from a different provider:
- Your premium has increased
- You want coverage your company doesn’t offer
- Your credit has improved
- You’re unhappy with your current provider’s customer service
- You want discounts your insurance company doesn’t offer
Before switching, check with your insurer to see what it can do for you. If the company doesn’t offer good enough coverage or rates, find another provider that’s willing to work with you.
How Do You Lower Your Car Insurance Premium?
Higher rates are the main reasons drivers don’t renew their car insurance policies. You may be able to reduce your car insurance premium if you choose to renew your policy. Along with paying your premium in full, you can lower your coverage costs by taking advantage of your company’s car insurance discounts.
You can also save money on your auto insurance by taking these steps:
- Shopping around for a better rate
- Getting a policy with a company that offers accident forgiveness for free
- Setting a high deductible for car insurance claims
- Dropping nonessential coverage
- Reducing coverage if you have an older car
- Bundling your insurance policies
- Taking a driver safety class
- Building or maintaining good credit
- Earning a no-claims bonus (NCB) by avoiding claims in the latest policy term
Usage-Based Car Insurance
Telematics insurance may also lower your premium. This usage-based coverage monitors your driving habits and rewards good habits with a discounted premium. However, some companies’ usage-based programs can raise rates for people who practice unsafe driving behaviors.
Why Did Your Car Insurance Rates Go Up?
Your premium is determined by factors like the type of car you drive and the types of coverage you have. Premiums tend to increase if you’ve been involved in a car accident or gotten several traffic violations. Your rate may also go up if you’ve done any of the following:
- Moved to a new ZIP code
- Driven more frequently
- Turned 55 years old
- Gotten divorced
- Bought a newer car
- Added a young driver to your policy
Even if you have a great driving record and haven’t made any changes to your policy, your rate could increase when you renew. This might be a great time to get quotes from other insurance carriers. But if you’re happy with the rate, just keep paying your insurance premium on time and in full through your credit card, debit card or other form of payment.
If you decide not to renew your policy, you’ll need to shop for new car insurance online or with the help of an agent or broker. When you’re researching, think about how much auto insurance you need.
To give yourself thorough car insurance coverage that protects your car and your wallet, consider buying a full-coverage policy if you own a newer car. Full-coverage auto insurance policies usually include these:
- Liability car insurance: Bodily injury liability coverage pays for the medical costs of the people injured in an accident when you’re at fault. Property damage liability covers the damage you caused to someone else’s property.
- Comprehensive car insurance: This covers your car’s damages from environmental conditions such as fire, fallen trees, theft, vandalism and natural disasters.
- Collision car insurance: This covers damages to your vehicle that come from road accidents or collisions with stationary objects.
- Underinsured/uninsured motorist coverage: This takes care of your injuries and vehicle damages when you’re the victim of a hit-and-run or an auto accident caused by a driver with little or no auto insurance.
Liability coverage (or third-party car insurance) is required in most states. Some states also require underinsured/uninsured motorist coverage, personal injury protection (PIP insurance) or medical payments coverage (MedPay). To get a better understanding of what the six standard types of car insurance cover, check out our table below.
Add-On Coverages
If general insurance isn’t good enough, there are add-ons you might want, like roadside assistance, rental car reimbursem*nt or custom parts and equipment value coverage. Rental car reimbursem*nt pays for a rental while your insured vehicle is in the shop for damage your policy covers. Custom parts and equipment value coverage repairs or replaces aftermarket features you add to your car.
Car Insurance Renewal: The Bottom Line
Whether you opt for car insurance renewal or choose to switch to another provider, avoid a lapse in coverage. Comparing rates, coverage and quotes is easy when you get your policy online, but be prepared for the hassle of unsolicited calls if you enter your mobile number in online inquiry forms.
Top Auto Insurance Recommendations
It’s important to compare car insurance quotes. Here are some car insurance companies to consider for the best coverage and rates.
Travelers: Best for Most Drivers
Travelers is our first recommendation for car insurance because it offers a wide variety of discounts and affordable rates. They offer a discount for switching from another provider, as well as multi-policy and multi-vehicle discounts.
Keep reading: Travelers Insurance Review
Geico: Best for Budget-Conscious Drivers
Geico rewards loyal car owners with discounts for insuring multiple vehicles or bundling auto coverage with homeowners or renters insurance. In addition, good drivers can save money on their car insurance policies with Geico’s DriveEasy, a usage-based insurance program that tracks driving habits.
Keep reading: Geico Insurance Review
Compare Car Insurance Rates
Get matched with a top provider and compare instant quotes in just a few clicks
With our comparison partner,
Car Insurance Renewal: FAQ
Car insurance renewal is the process that starts a new term for your policy. Depending on your policy, this comes every six or 12 months. Since most policies automatically renew, you likely won’t have to do anything but continue making payments.
Many companies make the car insurance renewal process easy by automating it so policyholders don’t have to do anything when their policy terms end. If you want to renew your policy and aren’t on an automatic renewal plan, contact your insurance agent.
If you let your car insurance expire, it’s more difficult to renew it because you’ve let your coverage lapse. Some car insurance companies may allow you to restart your policy after you pay a penalty fee.
In many cases, your car insurance policy will renew automatically if you continue payments, but that depends on your insurance company. Check with your insurer to find out if your renewal is automatic so you don’t have a lapse in coverage.
If you don’t renew your car insurance, have another policy in place by the time your current one expires. Otherwise, you could have a lapse in coverage. Not having insurance could have serious consequences, such as being fined, having your license suspended or paying out-of-pocket expenses for property damages or injuries if you cause a car accident.
Our Methodology
Because consumers rely on us to provide objective and accurate information, we created a comprehensive rating system to formulate our rankings of the best car insurance companies. We collected data on dozens of auto insurance providers to grade the companies on a wide range of ranking factors. The end result was an overall rating for each provider, with the insurers that scored the most points topping the list.
Here are the factors our ratings take into account:
- Cost: Auto insurance rate estimates generated by Quadrant Information Services and discount opportunities were both taken into consideration.
- Coverage: Companies that offer a variety of choices for insurance coverage are more likely to meet consumer needs.
- Reputation and experience: Our research team considered market share, ratings from industry experts and years in business when giving this score.
- Availability: Auto insurance companies with greater state availability and few eligibility requirements scored highest in this category.
- Customer experience: This score is based on volume of complaints reported by the NAIC and customer satisfaction ratings reported by J.D. Power. We also considered the responsiveness, friendliness and helpfulness of each insurance company’s customer service team based on our own shopper analysis.
Our credentials:
- 800 hours researched
- 45 companies reviewed
- 8,500+ consumers surveyed
*Data accurate at time of publication.
If you have feedback or questions about this article, please email the MarketWatch Guides team at [email protected].
