What you need to get a car insurance quote

To get an accurate car insurance quote you need each driver's name, date of birth and driver's license number; each vehicle's VIN, ownership and garaging address; how the cars are used and roughly how far they are driven; your driving and claims history for the past several years; and your current policy's declarations page. With those in hand, a quote takes minutes and is unlikely to change when the insurer checks your records.

The checklist

Gather these before you start. The same set works for online forms, agents and phone quotes.

For every driver in the household

• Full legal name and date of birth
• Driver's license number and issuing state
• Date first licensed (some insurers ask for years of experience in the U.S.)
• Marital status, and in some states occupation and education level
• Accidents, tickets and claims in roughly the last three to five years, with approximate dates
• Completed driver training or defensive driving courses
• For students: grade-point average or report card if you want a good student discount

Insurers generally expect every licensed household member to be listed or formally excluded. Leaving out a driver who has access to your cars is one of the most common reasons a quote changes, or a claim becomes a dispute.

For every vehicle

• The 17-character vehicle identification number (VIN), found on the registration, title or driver's side dashboard
• Year, make, model and trim
• Whether it is owned outright, financed or leased, and the lender's name and address
• The garaging address where it is parked overnight, if different from your home
• Primary use: commuting, pleasure, business or rideshare
• Estimated annual mileage, and the current odometer reading if asked
• Anti-theft devices and safety features, which are often decoded from the VIN

About your current insurance

• Your current declarations page, which lists your limits, deductibles and endorsements
• Current insurer and how long you have been continuously insured
• Any lapse in coverage and its dates
• Your renewal or expiration date

For discounts

• Other policies you could bundle (home, renters, condo, umbrella)
• Membership in alumni, professional, employer or military groups
• Homeownership, even if your home is insured elsewhere
• Willingness to use a telematics app, pay in full, choose paperless documents or set up autopay

What the insurer checks on its own

You do not need to supply these, but knowing they exist explains why a quote based on rough answers can change.

Use of credit in auto insurance pricing is regulated by the states, and a few, including California, Hawaii and Massachusetts, do not allow it for setting auto rates.

Getting a quote does not affect your credit score. The insurer's check is not the kind of inquiry lenders see when you apply for credit.

Why accuracy matters

A quote is only as good as the answers behind it. If the insurer's reports show a ticket or accident you did not mention, the price will be adjusted before the policy is issued, or at the first renewal. More serious misstatements — listing a car at a relative's cheaper address, leaving off a regular driver, or understating business use — can be treated as misrepresentation, which can lead to a cancelled policy or a disputed claim (see premium fraud: garaging address and driver misrepresentation).

If you are not sure of a date or detail, give your best estimate and say so. Agents and online forms can usually accept "approximately".

Getting a quote before you have the car

If you are shopping for a car, you can get a quote using the VIN from the listing or dealer. Without a VIN, most insurers can quote by year, make, model and trim, though the final price may differ slightly. Pricing a few candidate cars before you buy can prevent an expensive surprise (see insuring a new car: what to do before you drive off the lot).

If you have little or no history

First-time buyers, people returning to driving after years without a car, and drivers licensed abroad will not have a prior insurer to name. Expect questions about when and where you were licensed, and have documents ready: a foreign license and its translation, an international driving permit, or a letter from a previous insurer (including one outside the U.S.) confirming your claims-free years. Some insurers give credit for that history and some do not, which is one more reason to collect several quotes.

How to use the information once you have it

1. Decide the coverage you want before you request quotes, using your declarations page as the starting point.
2. Request quotes from at least three insurers with identical drivers, vehicles, limits and deductibles.
3. Record each quote, its term length and assumed discounts in the car insurance quote comparison worksheet.
4. Follow the method in how to compare car insurance quotes apples to apples to compare annual totals.

Key takeaways

• Have each driver's license number and date of birth, each car's VIN and garaging address, and your current declarations page ready.
• List every licensed household member; omitted drivers are a leading cause of changed quotes and claim disputes.
• Insurers check your driving record, claims history and, in most states, a credit-based insurance score.
• California, Hawaii and Massachusetts are among the states that do not allow credit in auto pricing.
• Accurate answers produce a quote that holds at purchase; misstatements can lead to cancellation or claim problems.