Anonymous auto insurance quotes: do they exist?
The appeal of anonymous car insurance is clear: you can get a quote for your vehicle without submitting personal information or dealing with an insurance agent. But a reliable, cheap, anonymous car insurance quote can be hard to get. Because car insurance reflects the risk presented byyour driving recordandyour vehicle specifically, remaining anonymous throughout the insurance-shopping process isn't really an option.
Still, there are ways to wisely navigate the line between anonymity and disclosure, while ensuring you receive an accurate car insurance quote. Keep reading to learn more.
What personal information do you need to provide to get car insurance quotes?
In order to generate a car insurance rate and to sell you a policy, an insurance company usually needs the following information:
- Driver’s license numbers of all drivers on the policy
- Vehicle identification number of any vehicles on the policy
- Date of birth of all drivers on the policy
- Garaging address of the vehicle (most likely your home address)
- Prior insurance information
Depending on the car insurance company, you may need to provide additional details. The level of coverage you need also affects your rates—comprehensive coverage results in a higher insurance premium than liability coverage.These details help underwriters put together a policy that is specific to the risk that you pose. Specific factors that underwriters look for are your driving record, location, age, claims history, and, in most states, your credit score. While you might be able to use a fake name or secondary email address during the quote process, your real identity and personal details must be used once you attempt to purchase an insurance policy.
Why anonymous quotes are appealing
There are many reasons a driver might prefer to remain anonymous when receiving auto insurance quotes.
See recommendations on how to ease these common concerns:
| Concern: | Solution: |
You're worried about receiving spam calls or emails following a quote inquiry. | The Zebra does not ask for your phone number in the quoting process, so you will never receive unwanted calls from us. |
| You don't want a credit check to negatively impact your score. | During the insurance quoting process, companies only do a soft credit check, meaning that they are able to see your credit score without a hard inquiry, thus not impacting your score. |
| You are concerned about disclosing your home address online. | Since where you live is important to determining risk, insurance companies need an idea of your location in order to give you an accurate quote. What’s most important is your zip code though, so as long as that information is accurate, you can see a ballpark figure for your rate. |
How to get an anonymous car insurance quote
Depending on the insurance carrier you select, receiving an accurate car insurance quote without personal information could be near-impossible - or not worth the effort. Some companies require your driver's license in order to start the quote process.
However, some companies make it a bit easier to get an anonymous quote. In these cases, the only info you need to submit accurately is your ZIP code, date of birth, driving record, and vehicle information. These rating factors are fairly significant aspects of your premium. If you want your quote to be reliable, you should provide accurate info. Once you receive a quote, you'll be given a quote number. You can use this later if you want to fetch your quote and purchase a policy.
Another way to get an anonymous quote is to avoid insurance companies altogether and use a comparison website. These tools allow you to follow the same process as you would with an auto insurance company, but they'll provide quotes from a variety of insurers. This way, you only need to create an alias once.
Getting an anonymous quote with car insurance calculators
Without providing much personal information, the best you can hope to receive in the quote process is a rough estimate of what an auto insurance rate looks like for your area and for someone of your age and driving history. Use the calculator below to see average rates for your demographic without inputting personal information.
In order to get more accurate quotes and to bind an auto insurance policy, you'll need to provide the information in the bulleted list above.
Which insurance company requires the least personal information for a quote?
- The General
The General’s quote process takes about two minutes to complete, one of the faster quote tools among large insurance providers. The General asks for the least amount of personal information to generate an insurance quote.
How does The Zebra use my personal information?
The Zebra requires some personal information to provide the most accurate insurance quotes possible. The Zebra collects this information through direct interactions with you, either through the input fields on our website or via contact with our in-house agents. This information is passed along to our trusted partner carriers. We collectonlythe information necessary to deliver an accurate quote-comparison experience.
We take great care to safeguard your personal information, which is why we don't ask for your phone number when you search for quotes with us. The Zebra does not share users' personal information or phone number, so you won't receive unwanted phone calls after receiving quotes.
Read more about The Zebra's privacy policy.
FAQs on anonymous car insurance quotes
Can I get quotes for car insurance without revealing personal information?
While you can try to disclose as little personal information as possible, the highly personalized nature of car insurance quotes means it could be in your best interest to provide accurate and up-to-date information to receive the most precise quotes possible.
What personal information is needed to get auto insurance quotes?
You will need to provide the following personal information to get accurate rates: driver's date of birth, vehicle storage location, driver's license number, driving and insurance history, and VIN of the vehicle to be insured.
How do I compare insurance quotes without getting spammed?
Follow-up phone calls are a common complaint from insurance shoppers looking for quotes online. The most effective way to avoid spammers is to use legitimate, trusted comparison sites.The Zebra takes pride in its strict no-spam policy, allowing shoppers to compare quotes from an array of insurers without being hounded by spam calls.
About The Zebra
The Zebra is not an insurance company. We publish data-backed, expert-reviewed resources to help consumers make more informed insurance decisions.
The Zebra’s insurance content is written and reviewed for accuracy by licensed insurance agents.
The Zebra’s insurance content is not subject to review or alteration by insurance companies or partners.
The Zebra’s editorial team operates independently of the company’s partnerships and commercialization interests, publishing unbiased information for consumer benefit.
The auto insurance rates published on The Zebra’s pages are based on a comprehensive analysis of car insurance pricing data, evaluating more than 83 million insurance rates from across the United States.