When Is the Best Time To Buy a Car?

Getting a great deal on a new car takes patience and strategic thinking. Salespeople at car dealerships have a lot of leeway when it comes to negotiating prices and included features. Regardless of whether you feel you are good at wheeling and dealing, you can greatly increase your chances of landing a great deal on your next new vehicle by simply figuring out the best time to buy a car.

We are committed to helping our customers save money not just on auto insurance but on all the things that are important in their lives. That is why we have compiled this article detailing the best and worst times to buy a new car. Use this guide when you are preparing to buy your next car or truck, and then let us know in the comments how you did.

What Are the Best Months To Purchase a New Car?

Believe it or not, by shopping during ideal months of the year, you can often land extremely good deals, even without putting much effort into your negotiations. These are the best months to shop:

• November/December: At this time of year, salespeople are desperate to make a large number of sales, and the managers at the dealerships are likely to permit them to make extremely good offers. This is because the dealerships have year-end quotas that they are striving to achieve and this will translate into greater incentives for the sales staff, including bigger bonuses. When you walk into a showroom at this time of year, be prepared to have the sales staff bend over backward to ensure that you leave with keys to a new car.

• August/September: Unless you are determined to own the most recent year’s model of a particular vehicle, this may be the best time to shop. This is when the next year's model shows up on showroom floors. Dealerships will be desperate to get rid of current-year models to make room for new cars. Although the next year’s model may have a few added features and different styling, the differences between cars from one model year to the next are usually not that great. Remember, even though the car may be one model year older, it is still a brand new car.

What Are the Worst Months To Purchase a New Car?

Of course, there are times of year that you are less likely to be able to negotiate a good deal. That is when dealerships are already very busy, inventory is moving nicely and the sales staff is not worried about meeting quotas. These are the worst months to make a purchase:

• February/March: This is when people start receiving tax refunds. Many people like to wait out the winter with old vehicles and then trade them in and use tax refunds as down payments on new cars. Dealerships are often very busy at this time of year, and great deals are scarce.

• April/May: This is when high school and college seniors are preparing to graduate, and many parents are buying them vehicles as graduation presents. Also, this is when the weather vastly improves, and many people feel more motivated to drive. Car dealerships rarely suffer from low sales during these months.

Request a Quote

Are There Better Times of Year To Purchase Specific Types of Cars?

There are certain times of the year when you are at an advantage for buying some kinds of vehicles. For example, look at these vehicles:

• Convertibles/Sports cars: For those who live in northern states where heavy snow and harsh winter weather are an issue, the purchase of a convertible or sports car is best handled in the winter months. Sports cars typically have rear-wheel drive, which gives the car a tendency to spin out of control, and convertibles lose their appeal when the top is up. If you are looking to purchase one of these cars, keep in mind that any car dealership will be more than happy to get one of these vehicles off their lot in the winter.

• Trucks and SUVs: The appeal of these vehicles for many is that they offer four-wheel or all-wheel drive, which makes for better road-control in the winter months. In the summer months, however, sales of these types of vehicles tend to drop. You may be able to negotiate a better deal by purchasing when the weather is warm. Another good time to purchase this type of vehicle, if you have your heart set on owning one, is when gas prices rise. As fuel costs go up, people tend to prefer to purchase high-gas-mileage vehicles, and sales on trucks and SUVs suffer.

What Is the Best Time of Day To Purchase a New Car?

Once you have completed your research and test drives and you know which vehicle you want to buy, it may be in your best interest to walk into the dealership when it is close to closing time. Salespeople and the dealership management will still be happy to wait on you. Because they will be anxious to get home after a long day, however, they may be less likely to push hard on their side of the negotiations and may be willing to offer you a fantastic deal just to make the sale as quickly as possible.

For the Best Prices, Know When To Buy a New Car

Remember, knowing when to buy a car is everything. Use timing to your advantage when shopping so you can make a great deal on your next new car. No matter what timing you chose, make sure you're covered from an insurance perspective. It's strongly advised that you have an independent professional source for the auto coverage you need. An independent agent is ready to help. 

How to Prevent Porch Package Theft

Online shopping has introduced a great convenience for those who don’t have the time or preference for brick and mortar stores, but unfortunately, it’s also introduced new risks to consumers. When your packages disappear from your porch before you ever get the chance to claim them, you can end up losing a lot more than money. Package thieves cause unnecessary stress and frustration for homeowners everywhere.

Fortunately, there are some easy steps you can take to prevent your deliveries from vanishing. It’s also important to get equipped with the proper homeowner’s insurance, and an independent insurance agent can help you find the right coverage long before you’d ever need to use it. For starters, check out this guide to preventing porch package theft and how homeowners insurance can help, too.

Package Theft Stats

Package theft is particularly a concern around the holidays and in globally tough times, such as pandemics, because a much larger percentage of folks than usual do their shopping online. However, “porch pirates” have become a threat year-round with the rise in online shopping in general. Check out a few quick package theft stats and see for yourself.

Since package theft is a very real threat, it’s crucial to take action steps ahead of time to protect your deliveries from disappearing. It’s also critical to get set up with the right homeowner’s insurance for further protection.

Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Package Theft?

Yes, however, it can get a little tricky. First of all, in order to file a successful claim, you’d need to be able to prove your package was actually delivered and then stolen, which can be a challenge. If the package wasn’t actually delivered, the fault would return to the sender. This is why large online retailers like Amazon have started photographing package deliveries, so they can’t be held liable if your package disappears later. If your package was delivered and then stolen, it becomes your responsibility.

What insurance companies refer to as “mysterious disappearance” doesn’t always indicate a theft. If you were able to provide proof of package theft, the issue would then become if the value of the goods you ordered exceeded your insurance policy’s deductible. Renters insurance deductibles can be lower, often between $250-$500, but homeowners insurance deductibles are typically one percent of the total value of your home. Unless what you ordered was really expensive, it’s unlikely to exceed this amount.

How to Prevent Porch Piracy

So, while it’s good to know that homeowners insurance can provide coverage for stolen packages, it’s also important to understand that you may not actually get your money back if your order wasn’t valuable enough to exceed your deductible. Beyond avoiding the hassle of filing unsuccessful insurance claims, however, it’s best to just prevent porch piracy all around.

The following action steps can eliminate porch package theft:

• Install a doorbell camera: The most popular option to catch porch pirates is to install a doorbell camera like Google Nest, Vivint, or Ring. Homeowners can record footage of their porches and other entryways around the clock with doorbell cameras, which would then allow them to prove to an insurance company if a package was in fact swiped from their home.

• Install motion sensor lights: One way to deter porch pirates is to install motion sensor lights. These lights are activated when someone walks past a programmed spot on your property, and can help to scare away package thieves.

• Use Amazon’s Smart Lock Kit: Amazon created its own service to help prevent porch piracy. Their Smart Lock Kit gives parcel deliverers permission to leave a package right inside your home. While this isn’t the most popular option currently, it’s been gaining traction over time.

• Schedule your deliveries: If you have the option to plan or schedule a delivery for a day when you know you’ll be home, that’s an easy way to prevent your stuff from getting stolen. For example, if you’re always home on Saturdays, order from Amazon on a day that will allow the delivery to fall on a Saturday.

• Get a BoxLock: A new popular option is to use a smart padlock box, known as BoxLock. Packages you order are scanned by the delivery person, and then your BoxLock is scanned. The BoxLock will only open for packages scheduled to be delivered to you. If you’re afraid of someone stealing the box with a package inside of it, you can padlock the box to your porch.

• Ask a neighbor for help: If you have a trusted neighbor, you can ask them to grab your package for you before you get home. This option can work well for folks who live in apartments and may not have the option to install cameras or motion sensors.

• Ship to an alternate address: If none of these other options work for you, you might consider having your packages shipped to an Amazon Hub Locker. Amazon Hub Lockers are found at many convenient locations such as grocery stores, and requesting to have your packages shipped to them comes at no additional cost. This option can work well for folks who live in high-traffic areas, such as a busy downtown street.

Though unfortunately porch piracy has been steadily on the rise as online shopping becomes more popular, there is hope for homeowners who want to protect their packages. While it’s important to take steps to keep thieves from stealing your deliveries, it’s also important to be covered by homeowners insurance, especially if you ever order products or equipment that’s particularly valuable. Your independent insurance agent can help you find a policy that makes you rest easy.

Here’s How an Independent Insurance Agent Can Help

When it comes to protecting homeowners against porch pirates and all other perils, no one’s better equipped to help than an independent insurance agent, like us. Independent insurance agents search through multiple carriers to find providers who specialize in home insurance, deliver quotes from a number of different sources, and help you walk through them all to find the best blend of coverage and cost.