The reason that you may usually purchase cheap car insurance online is that car insurers that appear solely on the internet have fewer overheads than off line shops and workplaces, and so can offer cheaper prices. Online publicity also tends to be less costly, and these financial savings are in part passed on to the customer.
Most car insurance companies will give you a discount just for buying on line, with out any extra bargaining requiring to be done. Nevertheless, regardless of that, there is still a vast difference in premium prices between different providers, and cheap online car insurance will involve shopping around at what further discounts each insurer provides. When you ask any firm for a free quote, they are not going to offer their cheapest policy, but rather their normal rates. That can be reduced if you do it the right way.
You may reduce your policy quotes by having safety features fitted to your vehicle, like air bags, ABS braking as well as anti-theft devices. Cheap insurance may also be negotiated if you happen to have advanced driver training or have a very good claims track record, with no claims for no less than the past three years - the longer the better. It's important to ask for these though, in the same way you would have to do off line.
Perhaps you have your house insurance with the same company. If so you'll probably get them to provide you with a discount on your car insurance quote on the strength of you having both coverages with the same provider. This can be a common way of negotiating lower rates. You might also have other policies that you would be able to place with the same insurer as an additional bargaining tool.
One of the great benefits of searching for a free online cheap car insurance quote is you could compare a multitude of variations between each provider. Trying to accomplish this off line would cost you quite a lot of money and time, both in phone calls in addition to in gas. Most providers are pleased to give you their standard car insurance premiums, but you need to work hard to get these further reduced.