Passive Restraint Auto Insurance Discount: How to Lower Your Rates
Qualifying for a passive restraint auto insurance discount is easy if your car has more than one factory-installed safety feature. Top providers can offer up to 20% off of your initial auto insurance rate.
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Written by
Marissa Hayes
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Reviewed by
Daniel Walker
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UPDATED: Apr 11, 2022
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- The size of your passive restraint auto insurance discount may depend on the number of airbags your car has
- GEICO and State Farm may offer the largest passive restraint auto insurance discounts
- Also, make sure to ask for discounts for other safety features, like anti-lock breaks
If you have a newer model vehicle, you may want to think about getting an affordable passive restraint auto insurance discount. It can be one of those “hidden” auto insurance discounts, so don’t forget to ask about it as you shop around for auto insurance.
How much can you save with passive restraints on your car? It depends on your car insurance carrier and how many passive restraints your vehicle has.
Read on to learn more about the passive restraints auto insurance discount and how your auto insurance provider may reward you for having a passive safety feature. If you want to look at rates for top auto insurance companies in your area, you can enter your ZIP code into our free quote tool above.
Table of Contents
How much can you save with a passive restraint car insurance discount?
Here’s a sample of eight well-known car insurance companies that offer the passive restraint auto insurance discount:
| Company | Passive Restraint Requirements | Discount Savings |
|---|---|---|
| Allstate | Multiple airbags and motorized seatbelts | Up to 30% |
| American Family | Multiple airbags | Up to 30% |
| Erie Insurance Company | Factory-installed airbags | Not specified |
| GEICO | Airbags | Up to 23%, applied to medical payments or personal injury protection |
| State Farm | Factory-installed airbag or other passive restraint systems; vehicle must be 1993 model or newer | Up to 40% on medical-related coverage; 25% for driver’s side airbag |
| The Hanover | Additional airbags | Up to 5% |
| The Hartford | Safety features, including multiple airbags | Up to 3% |
| USAA | Factory-installed passive-restraint seatbelts or airbags | Not specified |
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As you can see, GEICO and State Farm may offer the most generous savings if your car has passive restraints. Of course, you can earn even more savings from a passive restraint discount company if your car has more than one safety device, as well as if you employ safe driving habits in general.
What other safety features qualify for auto insurance discounts?
Which feature on your car is worth a discount on your car insurance? There are several safety features that lower car insurance, including:
- Anti-lock brakes: These come standard with vehicles now, but you should ask about them.
- Daytime running lights: These emerged in 1995, but many vehicles include them as standard features. If your car has daytime running lights, your car insurance company may give you a discount.
- Factory-installed electronic monitoring systems: You can save on your car insurance if your car has electronic stability control to help you avoid skidding, or your vehicle has rear cameras to help you park and back up.
Some other common discounts to ask for include:
- Low mileage/short commute: Since you drive your car less, you are less likely to get into a car accident and file a claim. Insurance companies like Allstate love to reward their drivers for this.
- Telematic devices: You can download an app to your phone or install a separate device to monitor your driving habits. The apps and devices monitor your speed, mileage, and whether you make sudden stops, among other things.
- Defensive driving: You can earn a safe driver auto insurance discount by taking a defensive driving course and keeping a clean record.
The low mileage discount may be underrated, but savings can quickly add up. In fact, in 2021, many drivers received cashback or rebates for driving little over the past year.
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What is a passive restraint auto insurance discount?
Passive restraints are the airbags or motorized seatbelts that came with your vehicle when it was brand new. In other words, those safety features are factory-installed. Most standard vehicles are unlikely to have motorized seatbelts, but airbags are standard.
According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, frontal airbags (for the driver and front passenger side) have been mandatory since 1999. Side and rear airbags are not mandated, but many auto manufacturers have made side airbags a standard feature.
Depending on your auto insurance provider, you may be able to earn a discount for having at least two airbags in your automobile. The savings can increase depending on how many airbags you have on your car.
Also, some companies still offer discounts for motorized seatbelts, so you should ask about those. Read on to know more about the type of savings you can earn by having these safety features.
Passive Restraint Auto Insurance Discounts: The Bottom Line
You can save quite a bit if your vehicle has passive restraints, and your vehicle doesn’t have to be brand new to qualify for savings. If it has more than one airbag or motorized seatbelts, you may be able to get reasonable passive restraint auto insurance discount rates.
Insurance companies might not be forthcoming about some of the types of discounts they offer, so make sure to ask about other discounts you may qualify for when comparing passive restraint auto insurance discount quotes. You want to be able to save as much as possible on your overall insurance costs.
Start comparing auto insurance quotes from companies near you right now. Enter your ZIP code into our free quote tool below to get started.