Insurance for your car can be very expensive. Insurance rates vary a lot between companies, agencies, agents, brokers, and, of course, the type of car you own and your credit score. To pay less for insurance:
- Find out if the cost of your insurance depends on where you live. Staying in a small town or the suburbs instead of the city centre could save you a lot of money.
- Do a market survey and make a comparison table of insurance and other hidden costs before you choose a car brand. Find out what features raise insurance costs and what features lower them. For example, if parts for a certain brand of car are hard to find or expensive, the insurance rates will be very high. Installing anti-theft devices or an extra brake system can lower insurance rates. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety at http://www.iihs.org/ can answer a lot of questions.
- Think about getting it from the same company that covers your home, accidents, or life. When a customer has more than one type of policy with a company, they often get a discount. This could help you and is called a multi-policy discount.
- Don't take the first price quote you get. Be smart and compare different insurance companies on the website or by calling the insurance department of your state. Their addresses and phone numbers can be found on the consumer action website at http://www.consumeraction.gov/insurance.shtml. Be sure to get competitive quotes from different insurance providers. Contact people who come highly recommended by people you know and trust. Check the financial stability of the companies with rating services like A.M. Best (http://www.ambest.com/) and in forums and blogs to keep your mind at ease.
- Use discounts like having a low-risk job, low mileage, taking public transportation to work, carpooling, not having any tickets or accidents, taking defensive driving courses, following safety rules, or having a child who goes to school far away.
- Don't have two sets of health insurance. Find out if dropping medical coverage from your car insurance will lower your premiums or the cost of your personal injury protection. In some places, the price has dropped by as much as 40%. So, if you have enough health insurance, you could weigh the pros and cons of dropping this from your auto insurance.
- Most insurance policies are based on your credit history. Costs can go down if you have a solid credit history. Make sure you pay your bills on time, don't take out too many loans, and keep your credit balances as low as you can.
- Pick a plan with a higher deductible. This will make the load lighter by at least 15–25%. But first, take a look at your finances and see if you can set aside $200 to $1,000 every month to build up an emergency vehicle fund.
- Always keep your driving record clean.
- Use the discounts that come with insuring more than one car in the family. Many companies have special deals for corporate organizations, club members, professional groups, alumni groups, or clubs.
Make time to make a big saving. Check all the settings and mark the places where you can save money. You can benefit from the fact that the market is competitive.
