Car insurance rates go up every year. Your car insurance rate depends mostly on your car, your age, and any discounts you get, but there are a few things you can do to stop the rise or even lower your rate.
- Use the internet to shop.
Most companies will give you a discount if you apply online. This is because the process is automated and it costs them a lot less to process your application. These discounts are usually between 5 and 10 percent.
Click here to get a quick online quote for insurance
- Compare prices.
All insurance companies use different formulas to figure out your insurance premium. After each question they ask you, they add or take away money from your premium.
You could save a lot on your insurance premium if you shopped around.
- Buy extra products.
Most insurance companies offer other types of insurance, such as "buildings and contents" insurance.
Most insurance companies will give you extra discounts if you buy more than one product. If you do this, you could save a good amount on all of your insurance premiums.
- Make one payment for your insurance premium.
If you pay your insurance premium all at once, you won't have to pay the expensive interest charges that would be added if you paid it in instalments.
On payments made over time, some insurance companies may charge up to 15% APR.
You might even save money if you pay for everything at once.
If you can't pay the full amount, find out how much a small loan would cost. You may still be able to save some money.
Fill out a loan application on the web.
- Give more than you have to.
Your excess is the amount you have to pay if you make a claim. If you raise this amount, your insurance company should lower your monthly payment.
- Cut down on your yearly mileage.
Most insurance companies will give you a quote for around 12,000 miles a year if you drive less than that.
Try to figure out how many miles you'll drive. If you think it will be less, you might get a discount.
Be honest, because if you get into an accident, your insurance company may ask to see old MOTs and service records to verify your mileage.
- Install an alarm, an immobiliser, or a tracker.
Your insurance premium is mostly based on how likely it is that someone will steal your car or things from it.
A small discount will be taken off your premium if you install an alarm or immobiliser, and a tracker could save you a lot.
- Take the test for more skilled drivers.
If you pass your advanced driving test, your insurance company will see that you have more driving skills and are less likely to get into an accident.
- Don't lie about how much your car is worth.
Putting more value on your car when you get an insurance quote won't help you in any way except to raise your premium.
If your car is stolen or destroyed in an accident, you will only get what the car was worth at the time of the accident.
Insurance companies now look at your credit score when figuring out how much to charge you for insurance.
Keeping your credit score high could keep your premium from going up for no reason.
By law, you must have at least third-party coverage, which is also the cheapest.
If your car isn't worth much, you might want to think about this type of insurance.
You need to remember that if you have this kind of insurance and get into an accident, any damage to your car won't be paid for.
Insurance companies take driving convictions very seriously, and they can make your car insurance rates go up by a lot. Keeping your licence clean shows the insurance company that you are a safe and careful driver, which can lower your rates.
If you have a young driver on your policy who no longer uses the car, you should take them off because that will lower your premium.
Some insurance companies will lower the premiums for young drivers if they list an older driver on the policy.
The number of years with no claims is one of the most important things that affects your car insurance premium.
You could save up to 75% if you don't make a claim for about 5 years.
Your insurance company will think you are a safer driver the longer you go without making a claim.
Even though this will make your insurance cost more, if you haven't made a claim for a long time, you might want to protect this because even a small claim can make your insurance cost up to 75 percent more.
What kind of car you drive plays a big role in how much your insurance costs.
The Association of British Insurance Group Rating is used by most insurance companies.
This gives each car a number between 1 and 20. In general, the higher the number, the higher the premium.
If you are a young or inexperienced driver, buying a car in a lower group can lower your premium.
If your car is old or unique, you might want to join a club for that kind of car. Most clubs have insurance plans with very good premium rates.
Some insurance companies will give you a discount if you list your spouse as a driver instead of an unmarried partner. This is because they see marriage as a sign of stability, and they think that stable people drive safely, so they give you a discount.
If you just got your licence, you might want to get your pass plus.
Some insurance companies could give you as much as a 25% discount, which could save you a lot of money if you just passed your test and haven't had any claims.
