Auto insurance is one of those necessary items that many people don’t realize they can save money and still get the right coverages. So how do you go about lowering your auto insurance costs? Here are 10 money-saving tips.
1) Raise your deductibles. Your deductible is the amount of money you have to pay before your insurance coverages kick in. The lower your deductible, the higher your premium. You could save a lot of money just by increasing your deductibles on collision and comprehensive coverage.
2) Compare quotes from different insurers. Auto insurance companies base their rates on several factors, and because of this, rates vary quite a bit from company to company. You could save hundreds by doing some comparison shopping for the lowest rate. You should get at least three different quotes for comparison. An online insurance comparison Web site is a convenient place to start.
3) Drive fewer miles. One of the factors that affects your rate is amount of miles you drive annually. Many companies offer a discount for lower mileage drivers.
4) Maintain good credit. This is controversial, but the fact is many auto insurers evaluate risk against credit ratings because they say that there is a correlation between good credit and good insurance risk. The better your credit score, the better rate you may receive.
5) Stay a safe driver. Driving safely means lowering your risk of a collision — and a claim. Too many claims can raise your auto insurance costs. Some insurers will reward accident-free drivers with a good driver discount as well.
6) Keep a clean driving record. Along with being a safe driver, following traffic laws will ensure that you avoid traffic tickets, which can raise your rate considerably.
7) Combine your auto and home insurance. Most companies will provide a discount on your rate if you insure your home and car with the same company.
Pick the right coverages. Too much coverage for your situation may cause you to pay a higher premium than necessary. On the other hand, if you cut your coverages too low you could end up paying a lot if you have a claim or are at-fault in a collision. Think about your limits of liability carefully and discuss with a qualified agent if you have questions.
9) Choose your car carefully. If you are going to buy a vehicle, look into the costs of insurance. Different types of autos get different risk ratings. If you find a vehicle you like, get some auto insurance quotes.
10) Take advantage of discounts. Most auto insurers offer a variety of discounts. Make sure you are getting all of the discounts that you can. You could save money for being a good student, a senior driver, having safety features and anti-theft features on your vehicle and more.
By: Justin Scott
Posts Tagged ‘Deductibles’
10 Auto Insurance Savings Ideas
January 6th, 2010Auto insurance news guide
January 6th, 2010
Auto insurance is another name for security of your vehicle. As the name suggests auto insurance is all about insuring one’s vehicle against all kinds of threats for instance theft, accident and other related dangers. The basic types of auto insurance coverage are -
1. Bodily injury liability, which provides coverage for bodily injury claims from the people who might get injured in an accident with your vehicle.
2. Property damage liability covers any property damages to third parties such as another person’s car you damaged or are responsible for.
3. Medical expenses to the policy owner and other passengers in the policy owner’s car.
4. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage saves the negligent driver with or without insufficient insurance. In most states, this covers only bodily injury losses while in other cases property damage losses are also included. However it is quite important for everyone to get this coverage because it protects us from all expected as well as uninvited problems. For instance at some places an uninsured motorist caught driving with a suspended license in a car with a revoked registration goes to jail.
5. Physical damage stands for damage to your car that can be through accident or any other means such as collision, storm etc. In this the collision coverage pays for the physical damage caused to a person’s vehicle through collision.
However prior to purchasing an auto insurance policy there are quite a few things, which should be borne in mind. For instance- shop for the best policy available, always ask for high deductibles, check the insurance of the car or any other vehicle prior to purchasing it, coverage of the car varies with its worth, the profile of the company through which you will buy the insurance and last but not the least go with a low cost auto insurance for instance at places such as Santa Clara, San Marino Mateo and Alameda counties low cost auto insurance has arrived at premium rate of $322 and $355 respectively.
Whereas the auto insurance rates are concerned the American Farm Bureau suggests that the insurance rates for a driver should be based on the risk of that the driver should be based on the risk that the driver confronts for having an accident or loss and since rural drivers in the rural areas are less prone to risks, they should not be asked to pay more for their auto insurance.
In California there is a debate over the auto insurance policy rates. While on the one hand due to the rules offered by California Department of Insurance the rates of auto insurance are expected to touch the sky, on the other hand the California Farm Bureau strongly opposes it and claims that the new rates presses rural residents to shell out more money in order to subsidize the cost for urban residents.
However nowadays auto insurance companies are troubled with excess of crime or fraud in this area. Lately in North Carolina thirteen people were arrested accused of staging motorcycle wrecks to collect insurance money. Many such cases are reported in other parts of the world. As a result the government of different countries is looking for ways and means to combat the crime situation.
By: Mansi Aggarwal