You may be a new car owner, or someone thinking about buying a car, or just in the market for better deals on your auto insurance. Regardless of the situation, it’s critical to know how to the best deal – and the best coverage – when shopping for auto insurance.
When considering auto insurance for a young driver, consider signing up for automatic payments if your provider supports them. Not only will this help to ensure that payments are on time, but your insurance provider may even provide a discount for doing so. Another option to consider is paying the entire premium at once.
One way to reduce the cost of your auto insurance is by driving less. Most auto insurance companies offer discounts for drivers that use their vehicles less than 12,000 miles in a year. However, do not be tempted to lie about your mileage, as your auto insurance company might request proof if you need to file an accident claim.
If you’re currently receiving a no-claims discount for an auto insurance company, it is important that you protect this. Only file a claim if it is absolutely necessary, because once you file a claim with your insurer, your rates could increase instantly by up to 75%. Filing claims should be saved for real accident and injury.
Car insurance for teens does not have to cost you deep in the purse. You can lower your teen’s rates by doing a few simple things. Make sure your teen successfully completes a driver’s education course and stays on the honor roll. This will keep the cost of your insurance much lower.
When on the hunt for car insurance, cut out the middle man to save money. Shopping online, directly through the company website, is likely to save you the most money. Insurance companies that allow you to buy online are fairly reputable and it is cheaper because you are not using an agent.
If you’re planning on buying a new car, choosing one that is less desirable to thieves will lower your insurance rate. Online, you can find lists of the cars reported stolen most often and it’s likely that they are the same lists that your insurance company uses to calculate your premium. Use this information as part of your research into which car you should buy.
If your car is not particularly valuable, go ahead and select the minimum amount of liability, when you purchase auto insurance. This is the bare-bones coverage legally mandated by your state. While minimum liability provides very limited financial assistance when you make a claim, your needs will probably be modest if your car is modest, too. Minimum liability coverage is the cheapest insurance that you can get.
Join an automobile club. If you own a classic or a car that is otherwise desirable in some way, research automobile clubs for it. Many of these clubs offer perks for joining. One of these perks is sometimes a discount on your insurance premiums. Just make sure that the benefits of joining the club outweigh anything else you might have to do or pay in order to join.
Senior citizens can benefit from the discounts that are available from their car insurance company. These discounts typically kick in at age 55 or 60. You have to request that your insurer add these discounts onto your insurance, as they will not do it automatically. It could save you as much as ten percent on your premium.
Car Insurance
When insuring a teenage driver, save money on your car insurance by designating only one of your family’s vehicles as the car your son or daughter will drive. This will save you from paying the increase for all of your vehicles, and the cost of your car insurance will rise only by a small amount.
You can reduce the cost of car insurance by making sure you don’t buy coverage that you really don’t need. For instance, if you have an older car with a relatively low replacement value then you may not need comprehensive or collision coverage. Eliminating excess coverage from your policy could lower your premiums considerably.
To make sure you are getting the best deal on your car insurance, get quotes from at least three different insurers. You can choose to deal with individual insurance companies or you can go to an insurance broker, who can represent several companies and get you quotes from each one.
Verify that the information that is on your car insurance policy is accurate. Confirm the vehicle information as well as the driver information. This is one thing that many people do not do and if the information is incorrect, they could be paying more than they should be each month.
If you are getting car insurance, it is important not to forget towing coverage. This is important because if you get into an accident or you are stuck somewhere, you do not want to be stuck paying towing costs. The rates for towing are usually not high for most insurance companies.
If you see lower rates offered from other companies, take this information to your insurance agent first. Oftentimes insurers will offer you more competitive premiums in order to keep your business.
You ever hear the quote “you get what you pay for?” Many companies out there advertise that they can save you money on car insurance. Well, make them prove it. Shop around for quotes and remember that you have to make sure the coverage levels are the same. Ask for discounts because some companies provide more discounts than others.
Commercial Auto Insurance
Purchase commercial auto insurance if you use your personal car to deliver property or humans from one location to another for business, or even if you volunteer to do it on an ongoing basis. Insurers call this type of vehicle usage “livery”. Most personal auto insurance will not cover you if you get into an accident while using your personal car for livery purposes.
Shopping for auto insurance doesn’t have to be difficult. As you’ve seen, it’s important to arm yourself with the information you need to be able to make the right decision for your car, your age, and your circumstances as an auto owner. Now that you have that information in hand, your next auto insurance buying decision should be a much smarter one.