People with low credit scores, drivers with bad track records and those with huge families may have trouble when it comes to finding good car insurance costs. There are, thankfully, ways to lower the price to pay for good auto insurance.
Here are several ways to do that without sacrificing your coverage.
1. Clean Driving Record
Do you want to pay higher rates and terms in annual premiums? Then be sure to be involved in as many accidents as possible. Points are given to drivers who have an impressive number of moving violations – which lead to higher insurance premiums and costs. It goes without saying that drivers with clean driving records and no infractions pay lower costs.
2. Do an Annual Rate Check
If you haven’t filed a claim with your insurer for the past five years, it may not be tempting searching around for another insurer. However, independent agents check the rates of competing carriers to determine the best rates for you. These agents are not paid by insurance companies, and are therefore not obligated to “present the best information” for you.
Unless you see what other carriers are offering, your annual rates may be eating away at your wallet unnecessarily. Always check your rates once or twice a year.
3. Shop around
Similar to the last point: prices vary between companies. “Browsing the insurance market,” so to speak, shows you the financial stability of carriers. You can check the health of them with rating companies. This will show you a variety of prices, much as you’d select the cheapest price vs. the value of several competing supermarkets in your town.
4. Deductibles
In order to receive the lowest rates possible, opt for higher deductibles on collision – especially if you have a clean driving record (point #1). This is because high risk auto insurance reduces your premium: as deductibles require you to pay out of pocket should you make a claim. However, you could save up to 40% on your premium. (Providing that you’re a responsible driver.)
5. Insure Many Drivers/Vehicles
You’ll most likely get higher quotes per vehicles if you want to insure a single vehicle. This may or may not be a secret, but insuring multiple drivers and vehicles at once will result in receiving lower quotes with that company. This is called a “bulk rate”, and many companies are more than willing to offer it – because they want your business. Always be sure to ask a company if they offer bulk insurance quotes and rates. If they do not, ask yourself if this company is right for you.
6. Multi-Policy
A lot (not all) of insurers will lower your premium amounts if you buy more than one insurance at their company. This reduction could save you a tremendous amount of money than buying your homeowners’ insurance at company A and your auto insurance at company B. Furthermore, some insurers even reduce their rates for long-time customers they’ve served for more than 5-10 years. This “multi-policy discount” must be calculated when it comes to buying from various insurance companies, as it is the rates and math that matter.
Conclusion
We all want to get a good deal for cheap prices. As the world gets increasingly more expensive, it’s natural to want to look for ways to reduce the cost of your auto insurance. Always remember to do your due diligence and research.