Why should you spend more than you need to on car insurance? Especially when disposable incomes are down and people are hankering to squeeze the most out of every dollar in the budget, finding ways to slash car insurance costs can provide real relief.
Check out the top 5 ways that you can pay less for car insurance, starting with your next premium.
1. Ask About the Discounts
Some discounts are advertized regularly and will be automatically applied, but there are many discounts that might apply to you that may be overlooked, simply because you didn’t ask about them. It’s possible to get discounts for all sorts of things. If you’ve never had an accident, if you have air bags or an alarm even if you have children under the age of 21 that maintain a B average at school! So don’t be afraid to ask for a run down on the type of discounts that are available before you sign.
2. Increase Your Deductable
Your deductable is the amount that you agree to pay before your insurance policy kicks in, so naturally, the higher your deductable the lower your premium. Increasing your deductable from $200 to $1000 can save you up to 40%.
3. Use the Internet to Get Multiple Quotes
It goes without saying that the more quotes you get the greater your chances of saving simply because you’ll be more aware of what’s available. You can go online now and request quotes and get instant responses from most companies and then start comparing and saving.
4. Don’t Over-Insure
As a rule-of-thumb, if your annual car insurance premium multiplied by 10 is more than the value of your car, you’re probably paying too much for insurance. Some car owners pay more in car insurance premiums than they could possibly expect to recoup in the event of a collision, so it is best to cut back on your coverage if the value of your car is reduced.
5. Consolidate Your Policies
It may be possible to arrange for a big discount if you have most of your policies with the same company. For instance if you have multiple vehicles, going with one insurance company and throwing in your home insurance as a deal sweetener can score you a decent percentage mark-down on your original premium.
The insurance industry is extremely competitive and while it might be impossible to be fully aware of what everyone is offering all the time, you are in a better position when you arm yourself with as much information as you can gather.