August 21, 2020

Effective Ways To Lower Your Auto Insurance

Auto insurance is expensive and contributes significantly to the overall expense of maintaining a car. There are, however, effective ways to lower your auto insurance premium. Your total outlay for auto insurance can vary depending upon where you live, how many miles you drive, the extent of your coverage, the age and make of your vehicle, and your own age and gender.

Because auto insurance is not a fixed cost, you can do several things that will almost ensure that you can lower the cost of your coverage.  Here are a few of the best ways to lower the cost of your auto insurance:

Shop Around for the Best Deals

Different insurers can offer widely differing auto insurance rates. Therefore, it pays to shop around with different insurance agencies to find the best deal for your personal situation.

This is especially important if your current insurance costs have risen significantly.  If this has occurred, it probably makes sense to obtain quotes from other companies, just in case there is a lower rate out there.

Keep in mind that "cheap" isn't always better.  Make sure that a firm offering unusually low rates is on a firm financial footing, otherwise, they may not have sufficient capability to cover any insured costs you incur.

Be a Safe Driver

Having a clean and safe driving record will generally enable you to obtain lower-cost auto insurance. Even one speeding ticket can raise your premiums. The big premium-raisers are having one or more accidents or a DUI infraction. In fact, in some states drivers can take a "continuing-education" defensive driving class every few years to lower the cost of their vehicle insurance.

Additionally, many insurance agents offer low-mileage discounts for those who drive less than a certain amount each year. This is because, all other things being equal, the less time on the road, the less opportunity for accidents.

Maintain Higher Deductibles on Your Vehicles

Consider raising your auto insurance deductible, which will almost always lower the overall cost of your insurance. The deductible is the amount you would pay out-of-pocket before the insurance kick in. The higher the deductible, the lower your premiums will be.  Depending on the policy, deductibles typically range from $250 to $1,000, although the range may be wider depending on the agency. 

Do You Really Need Collision Insurance?

Every year there are about 6 million car accidents in the United States. That's over 22,000 each day. The damage caused by vehicle accidents can be quite expensive. Although collision insurance is not mandatory by law, most lenders will require you to have it if you take a loan from them to finance your vehicle. If you own your car or truck outright, you have a choice of whether to pay for collision coverage or not.

If you have a brand-new, expensive vehicle, you'll definitely want to have collision insurance. In some cases, however, you may wish to drop the collision coverage. Consider the situation where you may be driving an older vehicle that has limited resale value and you intend to replace soon. It may be prudent to not pay collisions premiums in this example. You can think of this mathematically as well: A good rule of thumb is if the cost of collision insurance is 25 percent of your vehicle's value every six months, it may be wise to stop paying for collision coverage.

Ask for Insurance Discounts

Believe it or not, sometimes you simply have to ask if lower premiums are available to you. When shopping for vehicle insurance as the agents if they offer discounts for seniors, military veterans, active military, or employees of certain companies. In some cases, you may qualify for group rates because of your profession and affiliations. Furthermore, some companies offer discounts if you pay the annual or six-month premium all at once. Don't forget to ask if a discount is offered for electronic premium payments. You may even qualify for a discount if you install an anti-theft device on your truck or car.

You Can Find Ways To Reduce Your Insurance Premiums

As you now know, there are a host of ways to lower your auto insurance. By shopping around armed with this knowledge, you feel comfortable that you're saving money and getting the best insurance for your personal driving situation. If you are looking to save money on your auto insurance premium and live in the Idaho Falls, Idaho area contact us for great rates as we strive to provide great auto insurance throughout the Idaho Falls area.

Sources:

https://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/08/car-insurance-costs.asp

https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/insurance/best-cheap-car-insurance/

https://www.newyorksafetycouncil.com/insurance-providers/