Many of the factors that determine your car insurance are mostly beyond your control, such as the years of driving experience, your age, area, and job. However, if you are seriously looking to save on car insurance, you can do some things to ensure that you pay lower premiums.
- Wise Car Selection
The type of vehicle that you drive can make a huge difference to the cost of auto insurance you have to pay. Some vehicles are not only expensive to replace and repair compared to others, but some models are considered high risk since they are often involved in claims.
Insurance companies typically group vehicle models into categories based on risk with the sports models that have larger engines being usually placed in the higher, more expensive groups, while the smaller vehicles with better safety features being placed in the more affordable insurance categories. You will also pay a higher tax on a larger sports model, check your car tax online.
If you want to buy a new vehicle, it can be a good idea to consider one in a low insurance category to enjoy significant savings.
- Keeping It Safe
Insurance company offer more affordable premiums if you try as much as possible to keep your vehicle out of harm’s way. Whenever possible, keep it in your driveway or secure garage overnight, as opposed to on the road where it is within easy reach of vandals and thieves. It is even possible to lower your premium further by installing extra security features, such as a tracker or car alarm.
- Use It Wisely
Auto insurance premiums are generally more affordable for people that drive fewer miles. The logic used by insurance companies is that you are more likely to be involved in an accident if you drive more often. People usually estimate their mileage when getting auto insurance quotes, so ensure that you provide an accurate prediction.
You can determine your mileage from previous years by checking your MOT certificates. Alternatively, you can track your weekly average and use it to estimate the annual average. Ensure that you don’t lie about your mileage to get cheaper insurance. If it comes to making a claim and the mileage does not add up, the insurance company may refuse to payout.
Your premium might be higher if you use your car to commute to work. After all, you will probably be driving frequently and during peak hours, which means that your chances of making a claim are higher. Depending on your job, this may signal to insurance companies that you regularly drive at night, which is when accidents are likely to occur. If you are able to use alternative transport to get to your place of work, you may end up saving a lot on car insurance.
- Pick Your Insurance Cover Wisely
An insurance company usually offers 3 levels of cover: fire and theft, third party, and comprehensive. The least amount of insurance coverage that’s legally required to drive is third-party.
A third-party policy only covers you for damage to other people’s property and vehicles, which means that you cannot claim for any damage to your own vehicle. A fire and theft policy includes this as well as cover for theft and fire damage. A comprehensive policy also covers damage to your own vehicle in case of an accident or a different type of claim.
As might be expected, these levels of cover each come with a different cost, but you might be surprised to learn that a third-party cover isn’t necessarily the cheapest option. Insurance companies often give the best deals on comprehensive insurance policies, although third-party cover can be an affordable option for older, lower-value vehicles.
- Consider a Black Box
A black box policy (also known as a pay as you drive or telematics policy) is another great way to save on auto insurance. The insurance company installs a small device in your vehicle or require you to download an app that monitors your driving as part of a black box policy.
It helps promote safer driving and can make it easier to track your vehicle in case it is stolen. On a black box policy, the insurance company monitors your driving habits and regularly adjusts your premiums on the basis of the quality of your driving as well as the number of times you drive.
- Increase the Excess
Insurance companies base their premiums on the amount of money they are likely to pay out in case of a claim. If you opt to pay a higher excess voluntarily, you will be lowering the cost to the insurance company by basically offering to pay a bigger portion of the claim yourself.
Increasing the excess can be an excellent way to cut your premiums, but keep in mind that this amount will come out of your pocket should you need to make a claim. It is thus important to choose an excess amount that you can comfortably afford to pay and ensure that the excess cost isn’t higher than the value of the vehicle.
- Adding a Named Driver
You might consider yourself a safe driver, but insurance companies will group you into a high-risk category if you have previous convictions or claims, are under age 25, or have recently passed your test. If you are in one of these groups, you can reduce the cost of your quote by adding an experienced and responsible named driver to your policy if they are likely to use your vehicle.
Keep in mind that you have to be named as the main driver or policyholder if you are the one to be driving the vehicle most regularly. Adding another driver to your policy for the purpose of getting cheaper quotes is referred to as fronting and is actually a type of fraud.
- Protect Your No-Claims Bonus
You earn a no-claims bonus for each year that you drive without making a claim. A maximum no-claims bonus (5 to 8 years depending on your insurance provider) translates to savings as high as 80 percent on your insurance costs.
It is impossible to speed up the process, but you can improve your chances of getting cheaper auto insurance in the future by protecting the no-claims bonus for a small fee. Your current insurance cost will rise slightly, but you might end up enjoying significant savings in the long run should you need to make a claim because you would otherwise lose the accrued discount.
- Upfront Payments
Paying upfront for car insurance can be rather expensive, but it can help you save a significant amount of money over the course of the year. If you pay your auto insurance in monthly instalments, you will be basically taking out a loan from your insurance company with added interest rates. If you are able to pay the annual insurance cost upfront, you can end up saving 20 percent or even more depending on your insurance company.
- Shop Around
Shopping around and comparing insurers is one of the best ways to save on car insurance. Even if you are happy with the insurance company you are currently using, it is highly likely that you can save on renewal costs if you compare quotes from different providers.
Keep in mind that alternatives exist to big-name providers. A specialist insurance company can actually give you a better deal should you have a modified or powerful vehicle or be in a high-risk group.