Six Ways to Cut the
Cost of Your Auto Insurance
By Douglas Hanna
Is your auto insurance bill $12000 a year or even
higher? It's not unusual for auto insurance to cost this
much these days. But it doesn't necessarily have to cost
this much. There are ways to reduce these costs. It
might take a bit of work but it is possible to cut that
insurance bill by a substantial amount.
Tip #1: Get at least three price quotes. You can call
companies to get quotes or get them directly via the
Internet. You can also call your state insurance
department, as it may be able to provide you with a
comparison of prices charged by the major carriers in
your state. Also, get price quotes from different kinds
of insurance companies. Some sell through their own
agents. Others sell through independent agents who often
represent several different companies. Other companies
have no agents and sell direct to the consumer via the
phone or Internet.
Tip #2: Check insurance costs before buying that next
car. Did you know that insurance premiums are based on
the car's cost, the cost to repair it, its overall
safety record and the likelihood of its being stolen?
You can often get a discount from insurers if the car
you are buying has a great safety record or if it's
designed to reduce the risk of death.
Tip #3: See what you could save with higher deductibles.
Higher deductibles can lower your insurance costs
substantially. For example, if you increase your
deductible on collision and comprehensive coverage from,
say, $300 to $500, you could reduce your costs by as
much as 15 to 30 percent. Move up to a $1,000 deductible
and you might save 40 percent or more.
Tip #4: Reduce the coverage on older cars. If you have
one or more older cars, consider dropping the collision
coverage entirely. If your car is worth ten times the
premium, buying collision coverage just may not be worth
it. You can find out what your car is worth by
contacting your bank's auto loan department or you can
look it up online at www.kbb.com (Kelly Blue Book).
Tip #5:Buy your auto insurance from the same company
that has your homeowners insurance. All the major
insurers offer both homeowners and auto insurance and
will give you a nice discount if you buy both types of
policies from them. You may also qualify for a discount
if you insure several vehicles with the same company.
Some companies even offer discounts for long-time
customers.
Tip #6: Keep a good credit record. Auto insurance
companies are using credit information more and more
often to price their policies. Make sure you maintain a
good credit history by paying bills on time, and by
keeping your credit card balances as low as possible.
Also, be sure to check your credit record regularly.
That way, if errors occur, you can quickly correct them
to keep your credit record clean and accurate.
Article by Douglas Hanna. Douglas is a retired
advertising and marketing executive and author of the
book 198 Tips & Tricks to Save Money and live Better.
He is the webmaster of http://www.all-in-one-info.com, a
free resource for information on a variety of subjects.
Please visit his site to subscribe to his free
newsletter, Tips & Tricks to Save Money & Live Better.
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