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.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/
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