Effective ways to reduce your auto insurance bill

In a recession hit economy it can be very stressing paying steep bills one after another. While looking to cut costs, one area you can focus on is how to reduce your auto insurance bill. Since carrying auto insurance is a necessity in most states of the US, it’s never a good idea to do away with it completely, but you can tailor your policy and find other smart and easy to reduce auto insurance rates successfully.

Use public transport as often as you can and let your auto insurance

company know about it – The logic is very simple; the less you use your car, the

less you expose it to any kind of risk ; a good way to reduce auto insurance rates. So

walk, cycle, car pool or use public transport and make sure your auto insurance

company knows about it when it’s renewal time.

Choose a car that costs less to insure – This is something to do before you buy

your next car. The internet has made it very easy to conduct research online. There

are websites that let you know the average auto insurance rate of each car model.

Most auto insurance websites also have free quote calculators that let you get a fair

idea of how much your rate will be for a particular car. Make use of these to

ascertain the insurance rate so that you don’t get a nasty surprise when it’s time to

insure. You can reduce auto insurance rates by selecting a low risk safe car as

against a flashy sports car.

Maintain your car well – a well maintained car not only shows the auto insurance

company you take proper care of it and are less prone to being careless with it, it

also raises the bluebook value of your car in case you ever need to claim. Keep

pictures of your cars from different angles with you as also receipts of any parts

you’ve got installed, like new tires etc. This will make it much easier for you to be

able to get a fair claim for your well preserved auto. A safe car which is well

maintained will definitely help you reduce auto insurance rates.

Buy your teen driver a separate car – Anyone who has teen drivers at home will

know how rates hit the ceiling as soon as they are added to their parents’ policy. An

effective way to reduce auto insurance is to buy them a separate car, an old beater

for starters; and their own auto insurance. Not only will this keep your rates

manageable, but also in case your teen files any claim/ or gets any traffic violation

tickets (and they all do at some point) it will not go on your record, preventing

unnecessary rise in premiums.

Revisit your auto insurance policy – Few people take out the time to read their

policies once they have bought them. Over time situations change and your auto

insurance needs change accordingly. You might want to make revisions to your

policy to meet your present requirements.

o Drop unnecessary coverages if your car is now an old beater and you can

afford to pay off any damages to it out of pocket. Go over every auto

insurance coverage in detail and analyze if you really need it at this point. It’s

usually a good idea to drop collision once your car is over 7 years old and

comprehensive once it’s over 10 years old. Any claim you make after this

point will not amount to a significant value taking into account the deductibles

you’ll have to pay before claiming and your car’s blue book value. Dropping

collision and comprehensive alone will reduce your auto insurance rates

significantly.

o Choose the right deductibles – Selecting the right deductibles can easily

reduce auto insurance rates by anywhere between 10-40%! The higher your

deductibles, the lower will be the rates. Raising your deductible from $250 to

$1000 can get you huge savings but only do it if you can afford to shell the

$1000 out of pocket at short notice if need be. Another option can be raising

your deductibles really high for a short time to set some emergency money

aside. But remember that’s a gamble…anything can happen anytime!

o Grab all the discounts you can – Check with your agent about auto

insurance discounts that are available and work towards them. Defensive

driving certification, aircushions and anti-theft devices, low mileage, no claim

bonuses, multi car and multi-policy are some of the common ones. If you’ve

recently got married or crossed 25, these events will also reduce auto

insurance rates.

Get started on your auto insurance policy today and use these simple measures to reduce

auto insurance rates. Every dollar saved will add up to a substantial amount over time

taking some load off your pocket. Happy savings!