Getting your car insured can be an expensive process, so you need to think about how you can bring down those costs. Here are 8 ideas to help you out.
1. Increase the Excess
The excess on your insurance policy is the agreed amount of money that you have to pay before the insurer has to step in and cover the repair costs. Increasing the excess will mean that you have to pay more money before the insurer steps in. This means that they’ll be able to charge you less money for your coverage. This is the first change you should make if you want to bring down your insurance costs a bit.
2. Consider a Mileage Cap
How much do you drive your car? If the answer to that question is ‘not that much’, you should consider a mileage cap. This will allow the insurance company to monitor the amount of miles you drive and make sure that you don’t exceed a pre-agreed mileage limit. Because they can then ensure that the car will be on the road less, you won’t have to pay as much money to them for your insurance.
3. Park it Somewhere Safe
By parking your car somewhere safe, you can make sure that you keep your car insurance premiums down. This is because your car will be in less danger, and you will be less likely to make a claim on the policy. This allows your insurer the luxury of being able to charge less for your coverage. But you will need to let your insurer know about where you store the car, and they might ask for evidence. Storing the car in a locked garage is the safest option available.
4. Go Comprehensive
It always makes more sense to opt for comprehensive cover rather than third party cover or cover for theft. The irony is is that most comprehensive insurance policies provide you with better rates than third party insurance. So, it makes perfect sense to get the maximum level of cover you can get, especially if it’s cheaper to do so. Of course, everyone wants something different from their insurance cover, so weigh up the options and decide what’s right for you.
5. Compare Offers
There are so many different insurers out there nowadays. You only have to do a quick Google search to find literally hundreds of companies that are willing to offer you insurance cover. So, you need to make sure that you explore all these offers to find out which offers the best value for money for you and your car. The big car insurance companies can help you with this, but there are also lots of companies that aren’t on comparison sites. ComparaEnCasa and other small insurers should also be considered.
6. Don’t Use it for Work
If you’re someone who uses your car for your work, you should either let your insurer know this, or stop using it for work. This is because your insurer will probably refuse to pay out on the policy if they find out that you failed to tell them about using the car for your work purposes. If you refuse to pay out, you could be faced with having to pay a huge bill to your mechanic, and that’s not what you want, is it?
7. Don’t Claim
It’s always better to not claim on your policy if you can. This won’t always be possible, but if it is, it can be a great way of keeping your future premiums as low as possible. If the insurer thinks that you crash a lot and claim on your policy a lot, they’ll make you pay more money to have your car insured. It’s as simple as that. So, if you have a crash, but the repairs are pretty cheap, you should think about paying for them out of your own pocket rather than relying on your insurance policy.
8. Fit a Black Box
A black box is a device that allows your insurer to monitor the way in which you’re driving. This gives them the assurance that you’re driving carefully and not putting your car at risk. This means that by insuring your car for you, they’ll know that they’re not taking a huge risk. This actively rewards people who are careful drivers, so if you think your driving is good, make the most of it with a black box. It’s a device that the insurer will pay for in most cases, so you probably won’t even incur any cost.
