Car insurance is something we all have to pay for, no matter how much we despise it. However, it’s not all bad. There is light at the end of the tunnel, as there are several things you can do to reduce your car insurance payments. We have teamed up with RAC Shop to put together a simple list of quick fixes on how to lower your car insurance legally.
Shop Around
Never take the first quote you find to be the only price that you should be paying for your insurance. Whether you’re looking for new insurance or you are looking to renew your current insurance shopping around and comparing car insurance prices can save you a significant amount of money. This also helps you find the best possible deal. Staying loyal to your current insurer can, in some cases, be a hindrance and could lead to paying more and more each time you renew your insurance.
Pay Up Front
Once you have found an insurer that you are happy with and have found the best deal for your vehicle, it is always a far better idea to pay in full upfront rather than in instalments. When you sign up to pay monthly, insurers are far more likely to charge you interest on top of your base fee. Which can sometimes be up to around 30% APR, which is precisely what you want to try and avoid.
Pay For What You Use
People may think that you are likely to get the best deal when paying for a third party fire and theft policy rather than a comprehensive one. However, the team at RAC Shop would recommend always going comprehensive, which can be cheaper than a lower level protection plan. Some insurers associate third party fire and theft policies with high-risk drivers that are looking for the most affordable option and would therefore automatically charge you more as a result.
Avoid adding modifications to your car
It may be tempting to get carried away with adding modification after modification to your vehicle, however even changing the simplest of things such as upgrading your stereo or speakers can increase rather than decrease the price of your insurance premium. This is because the more modifications you make to your vehicle, the more desirable your car is to thieves. Modifying any part of the car’s body or engine, for example, are something to be avoided, as vehicles with these modifications incur higher insurance premium prices as they tend to be driven by younger drivers who are at a higher risk of crashing.
However, not all modifications mean your insurance price will skyrocket. Car alarms and dash cams added will reduce your insurance price. Some insurers even offer up to 10% off your insurance if you fit a dash cam to your vehicle. You are improving safety whilst decreasing your payment. What more could you want? Remember, it is essential to declare any modification you make to your car for any claims that are made not to be rejected.
Add a Black Box
A black box is a small tracking device that is widely used especially with young or new drivers, which allows insurance companies to see how well you drive and as a result, can significantly reduce your insurance.
Although adding a black box has an abundance of perks, it can also cause limitations to your driving. For example, you may be penalised for driving later at night. The other thing to note is that you will be paying for the black box every month. This allows the insurance company to re-evaluate your driving each month, where you can be rewarded with lower insurance prices for good behaviour or punished with a higher price if any rules are broken, or they deem you’re driving unsafe.
Maintain a Good Credit Score
Maintaining your credit score has seen many people reduce their insurance premium. Most insurers will use your credit information to help determine a price for your insurance premium. It has been researched and proven that people who manage their credit will tend to have fewer claims. This can be done by ensuring all bills are paid on time, obtaining only the amount of credit you need, and keeping credit balances as low as you can. All can help reduce the insurer’s policy prices.
Reduce Your Mileage
Regularly reviewing and considering how much mileage you are realistically likely to use will ensure you are paying the correct amount. If you are looking at ways to reduce this price, the less mileage you rack up, the lower your premium price will be, whereas the higher the mileage, the higher the price. If you are overestimating how much your annual mileage will be, you are effectively, just throwing money away. Keeping track of your mileage each year will make things easier when estimating your yearly mileage the next time around. Be careful not to underestimate, however, as this may end up costing you more if you need to claim on your insurance.
