Reduce your Car Insurance Rates

Top tips for reducing car insurance rates

The key to reducing your car insurance policy’s monthly premiums lies in tailoring your insurance policy to provide cover that is specifically relevant to your own insurance needs, while simultaneously acting responsibly in order to keep your personal risk profile low.

Follow the below car insurance tips to ensure that you get the best car insurance coverage at the best rates when next you’re in the market for a car insurance policy.

Shop around

Shopping around will help you find the most competitive car insurance rates and the best levels of insurance cover. Talk to your friends or colleagues who are in similar situations to your own, and find out which car insurance policy works for them. A great idea is to request a number of online car insurance quotes to give you an idea of what the averaging insurance rates are.

Opting to sign up for the car insurance policy with the lowest rates is not always wise. Consider factors such as the level of insurance cover, the conditions of cover as well as aspects such as client service and the excess you will be responsible for in the event of a car accident.

Combine your car and household insurance

South African car insurance companies that sell household, personal liability and car insurance policies will reduce your insurance premiums if you use two or more of their insurance policy products. While you’re shopping around, be sure to check that a combination insurance policy costs less than actually signing up for car insurance, household insurance and personal liability cover, respectively!

Make your home safer

Fitting burglar bars, an alarm system or even a smoke detection system will have a positive impact on your household insurance rates, or overall insurance premiums.

Increase your insurance excess amount

Increasing the excess amount on your vehicle insurance policy will lower your monthly premiums; yet you will need to be able to spend a relatively large sum of money in the event of an accident. If you cannot afford to raise your excess, then don’t. Saving a little bit of money per month is not worth ruining your budget over.

Excess amounts are the amount of money you have to pay toward a loss before your insurance company starts to pay a claim, according to the terms of your policy. The higher your excess, the more money you can save on your premiums.

Stick with one insurance company

If you’ve kept your policy with a company for several years and you’ve not submitted any car or other insurance claims, you may be eligible for a rebate on your premiums! Dial Direct Insurance, for example, features a Bucks Back Bonus every four years. This means that you get your first year’s insurance premiums back after the four-year period has passed!

Review your insurance premium annually

Review your insurance policy each year to make sure that you are still sufficiently covered. Also get some comparative insurance quotes online to ensure that you’re getting the best insurance cover and benefits at the best rates.

Use these insurance tips to keep your car or household insurance premiums as low as possible!

Car insurance tips to suit a tight budget

Just starting out or serious about getting a really affordable car insurance policy? Take note of the following pointers to keep your car insurance policy costs down to a bare minimum…

Buy a safe, “ordinary” car

The more expensive your car, the more expensive your insurance premiums. If your car has sporty modifications – especially to the engine – insurance companies have statistically determined that the driver will be more inclined to speed – and speeding causes accidents. To make matters worse, modified cars are more likely to get stolen! By opting to buy a safe, average car, you will definitely reap the benefits in terms of affordable car insurance premiums.

Cars with ABS brakes, airbags and other safety features also fall into a lower risk category. As such, insurance rates for these will be lower, even if the cost of the car is relatively higher.

Combine your car insurance and household cover

Combining car and household insurance policies tends to reduce insurance premiums. So if you have valuables you’d like to insure, it may be wise to consult your insurance company about one insurance policy to cover both these areas.

Keep your insurance claims record clean

Don’t submit an insurance claim if you merely scratched your car. Pay for repairs out of your own pocket if the damages amount to less than your insurance policy’s excess. Less scrupulous mechanics will often be more likely to quote you a lower price if they’re aware that you’re paying for it out of your own pocket! This means that your risk profile won’t get higher unnecessarily, while it’ll also keep your car insurance rates down.

Ask for a discount

Tell the insurance consultant if you think a car insurance quote is too high. If the insurance company really wants your business, they may well be willing to give you a discount!

[Source: http://www.4-car-insurance.com/reduce-you-car-insurance-rates.html]