If you own a car or even if you just occasionally drive one, you need to have automobile insurance. Auto insurance rates can be influenced by a number of factors, ranging from what kind of car you drive to where you live to how good your credit score is. While there are some factors that are out of your control, there are some things you can do to ensure you don’t pay too much for your full coverage car insurance.
Shop around
A surefire way to find cheap auto insurance is to get a variety of estimates. If you work with an independent insurance agent, he or she can get you quotes from several different insurers. You also can shop around for insurance on your own. You can get quotes via websites or over the phone. Be prepared to give some detailed information to get the most accurate rates, and be sure you are comparing the same information with each quote.
Don’t make monthly payments
Another way to get cheap full car insurance is to not make monthly payments. Insurance companies usually will give you a discount if you pay either six months or a full year of your premiums rather than paying a month at a time. This discount can be substantial, as much as 5 or 10% less than what you would pay in premiums on a monthly basis. Making such large payments at once may be a hardship, but if you can handle the financial hit, it’s worth it to get cheap auto insurance.
Get all available discounts
People who aren’t getting the cheapest full coverage auto insurance may be missing out on discounts that are available to them. Underwriting should uncover the discounts for which you qualify, but sometimes things can get missed. If you think you should be getting a discount for which you qualify, such as a safe driver, accident free or something else, make sure to ask your agent. These discounts can give you a big break on your car insurance premium, so if you aren’t getting them, it’s money coming out of your pocket.
Get a higher deductible
The deductible is the amount of money you pay out of pocket for each claim, so the higher your deductible, the lower your premiums will be. A higher deductible means lower risk for the insurance company, which is why it leads to lower rates. If you have a $500 deductible, for example, consider raising it to $750 or $1,000. Doing so will help you get cheaper full coverage car insurance.
Bundle policies
Insurers give discounts to customers who have multiple policies with them. So if you are getting your car insurance from one company and home or renters insurance from another company, look into combining them with the same insurer. Doing so could get you a discount of 5-10% on each policy.
Don’t get more insurance than you need
Even with full coverage, you can wind up with too much insurance. For example, don’t set the limits too high on coverage amounts. And don’t get extra insurance coverage beyond what is considered full coverage. Keeping your full coverage to the absolute minimum you need to have will help keep your premiums down.
There are a number of ways to ensure you don’t pay too much for car insurance. Following these tips will help ensure that you get the full automobile insurance coverage that you need while only paying the minimum amount necessary.
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