Car insurance is expensive. And there are factors that will affect the cost of your policy that you can do nothing about. For example – age does matter – as does sex. If you’re a 25 year old male you are going to pay a lot more than a 35 year old female. But there are ways to negotiate a better rate with your provider.
Building up your no-claims discount is one of the best ways to reduce the cost of your premium. Although each provider will have its own scale, most offer a no-claims discount of up to 70 percent for drivers who haven’t claimed for a number of years – usually five. It’s also worth ‘protecting’ this discount if you have reached the maximum threshold as it means that if you have an accident your no-claims record will remain intact. Of course protecting your no-claims is going to cost – but not nearly as much as if a) you didn’t have the maximum no claims discount applied to your premium and b) if you have an accident and your no-claims is not protected you will lose a percentage of it when you come to renew your car insurance, typically 15-20 percent, as well as reducing the number of no-claims years on your policy.
Don’t automatically assume that when your insurance comes up for renewal that your incumbent provider will offer you the best deal. Many companies offer their best deals to new customers and then push the premiums up in subsequent years. So if you’ve received a cracking deal with a new insurer the chances are that your premium will be considerably higher next year regardless of whether you’ve got a perfect driving record or not!
You may want to consider swapping your car for a less expensive model. High end luxury cars and sports models are extremely expensive to insure – as are vehicles that contain uncommon parts. Smaller, less expensive models that are popular will cost you less to insure – and less to run for that matter!
Do your research. Use website comparison sites to see what’s on offer. Call a number of companies up to find out what your options are. Find out from friends and family who they use and whether they recommend any specific companies. If you find a provider that’s offering you what seems like a very good deal, and they are not an organisation that you are familiar with, get onto Google and do a search for them – remember – if a deal sounds too good to be true then it probably is! You need to check out what other customers are saying about them before you part with your hard earned cash. Check that they payout on claims and that they have a history of good customer service.
When you are speaking with an agent ask a lot of questions. Be honest with them, otherwise you may find that, in the event you need to make a claim your policy is void! It’s helpful to write down any questions that you want to ask before speaking with the agent so you don’t forget what you want to find out. And never, ever buy a policy from an agent who is putting pressure on you to make a decision there and then. Agents work on commission – the more you pay the more they get in their pay packet! Some over-zealous individuals are more interested in what they are going to earn from you than getting you the best deal. You need be dealing with an agent, and a provider, who asks questions and finds out what your specific requirements are. If this is not forthcoming continue your search until you find someone you are happy with.