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Nine Ways to Lower Your Auto Insurance Costs
You may not realize it, but the insurance rates you pay
for your car can vary dramatically depending on the
insurance company, agent or broker you choose, the
coverage you request and the kind of car you drive.
Listed below are a number of things you can do right
now to lower your insurance costs.
- Comparison shop. Prices for the same coverage can
vary by hundreds of dollars, so it pays to shop around.
Ask your friends, check the yellow pages or call your
state insurance department (1-801-538-3800). You can
also check consumer guides, insurance agents or
companies. This will give you an idea of price ranges
and tell you which companies or agent have the lowest
prices. But don't shop price alone.
- The insurer you select should offer both fair prices
and excellent service. Quality personal service may
cost a bit ore, but provides added conveniences, so
talk to a number of insurers to get a feeling for the
quality of their service. Ask them what they would do
to lower your costs. Check the financial ratings of
the companies, too. Then, when you've narrowed the
field to three insurers, get price quotes.
- Ask for higher deductibles. Deductibles represent
the amount of money you pay before you make a claim.
By requesting higher deductibles on collision and
comprehensive (fire and theft) coverage, you can lower
your costs substantially. For example, increasing your
deductible from $200 to $500 could reduce your collision
and comprehensive cost by 155 to 30%.
- Drop collision and/or comprehensive coverage on
older cars. It may not be cost effective to have
collision or comprehensive coverage on cars worth less
than $1,000 because any claim you make would not
substantially exceed annual cost and deductible amounts.
Auto dealers and banks can tell you the worth of cars.
(You can also check www.kbb.com to find retail and
resale values of cars.)
- Buy a low profile car. Before you buy a new or
used car, check into insurance costs. Cars that are
expensive to repair, or that are a favorite target for
thieves, have much higher insurance costs. Write to
the Insurance Instate for Highway Safety, 1005 North
Globe Road, Arlington, VA 22201 and ask for the Highway
Loss Data Chart.
- Take advantage of low mileage discounts. Some
companies offer discounts to motorists who drive less
than a predetermined number of miles per year.
- Consider insurance cost when making a move. Costs
tend to be lowest in rural communities and highest in
center cities where there is more traffic congestion.
Find out about automatic seat belt or air bag discounts.
You may be able to take advantage of discounts on some
coverage if you have automatic seat belt and/or air
bags.
- Eliminate duplicate medical coverage. If you have
adequate health insurance, you may be paying for
duplicate medical coverage in your auto policy. In
some states, eliminating this coverage could lower your
personal injury protection (PIP) cost by up to 40%.
- Inquire about other discounts. Some insurers offer
discounts for more than one car, no accidents in three
years, drivers over 50 years of age, driver training
courses, anti-theft devices, anti-lock brakes and good
grades for students.
For more information, call the National Insurance
Consumer Hotline at 1-800-942-4242.
Information from:
Insurance Information Institute
110 William Street
New York, NY 10038
(212) 669-9200