The Importance of Insurance

The Importance of Insurance

Is It Really Possible To Save On Car Insurance Costs? Questions Every Family Should Ask

Katrina Terry

With fuel prices rising, many households have become increasingly focused on how much they are paying to own and drive the family vehicles. In addition to higher prices at the pump, vehicle owners must pay for taxes, permits, licensing, repairs, maintenance, and car insurance.

In urban areas, it may also be necessary to pay for parking. For financed vehicles, car payments are also a significant portion of the total costs of owning a vehicle. 

While many of these costs are unavoidable, it is often possible to find car insurance that provides reliable coverage at a cheaper cost. If you are increasingly concerned with the amount of your household budget that is being consumed by owning and operating the family vehicles, take action by asking these important questions.

Are your current vehicles raising the cost of your car insurance premiums? 

The cost of insurance should be considered as a routine part of the car shopping process, but unfortunately, it seldom is. Instead, prospective purchasers often succumb to the lure of a shiny dream car, often with a big engine or expensive extra equipment. 

Unfortunately, vehicles that fall into sporty, luxury, performance, and other special categories are usually much more expensive to cover with insurance. If lowering insurance premiums has become an important goal for your family, start by evaluating your current vehicles and what you are paying to insure them.

If you currently own vehicles that require higher insurance premiums, replacing them with generic, less costly models could offer significant savings on car insurance costs. 

Do any family members have unsafe driving habits? 

Speeding tickets, DUIs, and frequent accidents can all result in rising car insurance costs. While driving safely is always the best option, drivers who have existing offenses or accidents on their records may still be able to find ways to reduce their car insurance costs. 

Many car insurance companies offer lower insurance rates to some drivers who agree to install a monitoring device in their vehicle. These devices provide constant data on driving habits, such as miles driven and location. 

Installing these devices can help drivers drive more conservatively because they know they are being monitored each time they take the wheel. If your family is currently paying high-risk insurance for a driver who has struggled with unsafe driving habits in the past, speaking to your car insurance provider about monitoring devices may provide a way to make paying the monthly car insurance premiums a little less painful. 

Can you find ways to reduce the mileage driven each year? 

Families who want cheaper car insurance rates should also take time to examine how all household vehicles are currently being used. Insurance providers charge higher insurance premiums when vehicles are driven more than the industry standard number of miles each year. 

Therefore, finding ways to significantly reduce the number of miles family members drive can be an excellent way to receive cheaper insurance rates. Some good options families can use to reduce the total annual miles include: 

  • walking, biking, or carpooling to work, at least a few times each week
  • limiting shopping and errands to one or two trips per week, instead of making daily trips
  • having older students bike or ride the bus to school, instead of driving

How important is full coverage insurance? 

Car owners may also want to discuss dropping full coverage insurance on older cars that are paid off. Vehicles depreciate quickly, making it potentially possible to enjoy much cheaper insurance premiums through the use of liability coverage on certain older vehicles. 

The answers to these questions can enlighten vehicle owners and help them begin actively searching for solutions to high insurance costs. In addition, car owners should consider comparing their current rates with those offered by other insurance providers on a yearly basis and reviewing and updating their coverage on a regular basis. 

Contact an insurance agent to learn more about getting cheap car insurance.


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About Me
The Importance of Insurance

When you start thinking about getting insurance, it can be overwhelming to hear the advice from family and friends. While some people might encourage you to stockpile money and insure yourself, others might warn about the expense of paying for car repairs or a stay in the hospital. However, even the most conservative financial experts talk about the importance of having sound insurance. Because it can be difficult to find the right policies, I decided to create a website completely dedicated to providing free information about insurance. Every situation is different, but if you are like most people, you will need a decent homeowners, medical, auto, and life insurance policy to protect you from unforeseen circumstances.

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