How to Get a cheap auto insurance quote

Many things are factored into calculating an auto insurance quote. Things like your type of car, sports car, SUV, or clunker. It’s also based on who you are…your age, sex, marital status, etc. And of course, your driving habits and history. Have you been in a few car accident? Some of that you can’t change, but there are some things you can. Here are some tips on how a car insurance quote is calculated, and what you can do to keep your premiums to a minimum. The main thing is shop around…a lot. Use an online insurance quote comparison service. There are other insurance consulting services that will do the comparisons for you, usually for free. Get as many quotes as you can, Geico, Progressive, Essurance, Allstate, State Farm, Nationwide, just to name a few, and play them against each other. The more companies you look at, and the more quote comparisons you get, the more likely you will be to get a cheap car insurance quote.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Drive a high-production model. One of the things an insurance company considers is how easy it will be to repair or replace parts of your cars. If you have an accident, the more ubiquitous your car is on the market, the more available the parts are to the body shop, which means the collision repair will be cheaper. This goes for more than just the exact make and model…many different cars are actually built on the same drive-train and use essentially the same parts. For example, did you know that the Toyota Matrix, the Toyota Corolla, and the Pontiac Vibe all have the same drive-train?

2. High performance cars will cost you. Before you let a car dealership slick talk you into that sports car or luxury model, think long and hard about where you’re actually driving it. Do you really need to cruise the strip malls of surburban America in a flashy sports car that goes 0-60 in under 4 seconds? In fact, can you even think of a single time you’ve really NEEDED to hit 60mph that fast…ever? That’s what I thought. Performance and/or luxury cars will cost you more over the long haul than any other type…high fuel costs, high maintenance costs, and yes, high insurance premiums.

3. Buy used, not new. Enough said.

4. Red, black, and yellow cars have higher insurance premiums. Blue, white, champagne and variations on those have lower premiums.

5. Consider whether you need comprehensive, collision, or liability. If you're driving an old piece of crap you are probably better off not having comprehensive collision coverage. Just do liability to cover your butt against personal injury lawsuits and drive carefully.

6. Safety features = lower insurance premiums. ABS (antilock breaks), anti-theft system, air bags, side impact air bags, automatic locking seatbelts, crash resistant door pillars, head restraints, night vision display, airbag shut-off switch, back-up sensing systems, crumple zones, traction control, electronic stability systems, and integrated child booster seats, are a few, but not all safety features that will help lower your car insurance premiums.

7. MOST IMPORTANT: Stay out of trouble. A clean driving record is probably a bigger factor than anything else. If you are a conservative driver and your record shows it, you will be rewarded by the insurance companies. Drive defensively, don’t drive drunk, don’t get a DUI or DWI, and don’t get speeding tickets.

8. Other factors that you probably can’t help: Men have higher premiums than women (I know, it just doesn’t make sense!) Married men have lower premiums than single men. Men over 25 have lower premiums. The fewer licensed drivers in the same household the better. Shorter commutes to work (usually less than 15 miles) are better than long ones. Parking off the street is preferable, even better if it’s in a garage.

9. Talk to your insurance company and ask what else you can do. For example, a friend of mine got his premium lowered for enrolling in a special defensive driving seminar.

Tips & Warnings

• If a plain high production car doesn’t appeal to your individuality, pimp it out with any number of after-market gadgets and decals.

[bestmommy]

on 8/20/2009 This is so true--I also suggest not staying with the same insurance company for too long. You'll notice that your premiums will go up little by little everytime you renew the policy and this will add up over the years. Every 2-3 years shop around again to see if you can find another company that'll beat your current rates. I cut my premiums in half by switching from Allstate to Geico after using Allstate for 15 years.