It’s an unfortunate fact that costs are rising and that this is hitting our pockets hard. As a result, you may be looking for ways to slim down your spending. This may include how much you pay for your Car Insurance.
To help you save some pounds, we’ve put together 8 handy tips on how you can give your Car Insurance premium a bit of a trim.
1. Shop around
This is age-old advice, but it really is worth shopping around for better deals.
To get an idea of the best prices, chat to an independent broker like us to search the market for you. Alternatively, check out Car Insurance comparison sites. If you do the latter, make sure you take a look at several websites. Different sites will have access to different schemes, so you could miss out on an attractive deal if you just stick to one.
If you do find a better quote, always go back to your current insurer to tell them. You never know, they may be able to match the new quote or even better it.
2. Report any changes
If your circumstances have changed, you may find that your risk level has reduced. This could mean that your Car Insurance premium can be lowered.
For instance, if your driving mileage has reduced or you now park your car on the driveway or in a garage, you could save some money. To find out, ring up your Car Insurance provider to see what they can do for you.
3. Increase your excess
A higher excess cuts the risk for your insurer as it means that they will have to pay out less money if a claim is made. A reduced risk means cheaper premiums. However, before you explore this option, make sure you can afford to pay the excess should the worst happen.
4. Remove additional benefits
To cut down your Car Insurance costs, you may also want to think about removing additional benefits.
Extra Personal Accident cover and Breakdown cover, for instance, can all bump up the price. But you need to weigh up the benefits of this additional cover carefully. Don’t remove it if you think you will benefit from it.
5. Consider your level of cover
If you want to save money on your Car Insurance, you may want to re-examine your cover levels altogether.
For instance, you may want to downgrade your comprehensive or third party, fire and theft cover to third party only.
Third party cover offers the minimum amount of required Car Insurance. However, this doesn’t automatically make it the cheapest. To find out, shop around and speak to your insurer to see if it is a more cost-effective choice for you.
Remember: before you make the switch, make sure you are 100% comfortable with the level of cover chosen.
6. Explore different payment options
Some car insurers offer a little flexibility when it comes to choosing how to pay. If you can afford to pay the whole premium in one go, it is well worth doing this. Paying monthly by direct debit may spread out the cost, but it may also mean that you pay interest. This will end up costing you more.
If you do have to pay monthly, ask the insurer if there is the possibility of paying interest-free for a set time.
7. Named drivers
When it comes to adding named drivers to your policy, it’s a good idea to weigh up some different options. For instance, you may find that you benefit from additional discounts if you opt for Insured & Spouse, as opposed to Insured Only.
8. Add extra security
Some cars are more risky to insurers, which means that they will be more expensive to insure. Keyless cars, for instance, have become prime targets for thieves in recent years.
If you have a car that is attractive to thieves, you may want to install some extra security measures. This may not reduce your premium straight away, but if more car owners are able to prevent thefts, the cost of insuring these vehicles will drop over time.
Talk to us about your Car Insurance
We hope that this article has given you some useful tips on how to save money on your Car Insurance.
To find out more about Car Insurance premiums, you can read about how they are calculated in our article. Alternatively, you can get in touch with our experienced team.
