If you have ever added up the amount of money you spend to drive your car, the experience was likely an eye-opening one. Vehicle loan payments, personal property tax bills, maintenance, tires, fuel, car washes, parking, and car insurance premiums quickly add up to take a very large bite from the average monthly household budget. While some of these costs cannot be easily reduced, your car insurance premiums may be much higher than they need to be. If realizing lower car insurance premiums is a goal you would enjoy reaching, make sure you are not making the following mistakes.
Letting your credit get dinged
Car owners may be surprised to learn that being late to pay the mortgage or credit card bills can have a direct effect on the insurance rates they are quoted for their vehicles. This happens when late or missed payments are reported to the credit bureau, causing your credit rating to fall. Since your vehicle insurance company routinely checks your credit rating before offering you a policy quote, these dings on your credit can ratchet up the amount you are quoted.
Driving a car that is known to be at higher risk for theft
One of the ways in which vehicle insurance providers assess risk is by tracking the models that are most often targeted for car thieves. If your car is included on this list, you are most likely being charged a higher rate for insurance than you would if you chose to drive a car that failed to make this particular top ten.
You may be surprised to learn that many of the cars that thieves found most attractive are not newer or high-end models. Instead, many are older vehicles that have some feature that makes them more lucrative for chop shops or some flaw that makes them easier to steal. The most recent list of cars that fall into this category includes older Hondas (both the 1998 Civic and the 1997 Accord), the 2006 model Ford F-150, and the 2004 Chevy Silverado.
Failing to shop periodically for better rates
When vehicle owners get too comfortable with their auto insurance provider and just automatically renew at the end of each term, they may be missing out on lower rates for coverage that is the same or even better than what they currently have.
If you are coming to the end of your current vehicle policy term and would like to save money on future auto insurance coverage, make an appointment to speak with auto insurance providers in your area and compare coverage costs before making your decision.
Do you remember the last time you experienced an accident or an injury? Life can surprise you sometimes, which is why it is always smart to have a few life insurance policies in place. I used to think about everything that I had and everything that I could lose, and it occurred to me that I couldn't risk taking any chances. I wanted to begin this blog to share my perspective with other people, so that you don't have to worry about finding the right insurance company. Read more here to figure out what you need to do to choose a better plan.