Money-Saving Tips for the Savvy Driver

When it comes to car insurance, it pays to be proactive. If you let your policy automatically roll over, you might be shocked to see your premium go up, while your insurer advertises lower prices to newer customers! While you can’t always avoid price increases, you can take steps to get the best deal possible on your car insurance.

Here are 5 money-saving tips for the savvy driver:

Make sure you’re comparing like-for-like coverage

When you’re comparing policies side-by-side, have a look through the small print to determine that they’re both offering the same thing. One policy might be cheaper, but it may not cover you for as much money, for example. Make sure you’re looking at policies that offer what you need rather than purely how cheap they are.

Check for any hidden fees

Many insurers also charge fees for making any changes to your policy. This means that if you move house, change jobs, or switch cars, then as well as paying for any difference in price, you’ll also have to pay your insurer a fee to amend the details for you. Keep that in mind when you’re figuring out which policy will be the cheapest for you.

Check the mileage you’ve estimated

Drivers often overestimate, by an average of 15%, because they’re worried about guessing too low, and being penalised by their insurer. But this can result in paying too much for car insurance. You can look at your previous years or think about how far you drive every week to get a pretty accurate estimate.

Read reviews online

Perhaps this is already second nature to you, but the best way to get a feel for where to spend your money is to read first-hand reports from customers themselves and see what the service is like. Time is money, so it might not be a good idea to get locked into a year-long policy with a company that never answers the phone or takes ages to respond to your requests for help. Better still, if you already have an insurance policy with that company (such contents or liability) you will already know what they are like to deal with.

And above all, go with an insurer you can depend on

Insurance is about trust. You’re paying for protection and support if the worst happens and you need help, so you need to feel comfortable with your insurance provider.

Of course, if money is tight, you might decide the cheap price for car insurance with them is just too tempting. But if you go with an insurer that can’t be reliably depended on, even if they’re the cheapest, remember that it could end up costing you a whole lot more.