Getting The Most Out Of Your Car Insurance Company!

Everyone knows that car insurance is way too expensive!

However, it’s also one of the most essential parts of modern life. In most of our states, car insurance is mandatory, and if you don’t have it you won’t be able to register your car and you can also lose your license while you’re at it. Problem is, there are too many options when it comes to insurance, and those options vary from state to state! For example: Texas insurance is totally different than New York insurance, and Pennsylvania insurance vastly differs from Florida insurance (I think Florida’s the worst, but could be wrong). So how does one find the best deal when shopping for insurance? Don’t worry, I’m here to help!

Are you paying too much for your auto insurance? If you believe that you are, then the following suggestions may help you wash off some of the grief and frustration that usually comes with the territory (and you’ll be saving some cash while you’re doing it):

Got a piece of crap car? Then drop your collision and/or comprehensive insurance. If your car is not worth much anyway, then why pay for these unnecessary costs that keep showing up on the bill? Did you know that the amount you pay for the deductible plus the amount you pay for the insurance may be more than the value of the car itself? Yes, you did? Then why are you still paying for these charges? Get rid of them!

Before buying, check insurance costs. Car insurance premiums are based on the car’s sticker price, the cost to repair it, its overall safety record, and the likelihood of theft (read: Mercedes SL-Class bad, Kia Spectra good). Insurers also offer huge discounts for features that reduce the risk of injuries, theft or death (things like OnStar and anti-theft devices). To help you decide what car is right for you, why not get information from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (or www.iihs.org for short)?

Keep a good credit record. Establishing a solid credit history will cut your insurance costs (a lot). The reason: insurers are increasingly using credit information to price auto insurance policies (not fair, I know, but true). To protect your credit standing, be sure to always pay your bills on time, don’t obtain more credit than you can afford and keep your credit balances as low as possible. Tip: check your credit record on a regular basis and have any errors fixed promptly!

After a wreck, ask for “diminished value”! This is an industry secret (read: they’re not advertising)! It will be difficult to get, they will even deny it exists, but many people have collected on it, so keep insisting. “Diminished value” compensates you for the loss of market value your car suffers after an accident. If you wreck your car and then have it repaired, it will be worth less (or worthless) when you go to sell, because no one wants a salvaged vehicle. Nobody! With this compensation, they’ll pay you for this loss of value incurred by the accident. Cool, huh?

Avoid insurance rip-offs! Steer clear of cheapie insurance agencies with stupid TV or radio ads claiming that they have the lowest prices. When I was young and dumb, I went through five insurance companies in five years, because they all low balled me. What is a low ball, you ask? Well, a month after signing, you’ll always get a letter stating that your policy is now $200 more due to a “Company Rate Error”. This is a low ball! It happens all the time, so go with a classier company like State Farm or Travelers. Also: try to only buy insurance from companies with an “A” rating (”B” rating at the lowest).

Insurance policies can be very confusing, and if you don’t understand what the different types of coverage mean, you could be leaving yourself financially exposed to companies that love to get more and give less. Always buy only as much insurance as you really need, while on the other hand making sure that they will cover anything that comes along.

I hate to get serious, but I must here: If you finance a car through a bank or car dealer, the lender will usually require some sort of full coverage. They will verify it with the insurance company and if you fall short of their limits (or play it dumb and not take out any coverage at all) they are going to buy it for you and send you a bill for an unbelievably, jacked up amount. This could be up to $4000, nearly 3 times the normal amount that most of us pay, so make sure your car is insured before you leave the lot.

I’ve been through some bad insurance policies before I discovered what I had to do to save! I hope this article helped you learn from my past mistakes!