Car insurance, much like any other insurance product, always seems to be really expensive unless you actually have to use it, when suddenly it's the best purchase you ever made. Even so, there's no need to pay too much for this piece of mind so to help get the level of cover you need at the cheapest possible price there are several things you can do to try and convince potential insurers that you are a low risk.
When car insurers provide you with a quote they run through a model that assesses what the potential risk is to decide how much to charge you for your insurance. The lower risk you are, the less you're going to have to pay.
Here are a few of the things they consider when they're deciding how high the risk is so the more of these you can reassure them with, the lower your quote is likely to be:
- They'll ask you if your car is garaged overnight. This is because statistically cars left on the street at night run a much higher risk of theft or damage than if it's safely tucked away in a garage. Even having the car on a driveway can help.
- They'll ask you how many miles you drive. This one is obvious, the more miles you drive, the more chance you have of an accident. Try and be as accurate as possible with this one because an overestimate will cost you more.
- They'll ask you if you're married. Statistically people who are married have fewer accidents than single people and this is reflected in your premiums, particularly if you're under 30. It's a bit extreme popping the question to lower your car insurance, but if you're thinking about it anyway, why not?
- They'll ask you what your job is. Professional footballers crash cars much more often than accountants. If your job doesn't fall into one of their categories directly, make it sound very dull and safe.
- They'll ask you about additional drivers. If you're young, it can be a benefit having an older driver on your policy so it could be worth asking Dad, even if he's never going to drive your car.
- They'll ask you about accident excess. If you are prepared to pay more yourself in the event of an accident, they'll reduce your premium accordingly.
- They'll ask you about levels of cover. If you're driving a really old car fully comprehensive insurance might not be your best option. Consider a 3rd party option and run the risk of losing the car if you crash it.
- They'll ask you about your licence. If you've got endorsements for speeding they're got going to be impressed. Similarly, if you have advanced driving qualifications (you can do courses to improve your driving skills) they are going to be much more impressed.
There are other factors that they also take into consideration such as the area you live in, but as it seems a bit extreme moving house to lower your insurance premiums there's probably not much you can do about that.
Finally, once you've done your best to convince them that you're a low risk they should be providing you with a reduced premium. However, bear in mind that most insurers apply different weightings to the level of risk on each of these factors so you should always shop around to get the best deal.
