Getting Best Insurance Rates for Used Cars

Buying a used car is exciting whether it be your first or your tenth. However, sometimes the cost of car insurance on the vehicle you have chosen tempers some of your excitement. Here are some tips you can use to save money on the insurance rates on your next used car.

Shop for Insurance before Shopping for a Car

One way to save on car insurance is to buy a car that is affordable to insure. This requires a little forward thinking because if you do not know which cars are affordable to insure before you start car shopping, you could end up buying something that will cost you an arm and a leg for insurance.

Before you talk to your insurance broker or provider, have an idea in mind about the type of car you want. For instance, you may be in the market for a used sports car, or you may need a family vehicle, like a mini van. Then, contact your insurance agent to see which cars in that category have the best insurance rates. You may even want to throw out a few models that you are considering. This is not perfect, however, because you might find an affordable insurance for 2001model, whereas insurance for a 2003 model of the same car could be expensive.

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Keep Your Driving Record Clean

Another way to save money on your car insurance rates is to drive safely. If your record is free of tickets and accidents you are likely to get a more affordable insurance on your car than those with a checkered driving history. If you do have a ticket or other mark on your record, talk to the Division of Motor Vehicles in your state to find out what you can do to remove or lessen the mark. Sometimes you can take a class in order to drop a ticket from your record. Also, find out when the mark will automatically fall off of your record. When this happens, your insurance rates will decrease.

Raise Your Deductible

A deductible is the amount of money you agree to pay out of your pocket. This money must be paid before your insurance carrier will pay your claim. If you increase your deductible, you will lower your insurance rate. However, make sure you do not raise the deductible too high. You would not want your deductible to be so high that you would be paying more than the car is worth in a deductible. Also, make sure the deductible amount is something you can actually afford. Set some money aside in a savings account to cover the deductible amount should you some day need it.

Purchase Multiple Policies

Whether you purchase policies on more than one vehicle or you purchase your homeowners policy from the same provider that you purchase your car insurance policy, purchasing more than one insurance product from the same company will help you reduce the cost of your insurance. Insurance companies almost always offer incentives to customers to encourage them to purchase more than one insurance product. With these discounts, you will save quite a bit of money. Also, in many cases the longer you stay with your insurance provider, the lesser you will pay for your coverage, as insurance companies like to reward their long-term customers.

Avoid Purchasing Full Coverage

If you are purchasing an older used car, you probably do not need to pay for full coverage. Of course, if you have the car financed, your lender will probably require full coverage. Otherwise, you may be paying for insurance that you don't really need or want.

To decide whether or not, you need full insurance on your vehicle, you need to determine how much it is worth. You can look up the value in Kelley's Blue Book. Then, calculate how much you are spending on your insurance premium and decide if full coverage would benefit you if the car were totaled. If you are paying over $2,000 a year for full coverage on a car that is only worth $3,000, due to its age, you are paying too much and can afford to drop some coverage options.

You can save money on your car insurance if you know where to look. Take some time to shop around for the most affordable insurance company, purchase a car that is cheap to insure, and look for any other discounts you can find. Soon you will have a new car and an affordable insurance policy!

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