Auto insurance can be expensive, but there are ways to get your insurance cheaper, so you can spend your money where you want to instead of on expensive premiums. Here are three ways you can save cash through paying upfront, shopping around, and designing your own plan.
1. Pay Up Front
You may think insurance costs too much to pay up front, but if you pay for a year or six months instead of monthly, you'll save yourself a substantial amount of money.
Some companies charge as much as $10 extra per month for insurance when you pay monthly. Add that up for a year, and you have to spend an additional $120 on your insurance in total. That's $120 you could be spending on car repairs, groceries, or other activities.
2. Shop Around: Look for Insurance Discounts
The average cost of auto insurance for a two-person household in America is $1,047. Who wants to spend that much money on insurance? Hardly anyone. To save some money:
- Adjust your deductible. If you opt to pay $300 instead of $100 in the case of an accident or necessary repairs, your insurance cost will drop.
- Ask about discounts for veterans, military members, college graduates, and students. Sometimes, you can save big for the groups and organizations you've been involved with.
- If you're over 55, ask about a discount. Most people over 55 receive discounts on insurance for their vehicles as well as at local stores and shops.
3. Design Your Own Insurance
Some insurance companies now allow you to design your own plan. This is an extraordinary way to save cash, because you determine exactly which add-ons you want to have on your plan. Here are some extras you may want to remove to save some cash. You always have to have liability insurance, but some options may not be necessary.
- Something like roadside assistance could cost extra to have on your plan. If you opt to remove it, you could save a few dollars each month.
- Your deductible makes a difference. If it's set to $0, that means you never have to pay out of your own pocket in an emergency, but you also have to pay a larger amount each month for your insurance. Opt for as high of a deductible as you can afford in an emergency to save some dough.
- Accidental damage coverage may be able to be dropped. This covers accidents and damage you cause on your own, not the damage that would come from a car crash or damage caused by someone else. Dropping the amount of coverage or eliminating coverage will save you money.
These are just a few ideas of how you can save money on your insurance. Talk to providers such as The Flechsig Insurance Agency Inc; you have more options than you think.