Tips for buying car insurance
Wednesday, 13 January 2010
The price of car insurance is a significant part of your motoring costs each year, it's worth knowing more about the factors that affect the premium you are quoted so you can look at saving more money on your car insurance. This guide contains general tips to help you save money when buying your car insurance.
Car Insurance Group
Nearly all new cars launched in the UK are assigned an insurance group rating between 1 and 20 by the Association of British Insurers (ABI). The car insurance group is a measure of how expensive your car is to repair, how powerful it is and how secure it is. Rating group 1 would be a very small and cheap car and rating group 20 a high-powered or very expensive model. Insurance companies use this information to determine how much to charge you for the car you have chosen and it is one of the factors that will make the biggest difference to your price. The more powerful a car is, the more likely it is to be involved in high speed accidents (which cost more to repair than lower speed accidents).
If you want to know the ABI group of a car, there are a number of car guide websites which will give you the information you need. It's worth noting though that the ABI group is only a recommendation insurers will amend the rates if they have their own opinion on a specific car, so it's worth shopping around.
Driving a smaller car is the best way to cut the cost of insurance.
Car value
The value of your car will make a difference when searching for a cheap car insurance quote. If your car is worth £50,000 rather than £5,000, it will cost your insurance company ten times as much to replace your vehicle in the event that it is stolen or written off. It is important that you do not underestimate the value of your car when you buy car insurance, as your car insurance company is very unlikely to pay you more if you make a claim for your car.
Car security
If your car is high risk for theft your car insurance company may request that you have additional security fitted.
In addition, some insurers may offer you a discount if you have fitted a car alarm, immobiliser or tracking device.
Vehicle use
Your policy and certificate will confirm the uses you are covered for in your car. This might be using your car to driver to and from work (commuting) or driving to different sites of work (business use). If you ever use your car in connection with work, you should make sure that your policy covers this as otherwise you may not be able to make a claim.
Some companies will not offer to cover any goods or samples carried in connection with business use, and you may need to go to a specialist broker if this is the car insurance you need.
Social, domestic and pleasure.
This covers drivers for normal day to day driving, such as a visit to family, friends or to go shopping.
Commuting.
This covers a drive to and from the normal place of work and includes travelling and parking at a railway station.
Business use.
This covers using your car in connection with your job, such as driving to different sites away from your place of work.
Commercial travelling.
This covers the car to be used for such things as door-to-door sales.
Mileage
The fewer miles you drive, the less likely you are to have an accident and your insurance premium will reflect your lower usage. It is important to be realistic about how many miles you drive and be honest with your car insurance company, as it could affect you when trying to buy car insurance.
Car Age
Older cars often attract discounts for comprehensive insurance premiums as the value of the car is lower. In general, the newer the car, the higher the price when buying car insurance.
Car Insurance Advice Home