Save Money on Your Car Insurance
At CVS we appreciate insurance premiums can be a costly addition that nobody particularly enjoys paying, especially when you are on a budget. To that end we have put together some tips we hope will save you some money. We work closely with insurance brokers who understand our customers’ requirements, and would be more than happy to put you in touch with one of them.
1. Limit your mileage
Fewer annual miles means you’re a lower risk for insurers, and cheaper to insure. Do give an accurate estimate of your mileage when getting a quote otherwise your policy could be invalid.
2. Pay annually
Paying your car insurance in a lump sum is cheaper than paying monthly, where interest will be added.
3. Increase your voluntary excess
Choose a higher voluntary excess to reduce the price of your insurance. Make sure you can afford the excess if you do end up having to pay it.
Your excess is a fixed amount you pay if you have to make a claim. So, if you choose an excess amount of £250 and make a claim for £1000, the insurance company will reimburse you the remaining £750. The higher the excess, the lower your premiums will be, however it is good to get a sensible balance when budgeting for this.
4. Build up your no claims bonus discount
Building up your no-claims bonus discount will help you to get a cheaper policy because insurers reward motorists who are claim-free with discounts on their premiums.
5. Only pay for what you need
Check your insurance policy isn’t including add-ons that you don’t need or want, as you pay extra for them. Add-ons can include legal assistance, courtesy car and personal accident cover.
6. Park off-road
If you are able to park off-road overnight it could reduce your premium as insurers deem you less of a risk. So if you have a garage or driveway make sure to specify that.
7. Extra drivers on your policy
Adding an additional driver (or drivers) can often bring down the cost of your policy. This is especially true if the additional driver is seen as a lower risk than you, this could be down to their age, driving experience or job to name just a few factors, so please bare that in mind.
8. Choose the smallest car
The general rule is, the smaller the car, the lower the premium. Cars which have a small engine are more likely to be in a low insurance group and tend to have lower premiums. For example, a 1.1 litre hatchback would be cheaper than an SUV with a large engine.
Each car is assigned an insurance group number (the lowest being 1 and highest being 50) which depicts the cost of insuring the vehicle.
9. Type of use
Insurers rate car classes of use under one of four categories:
- Social, domestic and pleasure – this covers drivers for normal day-to-day living, like visiting family and friends or going 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, like driving to different sites away from your place of work
- Commercial travelling – this covers the car being used for things like door-to-door sales
If you don’t commute you could get cheaper insurance by selecting ‘social, domestic and pleasure’. Be sure to choose the correct type otherwise you could invalidate your policy.
10. Describe your job
The way you describe your job can affect your premium. While a ‘chef’ might pay a different premium to a ‘cook’, and a ‘hairdresser’ might pay a different price to a ‘barber’.
11. Black Box
Telematics car insurance bases premiums on actual data about your driving, which is recorded by either a black box fitted in the vehicle or a mobile phone app. Telematics insurance can make your car insurance cheaper, whatever your age, as long as you’re a careful driver.
12. Dash Cam
All major car insurers now offer a discount to customers who use one of their approved dash cams. You can save up to 20% of your premiums, but you have to submit your video evidence in the event of a claim by you or against you.
13. Pay attention to administration charges
Administration charges are one of the great hidden expenses on car insurance. If, for example, you change your car, your job or your address, some policies will allow you to make the change for free – but others could charge around £50. Take charges into account when you arrange your insurance – paying £5 or £10 more for a policy with reasonable admin fees could save you much more in the long run.
14. Shop around
Our best tip for getting the car insurance cover you need at the right price is to shop around. By getting multiple quotes and not letting your insurance auto-renew with the same provider you could save up to £240.
Comparison sites are great for their convenience, but remember not all insurers participate on them, so it’s still worthwhile to shop around in order to find the best deal for you.Security (especially enhanced) always means cheaper car insurance, so make sure you know exactly what alarm or / and immobiliser is fitted to your vehicle, and advise your insurance company accordingly.
Be honest or you risk invalidating your policy.
