Great Tips on Getting Discounts When Buying Car Insurance

Car insurance is a very competitive sector, and both customers and the companies are always fighting it out for the best discounts possible on the premiums. When you go out to buy car insurance you not only focus on getting the most appropriate cover but make sure that you get it at the least possible cost. Different insurance companies offer different discounts and you need to see the ones you qualify for and what the net result is in terms of actual money saved. Some of the more popular discount opportunities offered by insurance companies:

Some of the more popular discount opportunities offered by insurance companies:

Multi-Policy Discount

Since the cost of acquiring new customers can be very high for insurance companies, they always try to lock in the customers by giving them discounts when they buy multiple policies from them. For example, if you are a homeowner who has taken property insurance cover from a particular insurance company, it is more than likely that they would offer you a very handsome discount when you buy car insurance from them. In fact, the discount in many cases is applied to all the insurance policies that you purchase.

In terms of absolute savings, this sort of discount saves you the maximum amount because it is not unknown for insurance companies to offer as much as a 20% discount when the car and home insurance policies are clubbed together. It will be extremely unlikely for you to achieve a bigger saving by purchasing the policies from multiple companies.

Homeowner Discount

Insurance companies also tend to favor people who own their homes as opposed to those who are renters because such customers tend to be more financially stable. This discount is made available to a car insurance customer even if the home insurance is not with the same insurer, but you can take double advantage by applying to the same company to take the benefit of a multi-policy discount that will come into play.

Multi-Car Discount

Insurance companies also love it when you insure more than one vehicle with them. Getting a better rate for the second car from a different insurer is extremely unlikely because your existing company would really like to retain its customers by giving handsome loyalty discounts. Going to a different insurance company would typically entail shelling out more. Customers with multiple cars should definitely get a deep discount car insurance policy.

Financial Stability Discount

More and more insurance companies are trying to link financial stability in the form of credit scores into the pricing of their car insurance products. The companies claim to have found sufficient evidence that links poor financial management of the customer to a higher propensity to making claims. Insurance companies thus tend to favor clients with a good credit score with a discount on the premium applicable in the hope that there will be no or low claims.

Good Driver Discount

If you are a driver with an excellent track record of not getting tickets for driving violations or being involved in accidents in the previous three to five years then it is more than likely that your insurance company will factor it into your premium payable by applying a hefty discount. Potentially, the savings on account of a clean driving record is quite sizeable as otherwise you not only do not qualify for the discount but also are penalized with a surcharge on the premium. Insurance companies apply this discount on every driver listed in the policy, so the cumulative benefit could be really substantial if all the drivers have good driving records.

Good Student Discount

Normally insurance companies are more than a little apprehensive of young drivers because they are inclined to be rash and meet with accidents involving claims and pay-outs. If the student has a good academic performance then it is presumed that this sense of responsibility and seriousness is carried forward to his driving and so there is a lesser chance of claims being filed. Typically, insurance companies require a minimum of 3.0-grade point average besides credit hours of 12 or more to be eligible for the discount.

When buying insurance it is best to take careful stock of your circumstances and ask for the applicable discounts. Be sure to keep your credit score high and your driving record clean, so that you get the best deals.

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