Use These Tips to Save Money on Your Car Insurance

When it comes to car insurance, if you are like me and reside in NJ then you already know of the crazy high rates, choice of companies and the headaches that go along with it.

Vincent Zarate reports in August of 2007 in Insurance Advocate of a decrease by $68 of the auto insurance premiums in the auto insurance market in New Jersey. Great news for us. It isn’t much, but any savings with these prices is better nothing. Zarate also revealed that this decrease is the result of companies` initiative to cut their rates to stay competitive in the auto insurance market. In addition, this figure led the industry to increase its premium by $5 billion due to car insurance law in the year 2004.

But as all experts agree, when it comes to buying car insurance, or any insurance for that matter, do your homework. Ara Trembley of National Underwriter/Property & Casualty Risk and Benefits Management says, “A survey of online automobile rates found that consumers might end up paying more money for a product that does not suit their needs.” Trembley then goes onto say, “that online car insurance consumers should pay more attention to details and worry less on the quickness of the results.”

Understand your policy and make sure you are not paying for items you really don’t need. Take Bonnie Gibbs for example. Reported in a recent article in Good Housekeeping magazine, Bonnie and her family were paying nearly $8,000 in car insurance for four drivers. Imagine getting that bill, wow! She decided to call her insurance agent and went through every line of the policy. Once she understood it, she eliminated anything she didn’t need. For instance, she cancelled her roadside assistance because she was enrolled in a similar program with her cellular telephone provider.

If you are paying exorbitant rates, you may want to consider the same. Sit down with your agent and go through your policy. If they are unwilling to do that, then consider a different, more reputable company. You do not want to get stuck with a bad insurance company, in a time of need.

For those of us in New Jersey, with competition comes hope for better rates and better companies. Steven Goldman, Insurance Commissioner in New Jersey, said that the entry of more companies is a clear indication that consumers continue to benefit from increased competition and demonstrates that they continue to make progress toward their goal of a stable sustainable automobile insurance market. This type of market will everyone to benefit.

So how can you save additional money on your car insurance? There are a variety of ways and they differ from state to state so talk to your insurance rep, or the state department that regulates insurance companies. Some of the more popular ones are taking a driving course, owning an energy efficient vehicle, a car with anti-lock breaks and anti theft protection, having your home and car policy with the same company, and if you have a teen driver in the family, a lot of companies are now giving discounts to families whose teen drivers get good grades.

There are ways to save money on your policy. Like anything else, the more effort you put into, the more you will get out of it.

By: Michael C. Podlesny

About the Author:
Michael C. Podlesny is a freelance writer for Indocquent.com. Indocquent.com is an online resource that allows businesses and individuals to promote their products and services in 20,000 cities in over 200 countries around the world free of charge.