It’s January, probably the month most likely to see people attempt to cut back and save money wherever possible. With Lockdown 3.0 also upon us as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, people will be finding different ways to reign in their spending. But what if your insurance is due for renewal in the coming weeks? How do you ensure that you’re not paying over the odds for the year of motoring ahead? Well, fortunately, we have a few helpful hints and tips to help you!

 

Our top tips to lower your insurance premium:

 

• Don’t auto-renew…Shop around!

 

It sounds like an obvious place to start, but make sure that you don’t just automatically renew your policy without shopping around first. Insurers can be sneaky and won’t necessarily give you the discounts you’re entitled to or deserve at renewal if you just take the auto-renewal price. 

 

• Compare comparison sites!

 

If you input identical details into comparison sites such as GoCompare, Compare The Market and Confused, you would think that the insurers they match you with would have identical pricing across all three comparison engines, right? For example, if Admiral provided you a quote via GoCompare of £500, you would expect Compare The Market and Confused to also have Admiral listed with a premium of £500 as well. But this doesn’t always happen. Why? Simply put, it’s down to the agreements which insurers and comparison sites have in place in regards to the fees which exchange hands when the comparison site passes on you as a ‘lead’ to the insurer! In addition to this, some comparison sites are actually owned and operated by insurers or their parent company’s, for example Confused.com is owned by Admiral Group PLC, who have the Bell, Diamond, Elephant and Admiral insurance brands in their portfolio!

 

• Go direct. 

 

Although they’re a good place to start and get an early indication of what your premium is likely to be, comparison engines aren’t the be all and end all, with some insurance providers offering substantial discounts if you approach them directly, and others who simply stay away from comparison sites altogether! There are some huge brands who fall into this category, such as Direct Line, Zurich and Aviva.

 

• Consider specialists.

 

A great way to save money is to insure with a provider who specialises in a certain type of cover, audience or even specific brand or type of car. For example, there are providers who specialize in offering new driver insurance, cover for performance cars or even multi-car cover for households with two or more cars.

 

• Pay upfront.

 

Paying upfront on your insurance will save you money long term, with monthly payment plans being subject to significant rates of interest, which means you end up paying more for your insurance over 12 months. We know it’s not always possible to pay up front, but if you do have the spare cash, then it may be worth doing! Whatever you do, resist the urge to put it on the credit card as it will end up costing you even more money than if you pay monthly!

 

• Get secure!

 

Security is a key factor in keeping your insurance costs down. Most cars these days have manufacturer fitted immobilisers and alarm systems, however you may want to consider going that one step further and install a tracker system. Another tip is to ensure that all valuables, including dashcams, are hidden away when the car is parked up overnight or in an unfamiliar place.

Don’t forget to keep your number plates secure too – the last thing you want when you’ve purchased a brand new set of plates from us is to have them stolen (believe it or not, people do this for some reason!), so why not consider keeping them safe with anti-theft screws?

 

• Check your voluntary excess.

 

Your voluntary excess is essentially how much you’re willing to stump up should the worst happen and you end up having to make a claim on your insurance, with your compulsory excess dictating how much you have to pay to make a claim. Your compulsory and voluntary excess are combined to provide the final figure which you will have to pay to your insurer in order to make a claim.

 

The higher your voluntary excess, then the lower your premium is likely to be as insurers know it will ultimately cost them less in the event of an incident occurring, because some of the cost will be coming out of your pocket! 

 

If you want to know more about insurance excess, then Money.co.uk have a good article which explains more!

 

• Ensure your details are accurate.

Again, it sounds pretty basic, but make sure all your details are correct, including your job title, where you park the car overnight and the car’s mileage. All of these things can make a big difference to the cost of your premium.

 

So with these tips in mind, go forth and save money on your insurance premium!