TIPS TO REDUCE THE COST OF YOUR CAR INSURANCE

Here are a few tips to help you reduce your car insurance premiums:

• Buy your Insurance online. It may be cheaper to buy your insurance policy online rather than going through a call centre and many companies offer discounts for doing so.
• Accept a higher voluntary excess. Virtually all car insurance companies will require you pay a minimum voluntary excess, this is the amount you pay towards the cost of any claim made on your insurance policy. The higher this is, the less your insurance premium will be.
• Limit the policy to cover:  only specific named drivers as opposed to allowing anyone to drive the insured car with your permission.
• Try to lower your annual mileage. The less you drive, the less likely you are to be involved in an accident.
• Increase Security. Motor vehicles available in the UK market are assessed by the insurance industry's research centre Thatcham to establish the level of standard fit security. Owners of vehicles that are fitted with security systems that meet the Thatcham criteria may well benefit from reduced premiums. Older cars may also benefit if subsequently fitted with a security system that meets the criteria.
• Keep your car in a secure location : such as a garage or driveway when not in use.

Adding a responsible driver to the policy who has a good clean driving record with no convictions or claims could also help to keep premiums low, especially if the driver in question will drive the car quite a lot in which case it may work out even cheaper if they were on the policy as the main driver.

Another thing to consider is the insurance group rating of your car. All cars are listed under a particular insurance group. The greater the cost of a car to repair, and the greater the engine size and speed of a car usually means it will fall into a higher insurance group rating meaning premiums will rise. The reverse is also true.

Consider getting a car with a low insurance group rating when you first take to the roads after a driving ban, this will help reduce your premium until your driving record improves again.