Auto insurance is expensive.  But, there are ways to keep your insurance premiums down.

I will mention 6 factors that affect your car insurance premiums.

  1. The first factor is your driving history. 

What kind of driver are you?  Do you have tickets and accidents on your record or do you have a clean driving record?  Let me give you some facts.  If you have an accident that includes injury or 2 moving violation tickets in the last 3 years, you will lose a good driver discount and thus pay higher premiums.  If you have an accident with damage to property only or 1 moving violation ticket you will see a surcharge to your policy, but you will still receive your good driver discount.  As you can see, the more tickets and accidents the more you pay.

    2.  The second factor is your age.

Are you a new driver or a long time experienced driver?  The first big discount starts after 3 consecutive years of driving experience.  Once you have 3 years under your belt and can prove it on your license you receive the good driver discount.  The premiums reduce again at different stages of your driving experience.  Every company has their own guidelines.  The bottom line is the more driving experience years the lower the premium.

     3.  The 3rd factor is your gender and marital status.

Some statistics show that male drivers are a bigger risks than females.  Every company has different practices, but for the most part they charge higher premiums for the male driver.  Premiums are also higher for a single driver.  The thought behind this is that if your married you are a lower risk. You are a lower risk because you are likely to be more stable with a family.

    4.  The 4th factor to affect your auto policy premiums is your annual miles.

Do you drive more than 12,000 miles per year?  The more miles you drive per year the more you will pay.  If you are retired you can be rated lower miles and pay a less premium.  Most companies will want you to provide documentation verifying lower miles.  There is a savings, you will want to do this if you drive low miles.

     5.  The fifth factor is your car.

What kind of car do you drive?  Is it a toyota or a hummer?  Some cars will cost more to insure because it costs more to repair or replace them.  The car could be a theft target or not as safe as others.  You need to consider how much insurance will cost for a car before you buy it.

    6.  The 6th factor is coverage or amount of insurance you select. 

Higher policy limits will cost more, but you can lower your premiums by increasing your deductibles.  This is where a good agent comes in.  You need to talk to the agent so that the policy can be written and tailored to your needs.