10. Shop, Shop, Shop
Get as many quotes as you can stand from as many companies as possible.

Competition in the insurance industry is stronger then ever. This is great news for shoppers, there has never been more options to find information on insurance (hey, you are reading this, right?) and get prices from multiple companies in minutes. Use this to your advantage to find the best rate from the best company.

Get at least 10 quotes. Filling out those online forms can be tedious and boring but this task should not take more then 30 minutes to complete.

Tip: Take advantage of comparison quote features offered by Insurance.com & Esurance, they allow you to get quotes from multiple on-line companies in one place. Aggregators like NetQuote & InsureMe will connect you with multiple agents for additional quotes.

Insurance companies will often up-chare consumers who provide inaccurate information when getting a quote. Make sure you account for all your accidents and tickets. Most all insurance companies verify your driving history with the DMV before selling the policy.

Leaving information off your quote will only get you a nice low quote. When you go to buy you will find your final price to be significantly higher. This price is often higher then if you had completed the quote form accurately in the first place!

If you can, pay your entire bill at one time upfront and avoid these extra fees. Make sure this is a reasonable financial move though. Avoid charging your insurance bill to a credit card that has a high interest rate. If you do not pay off the insurance premium on your credit card in a timely manner, credit card charges can often add up to more then what you saved by paying in full.

When you go on-line or talk with an agent, make sure to find out if there is a difference in price between installment payments or paying in full. This simple question can save you hundreds!

Your comprehensive and collision deductibles, the price you pay out of pocket to cover an incident, make up a major portion of your insurance payment. It might seem nice to only have to pay a few hundred dollars should an incident occur, but paying a low deductible will often add a huge total to your quote. Sometimes it is not worth a large out of pocket payout to cover a car that might not be worth very much. Many on line companies allow you to easily view prices at different deductible limits.

Play around with deductible limits to see the impact of the deductible on price. Find the price and deductible limits you feel most comfortable with.

6. Avoid coverage gaps
Try to stay continuously insured. If you think you need to drop all your coverage, do some research first.

Insurance companies charge a hefty premium if you have any gap in insurance coverage (a gap is any lapse in coverage, no matter how long or short). Deciding on if you should cancel your insurance should depend on how long you think you do not need coverage.

If you do not need insurance for a short period of time it is not a good idea to cancel your insurance. Instead, drop your coverage to a ‘personal only’ coverage that can cost you as little as $20-40 a month. This small payout for a month or two is often going to be less then paying for the additional premium due to a lapse in coverage.

If you do not need insurance for a longer period of time it may be a good idea to cancel all coverage, but do your research first. The best thing to do is call your current company and ask them to give you a quote for a ‘personal only’ policy and the rate if you were to cancel your coverage then return to them later. You can then compare these rates and decide if it is cost effective to cancel and have a lapse or go with the low coverage.

By doing proper research you can decide if a lapse in insurance coverage is worthwhile. This research can only take a few minutes and can save you hundreds of dollars!

Tip: Aggregators often have difficulty matching not-insured customers with local agents. If you do not have insurance, you will be better off going to a direct carrier such as Esurance or 21st Century for a quote.

5. Drive safe
With just one ticket or accident you will find yourself with a hefty increase in your insurance rates. With major incident, such as a DUI, you can often find your insurance rates double, triple, or even quadruple!

Too many incidents can cause a company to cancel your insurance coverage completely. Many top-named auto insurance companies will not insure ultra high risk drivers, meaning you cannot take advantage of their cheap rates! Think you can just change insurance companies and they will not find out about past incidents? Nope. Most every insurance company will check you driving history with the local DMV before issuing a policy. This means your tickets and accidents will follow you wherever you go. Oh, and if you try and omit the incident from your quote form you will get an even higher price quote for not disclosing your quote accurately (see Quote Honestly section for more information).

Safe driving is always a good idea. Be safe for your own health, the well being of others on the road, and to save yourself some serious cash!

It is well known that your insurance cost is heavily tied to the value of your car. But not all cars have the same value, even if the price is the same. Sounds confusing, huh? Let’s say you are trying to decide between a sleek new Audi and BMW. Both are great cars and both cost about the same price, so you figure your insurance is going to be the same no matter what car you buy, right? Nope. You might find the insurance coverage for the Audi to be significantly higher then the BMW.

Why is this? Because insurance companies do extensive research into the value of the car and this research is factored into your insurance price. A car rated high for safety means fewer injuries. Fewer injuries mean lower medical payouts for the insurance company. An exotic car has more custom parts. Custom parts result in higher repair costs for the insurance company. In the case of the Audi & BMW, the insurance company might know the Audi is much more expensive to repair then the BMW. This would make the Audi more expensive to insure.

By taking the time to research insurance costs for different car it can help you figure out what car to buy. You might find that saving a few hundred a month on insurance can actually help you buy a better car!

It only takes a few minutes to get insurance quotes you for new car types you are considering. This simple research can save you thousands of dollars!

Tip: you can get a good idea of insurance costs for a new car by going to an online carrier like Esurance or 21st Century. Enter in your information and driving history. When you get to the car information detail, submit the new car you are considering instead of the one you currently own. You can also call your current carrier.

Different insurance companies will rate your credit history differently on your insurance rate. Make sure you shop around with different companies to find the best rate possible.

There is absolutely, positively nothing worse then having an accident or problem and finding out your insurance company is not going to cover your costs. You can be on the hook to pay out hundreds, thousands, even tens of thousands to cover an entire incident out-of-pocket. Before buying insurance, make sure you research scenarios that you might encounter when getting coverage. Some common items to ask are:

- Am I covered if I let friends drive my car?
- Am I covered if I drive a friends car?
- Does the insurance cover rental cars?
- Does the insurance cover rental trucks?
- Are acts of nature covered (such as flood, hail, wind, etc.)?
- Are acts of nature for a rental car/truck covered?
- Is my pet covered?

Consider the above and all other scenarios you might encounter and know if your insurance company will cover them. If you cannot find this information on-line, a company or local agent can quickly answer these questions for you.

Tip: Make sure you are comfortable with your coverage immediately. Ask these questions to your current carrier as soon as you can.

1. Monitor your premium total
Many companies are advertising lower rates and many people are switching carriers to save money. This savings can only be temporary if you are not careful.

The nice low insurance cost you received when you changed carriers can quickly increase. Insurance companies are constantly adjusting rates for different customers in different areas. This rate can increase even if you have an excellent driving record. Insurance companies are banking on the fact that customers do not compare their rates from one term to the next. They also think most people are not willing to change carriers unless they receive an excessive increase. Over time you can find numerous small increases can really add up!

Remember the rate you first receive from your carrier and compare this to future renewal costs. Once you are paying more then 8% of your initial rate, and you have done nothing to warrant the price increase, start to shop around for a new carrier.

Bonus - Look for multi policy discounts
Sometimes you can get a discount on your auto insurance by also having your home or renters coverage with the same company. This is called a multi-policy discount. It is worth looking into!

Bonus - Take advantage of discounts on your vehicles
Car alarms, car tracking systems (such as LoJack), airbags, etc. should net you a discount on your insurance. If you do not see this, ask!

Bonus - Moving? Shop!
Auto insurance rates vary by location and rates within one area can vary significantly. If you are moving, shop around for new auto insurance coverage. You can find this saves you hundreds of dollars of just transferring your policy with your existing company.

Bonus - Getting Married? Shop!
Companies charge different amounts for adding a spouse to a policy. Also, you might also be able to rearrange your policy (such as changing primary drivers) to take advantage of one persons better driving record and/or credit history. Bottom line, if you are getting married, check the impact with your current company and shop around to find out if you can save money elsewhere.

Bonus - Any Time Is A Good Time to Shop
Contrary to popular belief, you do not have to wait until your current policy expires to shop around. Shop around at any time. If you find a better rate at a different company, cancel your existing policy and go with a better rate. There is no need to keep paying a high rate until your current policy expires!
Tip: if you do change insurance companies in the middle of your policy term, make sure you do not leave any gaps in your insurance. See our section on Avoid Coverage Gaps for more detail.