It can be a daunting affair getting your car insurance in order so a bit of advice can make it a lot easier to handle. Below are a few tips on how you can get your car insurance sorted with as little hassle as possible:
Where should I look for my car insurance?
There are many comparison websites online where you can search for cheap car insurance, however, there is no one site that has all car insurance companies listed, this is partly due to companies such as Direct Line and Norwich Union refusing to be quoted on the sites. The best thing to do is to shop around on the sites in order to compare car insurance quotes from a variety of different insurance companies.
Third party or fully comprehensive?
This is a question that most people find difficult to answer. Third party insurance will only cover the other person’s costs if you were to have a crash, so if you have an accident where it’s your fault or you fail to get the other driver’s details, you won’t be eligible to get any money back. On the other hand, comprehensive insurance will pay out for all situations but will obviously set you back a lot more money. If you have an old car you may be better off getting third party cover as it may not be worth paying out the extra money for comprehensive cover, whereas if your car is new and more expensive, it’s probably worth your while paying out the extra cost.
How to lower your insurance premium
It’s a well known fact that women tend to pay lower premiums than men, as well as this, married couples tend to pay less than those who aren’t married. On the other hand, young drivers are known to pay for very high premiums. If you are a young driver, under 25, you may find that going on a pay-as-you-go scheme works better for you as these schemes help lower your premium cost by monitoring your driving habits. Another way you can save money on your cover is by paying for it annually rather than on a monthly basis as you will pay extra for paying monthly. Another bit of advice is to make sure you don’t get any speeding tickets as these will increase the amount you pay out for several years on your premiums.
Don’t always opt for the cheapest insurance
It’s important that you make sure you’ve compared all of a policy’s details before you choose it. One thing that people tend to miss is the amount they will be paying for the excess; this is usually quite high on the cheaper car insurance policies. It is also important to check you’ve entered all of your details correctly as any incorrect information could result in your policy being made invalid.
The best thing to do is to shop around on the sites in order to compare car insurance quotes from a variety of different insurance companies.
One thing that people tend to miss is the amount they will be paying for the excess; this is usually quite high on the cheaper car insurance policies.
Nowadays, it is easy to find anything that you are looking for. There is so much competition out there regarding business, and many companies will be fighting to have you as a client. The car insurance industry is no different, and it can be hard to find a good insurance company that is offering you an affordable package.
As unbelievable as it may seem, it IS possible to find cheap car insurance. You just need to know where to look, and what to do to find it! Firstly, you need to know that your best resource will be the internet. All good motor insurance companies have a strong online presence, and you will be able to readily source information regarding the companies you are interested in by looking online. Their websites will also be a good source of information regarding their packages and what they have to offer you.
The best thing you can utilise the internet for in trying to find cheap car insurance is gathering quotes. There are now websites on the internet that will get multiple quotes from different insurance competitors emailed to you after you have filled in only one form. This helps take the hassle out of filling in multiple forms on different car insurance websites. The reason why you need a few quotes to work with is so that you can make comparisons. Comparisons are incredibly important in choosing the cheapest car insurance company to go with. Only with more than two quotes will you be able to do a pros and cons list of each company and what they have to offer. In this way you will be able to determine who is offering you the cheapest coverage for the most amount of benefit.
You can also get proactive in getting a cheap motor insurance policy. The first step you can take is evaluating the car that you drive. The car that you drive is one of the hugest factors in the cost of your insurance policy. Firstly, your premium will be more expensive if you drive an expensive luxury vehicle. Sports cars are also very expensive to insure, as they are faster and more likely to be involved in a collision. There are also motor vehicles that are more notorious for being stolen, and will therefore be more expensive to insure. If you can’t change the car that you are driving, then you can do other things to obtain a lower premium. Firstly, you can install good security on your vehicle so that it is less of a theft risk. This includes a good alarm system, a good immobilizer and a gear lock. You can even decide to install a tracking system on your vehicle, as this will greatly lower your premium.
In conclusion, it can be said that it is entirely possible to find cheap car insurance. You simply need to know where to look. You need to do adequate research on the type of coverage you want, and how much you can afford to pay monthly.
In the world of Autoversicherung, like everywhere else, you get what you pay for. Monthly payments relate directly to the history of the vehicle in question and German insurers pay particular attention to the following criteria:
Type and use of vehicle: The full index of vehicles types and their attendant insurance classification can easily be found online by searching under “Typklassenverzeichnis”. An additional consideration regarding contributions to be paid is whether or not the car is driven privately or destined for commercial use (i.e as aTaxi).
No claims bonus: Years accrued with a no claims bonus are subdivided according to mandatory third party cover (Haftpflicht) or fully comprehensive cover (Vollkasko). If you want to switch motor insurance in Germany this discount is transferable. In this case the new insurer will look at the total numbers of years accrued with no claims submitted from the point at which the policy was taken out. On this basis they calculate the new no claims bonus in accordance with their own tariffs. In the event of a claim a number of these “accident free years” are “used up” and as a result new premiums will be calculated for the beginning of the new calendar year. The German expression for this is Ruckstufung, which means to be put back and drivers can certainly be put out of pocket if this happens to them. The rule of thumb is: if damages resulting from an accident amount to less than 1000 Euro it is probably best to pay directly – the Ruckstufung penalty would certainly be heavier.
Regional classification: The area in which the vehicle is registered is also figured into premium calculations. These reflect statistical information gathered for the local area relating to the risks drivers would face there i.e road traffic accidents, theft etc. In Germany this data is reviewed vigorously on an annual basis so that premiums generally do better reflect the reality of a local area rather than it’s negative reputation.
Other factors: German insurers penalise vehicle owners heavily who park on the street (of course in many of the cities this is hard to avoid). Otherwise new drivers pay more unless they can get a shared deal driving their parents cars. German online insurance forums are full of older drivers complaining about discriminatingly high premiums. If an older driver feels he is being treated unfairly in this respect he is free to cite the Allgemeine Gleichbehandlungs Gesetz (AGG – Equal Rights Legislation) or alternatively it might be ratsam (advisable) to look at other Autoversicherungproviders.
Mark Lauterwein is a UK based writer. He is currently writing on the German Autoversicherung market.
