Typically, your income is not a factor in determining your auto insurance rate. In fact, some states prohibit insurance companies from collecting income information. But in reality, low income individuals and families can have challenges paying steep car insurance rates and, therefore, staying out of trouble with the law. 

But there are some things you can do to decrease the rate you pay for car insurance, regardless of your income. Let’s take a look at a few ways you might be able to save some money on car insurance. 

State-Sponsored Car Insurance

A few states have taken to offering government-sponsored auto insurance to their citizens in order to help low-income people and families afford the state’s required car insurance. As of this writing, those states are:

• California
• Hawaii
• New Jersey

While these programs generally offer only the most minimal coverage, it is enough to keep you legal and also provide at least a little bit of protection in case something happens. 

Other Ways to Save on Car Insurance

In addition, here are some other suggestions you can use to try to get those monthly premiums down.

Set higher deductibles

One way to bring down the amount of your monthly premium payment is to raise your deductibles. The deductible is the amount you have to pay before your insurance policy kicks in. Be careful though. If you choose to do this, make sure you can afford the amount of your deductible. If you can’t get your car fixed because you can’t afford the deductible, you could make things worse for yourself. 

Reduce your coverage

Another way you can reduce your monthly premiums is by reducing the amounts on your optional coverages. If your vehicle is older, you might even think about dropping collision and comprehensive coverage and instead put the extra money into a new car fund. You could use the 10% rule: when the annual premium for your car insurance exceeds 10% of the car’s value, drop it. You’re never going to get that money back.

Choose your cars carefully

Some cars are more expensive to insure than others. Newer cars will cost more, so if you can drive an older model you will definitely see some savings. Also, if you own more than one car, see if you can reduce the number of vehicles you own to bring the premiums down. 

Shop around

The most important thing you can do to save money on car insurance is to shop around for the best rate. In fact, you should make it a yearly exercise. Every year you should do a quick online search and see if you can save a little money on your insurance rates. 

When you’re ready to shop around, the InsuranceWins form is a great place to start. Simply fill out the form and you’ll be able to start comparing quotes from major carriers who are ready to help you afford car insurance.

One of the questions car insurance companies ask when you are requesting a quote is how many miles you drive your car each year. You may have wondered why they ask this question. The reason comes is based in risk.

Car insurance companies want to know what kind of drivers they are taking agreeing to insure. And, it makes sense that drivers who put lower mileage on their vehicles are less risky. After all, fewer miles means you are driving less and there is naturally lower risk of getting into an accident.

Some companies do offer low mileage programs and there are even some newer insurance carriers who are offering policies based on how many miles you drive. Rather than lumping people into buckets, such as 15,000 mile per year drivers or 25000 mile per year drivers, these companies track your mileage and your rate is based on how much (or how little) you actually drive.

But, with traditional car insurance does it really make a difference if you drive 10000 miles or 20000 in a year?

You Could Save Money if You Are a Low-Mileage Driver

According to NerdWallet, it can. They looked at car insurance quotes for different levels of driving and in a few top insurance markets. What they found was that some companies offered lower rates, as much as 14% for low mileage customers. The steepest cut in rates came when miles driven went from 10000 to 5000. The average decrease was about 8.9%. That could add up to hundreds of dollars a year in savings.

The Federal Highway Administration, the agency that keeps statistics on the driving habits of Americans, says that the average driver drives over 13000 miles in year. If you are only driving 5000, its may be worth checking with your insurance company to see if you can get a lower rate. You may be able to save money if you are not lumped in with the large pool of average drivers.

Whether you drive a lot, more than the average, or only a little, it may be worth it to get car insurance quotes from multiple companies. And, be sure to ask about low-mileage discounts and programs if you are a low-mileage per year driver.

InsuranceWins can help you find a low-mileage policy. Just use the fast and easy form to get quotes form several carriers and find out who is willing to offer you a break for your low-mileage driving habits.

Hopefully you’ll never have to know the feeling of realizing your car has been stolen. It can at first be disorienting. You walk out to where you parked your car and it’s not there. Initially, you might think you just forgot where you parked it. But, as you look around the realization begins to hit you: the car is gone.

Before it happens to you, be prepared and know the steps you should take so you have a better chance of coming out of the whole incident with the least hassle. Here is what you should know about car insurance and what happens when your car has been stolen.

Keep extra copies of your records at home

Having a copy of your vehicle title and registration and insurance at home will help make this difficult process easier. Many people only have a copy of their registration in their car and have to spend time with the motor vehicle department to get proof of registration when their car has been stolen.

Report the theft to the police immediately

The sooner you report your car as stolen, the better the chances that it will be recovered. Contact the police immediately and be sure to list all the items that were in your car. It’s important to note any special value-added features of your car, especially if they will help with identification of the vehicle. If you have pictures and receipts, it will help you during the insurance claims process.

Report the theft to your car insurance company

Report the theft of your car immediately to your insurance company also. A delay in reporting can hurt your case later. Work with your insurance company to understand what happened, what kind of coverage you have that will help you and what your responsibilities are during the claims process.

Which type of auto insurance coverage addresses theft?

Theft of a vehicle is covered by comprehensive coverage. Comprehensive insurance pays for total loss and damages to your car that are not the result of a collision with another vehicle. Remember, you will be responsible for paying your deductible amount. Often, the insurance company will take the deductible amount out of your final payment, so you may not have to come up with the cash up front.

If you want to make sure you are covered should your car get stolen or be vandalized, make sure you have comprehensive insurance on your vehicle. Use the InsuranceWins form to quickly get quotes for comprehensive insurance coverage from major carriers. We’ll help you easily get the coverage you need at a price you can afford.

If you’re the parent of a new driver, you know how much your rate has gone up since adding your teenager to your policy. Now that they are off to college, new auto insurance questions arise, such as whether you should have them on your policy at all, and if you do, what is the right way to list them?

The last thing you want to do is put your coverage in jeopardy should you or your child have an accident. So, here are a few pointers to help you avoid any problems with future claims.

Should I keep them on my policy?

The answer depends on a few things.

• The garaging location, or where the car is keep
• The owner of the vehicle, or the name on the title
• The student’s registered address

When they should get their own policy

If the student has title to the vehicle, it is kept with them at college, and their registration address is at college, then they should be on their own with auto insurance and not on your policy. If there is an incident, and they are using your insurance, you run the risk of not being covered because the vehicle is kept at school, it is in the student’s name and they don’t use your mailing address. In the eyes of the insurance company, the car belongs to the student and not to you, and they may even think you are trying to commit fraud by listing a driver under your policy who should have their own.

When they should stay on your policy

If the student still keeps your home address as their mailing address and your name is on the title of the vehicle, you should be ok keeping them on your policy, even if they bring the car to school. It’s important to consider these details when keeping your college student on your policy. If there is an accident, you must be able to show that the vehicle belongs to you and that your college student really is still dependent on you, such as having your address be their home address.

There are benefits to both methods. If you take your college student off your policy, you could save a lot of money by removing a higher-risk, young driver. But, when they come home for breaks and vacations, they are not covered, and you will have to make sure you add them back to your policy before they drive your car Some insurance companies frown upon the frequent adding and removing of drivers.

Either way, you should check with your insurance company as the rules may vary.

If you want to run some numbers to find out the best way to handle a college student driver, use the InsuranceWins form to compare quotes both with and without them on your policy. It’s a fast and easy way to get answers, and maybe save a lot of money.