Car Insurance Central

Many different factors can affect your car insurance. Of course you can also use some of these variables to reduce your car insurance premiums with a little planning. Read on.

Shop around
If the best insurer offers you cheap car insurance for £400, the worst in the market might well offer rip-off car insurance cover at £1,000; the difference between the highest and lowest car insurance quotes is always huge. Your car dealer will almost invariably offer you expensive cover. Those guys don't need to make their insurance cheap, because it's so easy for them to cross-sell whilst you're purchasing your car.

Check insurance renewal prices
Never accept a car insurance renewal quote from your existing insurer without checking elsewhere first, as they will not reward your loyalty - or your lethargy. If you just leave them to it, they won't usually bother looking to see if they can make it any cheaper for you.

Direct debits
Many insurance companies offer you the opportunity to pay monthly, rather than upfront via a lump sum. Though this might sound attractive if you're on a tight budget, be aware that you usually pay through the nose for the privilege. Insurance companies often charge APRs of up to 30% for these monthly arrangements, so save up to pay upfront if possible, or consider paying via a cheaper alternative, like a 0% credit card.

Car color
Some insurers have found that if you have a red car you're more likely to be involved in an accident. Hence, your premium can be higher. The only reason they can think of is that perhaps more show-offs use red cars, so these drivers are more likely to put their right-foot down.

Metallic paint is more expensive, so your premium might cost more. Some insurers find black cars are more likely to be involved in incidents at night. Conversely, white cars sometimes attract cheaper premiums because the opposite is found to be true. At least one insurer has found that green cars are more likely to be involved in accidents if you live in the country, because you “can't see the cars for the trees”. So white is best for car insurance purposes. Colors not mentioned above are pretty safe.

Modifications
If you don't want to pay a fortune on your car insurance, don't get a modified car. You'll find that around half of all insurers won't bother quoting for a 'mod' and most of the rest will charge you extra.