College life can be rough. You have a bunch of classes that you need to attend, but you also must deal with work, housing, living expenses, and car expenses. The one that you may not have put very much thought into may be insurance. Car insurance is something that you need if you are driving while at school, or if you are driving back and forth to your home.
Saving costs on anything possible should be at the front of your mind. Any money saved is more money in your pocket to spend on more important things. Let us dive a little deeper into some ways that you can save some cash on your car insurance.
- Stay on Parents Policy: It is assumed that up until this point you have shared your insurance policy with your parents, and maybe a couple of siblings. This can save you a substantial amount of money because your parents will be paying much less than you are, and by adding them into one large group coverage you will get some of their savings. You need to remember that this will raise their premium costs, so only stay on your parent’s policy if they are OK with it. If you have never been on the same policy as them, you may want to ask why, and if possible, go into a group policy with them.
- Discounts: There are always discounts that you can get through your insurer. You may even be able to qualify for a discount because you are in college. It will be a promising idea to check with some local agents, as well as the online portals, because some of the carriers in the college town may give you a break while you are learning at the campus. You may also be able to get some other discounts, such as one that goes along with the quality of your grades, and possibly one that gives you positive points for taking a driver’s education course back when you first got your license.
- Online Platforms: The entire world has begun shifting to online platforms for conducting all types of business transactions. Insurance is one such company that gives you complete access from the time that you get a quote to the time that you decide to cancel the policy through that particular carrier. Because of this shift, the insurance companies will usually give you a discount if you use the online platforms that they have created. It saves them time, which as everyone knows “time is money.” It also saves them money that they would have normally had to pay out to the insurance agent. Cutting the middle person out saves the company money, which will save you money.
- Compare Policies: Even if you have a good policy already you will want to compare car insurance NSW. Not all companies are created equally, and the policies can be as different as night or day. The easiest way to do this is to use an online platform, such as iSelect, and let them do all the leg work for you. Their online platform will take some information from you, and it will get run through their database of insurance carriers that fit your needs, and that would be willing to work with you. From there, all you will need to do is go through all the offers and pick the one that is best for you. Remember though, the lowest policy offer may not be the best. You need to compare all aspects of the policy, not just the premium costs.
- Yearly Premium: It may seem convenient to you to pay a monthly fee for your car insurance, but it is the worst way possible. The insurance company will charge you extra fees each and every month. If you pay your premium costs upfront for the entire year it will save you money over the long haul. Plus, it will lock in the cost that you have for the entire year, blocking the carrier from raising your costs until the policy is up for review again.
- Increase Excess Amounts: This is the number one best way to decrease the amount of your premiums. The higher you set your excess amount, the lower your premium costs will be. Just keep in mind that if something should happen and you need to file a claim, you will have to pull the excess amount out of your pockets before the carrier will release any funds to pay off the claim. This tip can be a fantastic way to save some costs on your car insurance, but it could turn around and bit you in the rear as well. Adjust this number according to your budget. If you can pay up to a set amount for car repairs, you will not want to put the excess above that amount.
- Extras and Add-Ons-Read through your policy, every word of it, including the fine print, and look for any extra coverage amounts that you do not need. For instance, if you never plan to use the roadside assistance that they offer, remove it from your policy. Every little thing that you take off your policy can make an impact on your costs. Never take something off that you may need even if it does cost a little more to have it. When you are manually adding things to the policy for extra protection make sure of the same thing. Only add things that you need, not things that sound cool or that may come in handy someday.
That is about all that there is to it. When you are at college, especially if you are staying in the dorms, your vehicle will not be as secure as it would be at home, so you will not be able to get those discounts. Campus officers should be making their rounds, though, so just make sure that you do not leave anything in your car that will make it a target to criminals that prowl around and steal from parked cars. Keep it locked, parked under lights, and empty of any valuables. Otherwise, enjoy your college years, learn what you can, play when you have time, and save on your car insurance costs by going through the simple tips above.
