Save Money on Your Insurance Premiums

Insurance premiums can be one of your major annual outgoings, but they don’t have to eat up quite so much of your yearly earnings. Here are six ways to reduce the amount of money you spend protecting things you already own:

1. Make sure you know what you need.
Why is your non-existent bicycle covered against theft? It’s easy to get caught out by insurance packages that include things you’re never going to claim on in a million years, and many of these can be removed. There’s no point in paying money for things that go too far above and beyond your requirements, and so you need to sit down and make sure you know exactly what you’re looking for before you even start searching for a package. It might take an extra ten minutes or so, but it could save you a fortune.

2. Don’t be afraid to switch.
Whenever your premiums are coming up for renewal, it’s good practice to have a quick look around the marketplace to see if there are any introductory offers with competing firms that might offer you a better deal. While you can lose out by switching – if, for example, you have a non-transferable no claims bonus on your car insurance – but the money you can save is often enough to offset this and make it worthwhile. And so what if the rates increase next year? You can always switch your provider again. It can be a lot of work, but it’s often worth the money.

3. Look for package deals.
Buying house, car and pet insurance? See if you can get a bundle deal from one company. In exchange for taking out several policies, a lot of companies will offer you not-insubstantial discounts that might make it worthwhile. It’s certainly worth asking about, if you have several policies that need renewing.

4. Buy online.
While a considerable number of people in this digital age use the internet to streamline their search for better insurance deals, there are still some who prefer the old-fashioned route. Unfortunately, it may be time for these individuals to get online, as several big-name insurance providers (are offering hefty discounts for doing nothing more complex than ordering online – often as much as 10%. They can save on personnel costs, and they pass the savings onto you: everyone wins, and it’s remarkably simple to do.

5. Save up throughout the year.
When your insurance payment is due, it’s common practice for you to be sent a quote for the full amount payable. This is often a substantial amount of money, and one that you might not have ready to pay at that specific date. If you fall into this category, it’s possible make arrangements to settle up in instalments… but of course, this will incur finance fees that you wouldn’t otherwise have to pay. One of the easiest ways to cut this out is by saving throughout the year, making sure you have enough money ready to pay your insurance premium in full. Why pay more than you have to when a little planning can save you money?

6. Change your lifestyle.
Sometimes, a few simple changes can make a large amount of difference to the cost of your insurance. Fitting fire extinguishers, driving to work, and parking your car in a garage have all been known to lower your risk rating, and make the insurance companies view you more favourably. Ask when you’re looking for the policy to see if there’s any minor alterations you can make that would lower the cost.