Car insurance can take a bite out of your wallet, but it doesn’t need to be as big of a bite as you may think. Before taking the time to read the following tips, make sure to educate yourself about car insurance and what comes with it! Understanding the basics is a huge step in the right direction!

So here are 5 tips to save money with car insurance:

What do you need in your insurance? For example, as the car ages (or is paid off) people often choose to drop the collision part of the insurance. Usually, this is recommended when the premium you pay is approximately 10% of the re-sell value of the car. Everyone should maintain liability and injury coverage though! All cars in the State of Delaware must have a minimum liability insurance coverage of $15,000/$30,000 bodily injury protection; $10,000 property damage coverage; and $15,000/$30,000 personal injury protection., so be sure to keep that in mind.

Wait, what? Yes, that’s right. Sometimes you need to risk spending a little money in the interest of saving yourself more money. The deductible is what you are expected to contribute in the event of an accident. By having a higher deductible, your rate will drop. Keep in mind that you will need to be able to pay this if you get into an accident, so don’t raise your deductible if you can’t afford it.

Did you know that your credit score provides the most significant impact on your car insurance premium amount? The better your credit score, the ‘safer’ of an investment you seem. Do you know what your score is? Experian recommends this site. Be sure to keep that score as high as you can! Keeping you driving record clean seems pretty self-explanatory. The more accidents, moving violations, tickets, and the like does not give you the impression of being a safe and reliable driver.

Sometimes insurance companies offer discounts to their customers. They don’t always advertise them though! Don’t be afraid to ask about discounts. Usually, there are discounts for safe drivers (long time with no issues), driving a newer or safer vehicle, college graduate, good grades, military service, or more. Sometimes the insurance company will award discounts to drivers that fit their mold for safe drivers. Below outlines some of those characteristics.

These factors are just the start. There are many more. Allstate provides a comprehensive list of driving factors that will allow you to save on car insurance. This information is very telling because it clearly outlines the characteristics of a low risk driver.

A lot of companies rely on customer loyalty. Customers tend to stick with their current company and assume that no one can offer them as good of service or as good of a deal. Don’t be afraid to approach other companies to ensure you are not overpaying. It doesn’t take long to comparison shop and could end up saving you money!

Did you know the Insurance Commissioner at the state of Delaware provides a non biased car insurance policy comparison ? It’s fantastic. It asks you a few simply questions and then returns a list of insurance companies that fit your needs.

The best part of these tips are how easy they are. None of them take a great deal of time or work to investigate. Never be afraid to ask questions in order to make the best choice for you and your family!

How did you save on car insurance? Let us know what you learned below. We’d love to know. Enter your tips below. I’m sure our readers (we have many) would love to learn from you experience.