Auto Insurance Tips And Pointers |
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Westly Lager
2 December 2009
Auto insurance is a major expense and over your lifetime you will end up spending tens of thousands of dollars. Most people waste a lot of money on auto insurance because they don't have an idea of what the policy is and what they actually really need. They often just call up a broker and have them select a plan for them. What they don't know is that there may be extra fees a coverage in their policy that they don't really need. Knowing this can help you keep costs down on auto insurance. Look out for the following coverage when looking over your existing or a new car insurance policy.
Auto liability insurance protects you from getting sued in the event of an accident. It is very important to have this feature because when you get in an automobile accident there are often unforeseen injuries that many people would like to try and sue you for as damages. Having double the amount of your assets is a good amount of coverage to have. If you don't have much in assets such as not owning a home that doesn't mean you don't need this coverage. One asset you do have that you may not be aware of are your future earnings. You can be sued for your future earnings and have your paycheck garnisheed. Having at least $50,000 is a good amount to protect you for property damage which is the damage caused by your vehicle hitting another.
Most states require having a certain amount of auto insurance to be legally driving. This doesn't mean that everyone follows the law and in the event of you getting into an accident with an uninsured motorists you want to be sure your insurance covers you since they don't have insurance to pay for damage and medical expenses. You may not need this feature if you already have a comprehensive medical plan and disability insurance. If you do then be sure to have this taken off your policy to save money because it would be redundant to have both and a waste of money. One thing to consider though is if you do drop this coverage, passengers in your vehicle aren't covered unless they have their own medical and disability insurance.
Deductibles are one of the easiest ways you can lower your monthly premiums. This makes it so that if you only have minor damage after an accident you can just pay out of pocket, rather than submitting a claim. When you do submit a claim your rates will often increase so this save you money now and in the future. A safe level to set you deductible at is $500 to $1000 depending on your income level. If you don't get in any accidents over the course of a year than you end up saving a lot more from not having to exercise a claim and having a lower monthly premium. If you have an older car that doesn't have a very high value than you may consider getting rid of your comprehensive and collision coverage. If it would cost you more to pay the deductible than your car is worth than it is simply not worth having this feature.