3 Tips For Buying Auto Insurance For The First Time
Buying your very first vehicle can be an exciting milestone, whether you are a teenager who has just obtained his or her driver’s license, or a middle aged person who has managed to save up for several years. However, once you walk into an insurance company to purchase insurance for your newly acquired vehicle, your excitement may be overshadowed by the high premiums you are expected to pay. There are several steps that you can take to help keep your insurance premiums at a manageable and affordable rate.
The best way to lower your rates right from the start is to complete an approved driver’s training course. This course offers both classroom instruction, as well as on hands driving for a set number of hours. At the completion of the course, each student will be issued a certificate that they can present to their insurance company in order to obtain a discount. New drivers start out with a 0 experience rating. With a driver’s training course certificate, they are actually assigned a 3 year experience rating. This is what lowers their premiums.
Parents who have teenagers should list them on their policy as soon as they obtain their driver’s license. This will help them to establish an insurance history so that when they leave home or purchase a first time auto insurance policy in their name, they can prove that they have experience. Insurance companies use this as a main rating factor to calculate premiums.
When getting auto insurance quotes for your first insurance policy, your agent will advise you of how your premium is calculated. Your driving record is an important factor as it shows what type of risk you pose and what the chances are of you being involved in an at-fault accident or filing a claim on your insurance policy. Be a safe driver and obey the laws of the road. The more traffic tickets and suspensions that you accumulate, the higher your insurance premiums will rise. If you have too many, you will be considered a high risk driver and your rates will skyrocket. Keep in mind that traffic tickets can stay on your driving record for up to 3 years and at-fault accidents remain for up to 6 years.
Make sure to obtain several different auto insurance quotes so that you can compare the options that are available to you. Don’t forget to ask your insurance agent about any discounts that you may qualify for. If your first time auto insurance policy is higher than you expected, keep in mind that the longer you are licensed and hold insurance, especially with a clean driving record, the lower your premiums will fall.
