If you live in an urban area like Los Angeles, New York City, Washington, D.C. or anywhere else where bumper to bumper traffic, kamikaze cabbies and pedestrians with a death wish are the norm, there are no questions in your mind why it can be hard for city drivers to find cheap auto insurance. Since the cost of housing in major urban areas is so much higher than in more remote parts of the country, however, city drivers are busily looking for ways to lower their insurance premiums so they can enjoy maximum coverage without having to bleed their bank accounts dry every month.
The good news is that the strategies for finding cheap auto insurance in the city are the same as those for lowering insurance premiums anywhere else in the country. There's a golden rule that every consumer should know when it comes to insurance policies of any kind, whether it's health insurance, life insurance, homeowners insurance or auto insurance:
The less likely it is that your insurance company will have to pay a claim in the near future, the cheaper your premiums are going to be.
Make sense? Auto insurance providers are in the business to make a profit, and their profit margins aren't rising when they're handing out claims. If you can find ways to decrease the chances that you'll have to file an auto insurance claim you'll be able to enjoy tremendous savings on your insurance premiums-even if you do live in the middle of Bumper Alley. For example, you could:
1) Install air bags in your vehicle. Many of today's vehicles come equipped with standard driver's side air bags, but if yours doesn't it might be worth talking to your dealer and seeing if one can be installed without voiding your warranty.
2) Install any of several anti-theft devices. Safety measures of all kinds, from The Club or a brake lock to a fully automated GPS tracking device and a kill switch decrease the chances that you'll be left holding the bag (and the bill) for a stolen car.
3) Purchasing a vehicle equipped with anti-lock brakes decrease the chances that you'll be involved in an accident as a result of going off the road, and an ALB system will do wonders for lowering your auto insurance premiums.
4) Drive carefully. Almost every auto insurance provider in the country offers a Good Driver discount to drivers whose driving records have been clean for the past 5 years or longer and have no tickets or accidents on their license (as declared by the DMV).
5) Talk to your auto insurance agent. You'd be amazed at how many discounts there are out there. We'd be here all day trying to mention them all! For example, did you know teachers and scientists are less likely to be involved in an accident than almost any other profession, and as a result their auto insurance premiums are lower? And many companies offer a discount to high school and college students who are on the honor roll/Dean's list. You never know what you qualify for until you ask!
