At some point in life, it happens to all of us. Our expenses rise but our income doesn’t keep up. The only solution is to look at your bills, wondering what you can cut out to save a few dollars.
If it’s been awhile since you had to file an auto insurance claim, it probably seems like the perfect place to cut. Instead of cutting coverage – a common but bad solution – you have other options. One of the easiest ways to reduce your Charlotte auto insurancecosts, without sacrificing your coverage, is to increase your deductible.
ABOUT YOUR DEDUCTIBLE
When you purchase auto insurance, you choose the deductible you’ll pay if you ever have to file a claim. This is the amount of money you’ll pay if you file a claim before the insurance company picks up the tab. If you have a $200 deductible and a $1000 insurance claim, you pay the $200 and the insurance company pays the rest.
You often have several choices when it comes to your deductible, most often between $100 and $1000 per claim. The lower your deductible, the higher your monthly premiums will be. If you want to save money on your auto insurance without giving up any coverage, go for a higher deductible.
FINANCIAL ISSUES TO CONSIDER
Raising your deductible to $1000 per claim can immediately reduce your monthly insurance costs, but there are things to keep in mind if you choose a really high deductible:
- You’ll have to pay up to the amount of your deductible. If the cost of the damage to your vehicle is only $700, the insurance company won’t pay anything – you have to cover the entire amount.
- The deductible applies to each claim. This isn’t like your health insurance where you have a yearly deductible to meet. If you get into multiple accidents, you’ll pay the deductible each time.
- When you raise your deductible, keep it to a level that you can comfortably handle. Maybe $1000 is too much. If so, raise it to $500 instead.
- You should create an emergency savings fund. Take some of the savings from your monthly premium and set it aside in a savings account. Build up to the higher deductible so you know you’re covered if an accident happens.
If you’re looking for ways to lower your auto insurance costs, contact us at Charlotte Insurance. We’ll be happy to go over the ways you can cut costs without sacrificing coverage.