Car Insurance Secrets That Can Save You Thousands

lady-face-hush-gesture

There are so many things the average customer doesn’t know about car insurance. If you’re one of these customers, now’s the time to learn some car insurance secrets. The more you know, the more you’ll be able to save.

To help you out, we’ve gathered some tips to help you get the most bang for your buck when it comes to car insurance. Stop spending more than you have to while still enjoying good coverage with these car insurance secrets:

1. Lowest price ≠ best insurance.

What good is a really low premium if it takes the insurance company months to settle your claims? When comparing rates, don’t forget to take into account the track record of the company in settling claims in a timely manner. Sure, price is important, but so is time.

2. Don’t bother claiming insurance for inexpensive repairs.

If the scratch on your car can be fixed for cheap, just pay for it out of your own pocket (preferably from an emergency fund) and don’t file a claim. Making a lot of claims will affect your standing with your insurance company, making them reluctant to renew their business with you, which means they’ll charge you higher rates. But if the damage goes beyond the deductible, go ahead and file a claim.

3. Ask if your insurer can offer a fixed deductible cover.

Fixed deductibles are a big bonus if you include this in your car insurance policy. Typically, deductibles are percentages, and if your car is valuable, then you’ll end up having a high deductible. But if you ask for a fixed deductible, you won’t be surprised by large amounts just in case something does happen to your car. For example, companies usually charge .5% of the sum insured, so if you owned a P850,000 car, you’d have a P4,250 deductible. But if you’d worked out a fixed deductible with your insurer, you could get one at a flat rate of P2,000. All you have to do is ask.

4. Don’t forget to declare accessories / modifications.

Does your car have a front bull bar, a sports body kit, or any other accessories or modifications? Make sure to include it in your policy. If they’re not included, you’ll have a hard time claiming these items if they’re damaged, because they’re not standard features of the car. You could save thousands of pesos in the claims process by declaring these modifications, and often, you won’t have to pay extra to get them covered anyway. Keep receipts of the items for reference, in case you have to make claims.

5. Check your Property Damage and Bodily Injury cover.

Comprehensive car insurance cover is essential if you want a good amount of protection. But you can save further on your car insurance if you check the amount of cover of the Property Damage and Bodily Injury.  Normally, a P200,000 BI&PD cover is sufficient. Other clients go up to P500,000, or don’t check how high it is in the first place, and this results in an easily avoidable high premium. So if you’re looking to lower your premium, lower the BI&PD cover to around P200,000.

6. Comparing rates online will get you the best rates.

Save yourself the trouble of going to different insurance companies just to compare rates. Why go through all that when you can do it all online? With a few clicks, you can find out which company can give you the best rate for the type of coverage you want. Save time, money, and effort by using online comparison tools.

ichoose

iChoose.ph is the first free online car insurance comparison site in the Philippines. They compare only the very best car insurance products in the market with the best and suitable rate per customer and car condition. On their platform, you can easily compare, choose and save on car insurance premiums in a few minutes. Get started by going to iChoose.ph.

Leave your comment