Save on insurance
 with these cost-cutting tips, some research, and analyzing your current coverage and unique needs, will help ensure that the protection you buy is right for your circumstances.
General Tips:
Comparison shop: Get quotes from at least three insurance companies. Know your legal obligations for the coverage (e.g., auto insurance) and how to qualify for discounts.
Higher deductibles: Reduce your premiums with higher deductibles. For example, increasing your auto collision deductible from $200-$500 could save 30% on your premium.
Multiple insurance coverage: There are usually discounts for multiple policies (e.g., home, auto, boat) with the same company. Other discounts may apply for long-time customers.
Group Coverage: Your affiliation with alumni associations, employers, or business organizations could qualify you for group discounts.
Seniors: Ask for discounts on auto through to home insurance.
Auto Insurance:
- Discounts: Obviously, a good driving record will lower your premium but other discounts include:
- Seniors and students with good grades.
- Insuring more than one vehicle with a company.
- Approved defensive driving courses.
- Car safety features such as anti-lock brakes, air bags, alarm systems, or automatic seat belts.
- Low-mileage discounts.
- Older Cars: Drop collision and/or comprehensive coverage on older cars. Check the
Kelley Blue Book value -- if the car's value is less than $1,000, you'll pay more in premiums than you'll ever collect in a claim.
Low-profile Cars: A 'sporty' car is more expensive to insure than the family wagon as are cars that are expensive to repair or high-theft cars.
Home Insurance:
Construction type and age of your home, and your community's fire protection will affect premium cost.
- Safety & Fire Protection: Burglar alarms, security systems, deadbolts, fully-secured communities, Neighborhood Watch Programs, smoked detectors, fire extinguishers, and automatic sprinkler systems save money.
- Cash Value Vs Replacement Cost: Cash value coverage (value of the item when stolen) is more cost-effective coverage than replacement cost coverage (pay whatever it costs to replace the item with a comparable model)
- Maximum Pay-out: Appraise and insure individual, high-priced valuables if there is a pay-out limit (e.g., on jewelry) -- or store in safety deposit boxes and buy vault insurance.
- Liability Insurance: Minimum of $300,000 is recommended.
- Home Offices: Most homeowner's policies do not cover business activities. Purchase additional coverage.
Life Insurance:
This needs calculator shows typical expenses, such as funeral costs, that your survivors will face after your death.
- Term Vs Investment Policies: Determine the purpose of your insurance -- survivors' benefits, survivors' benefits/retirement savings, or the flexibility to withdraw investments for medical expenses. Decide whether term or whole life policies suit your needs. Cheaper term insurance, combined with smart investments, often yield a better return. Term insurance may be the best choice for homeowners with young children -- your exact needs are for a limited time. Older, established families might benefit more from cash-value policies.
- Penalties, Not Discounts: There are substantial price penalties for smokers and those that enjoy high-risk activities such as skydiving and scuba-diving.
- The Internal Revenue Service will want money, within nine months, for estate taxes if your estate is more than $770,000 for singles or $1.4 million for couples. Life insurance monies are paid quickly -- alleviating the need for quick liquidation of other assets to meet these obligations.
- 'Slush Fund' Planning: Avoid the temptation to increase your coverage by $20-$25,000, as most agents advise, for 'unexpected' expenses.
- Disability Insurance: Disability insurance is more important than life insurance -- each year 12% of the American adult population suffers a long-term disability.
- Get the highest monthly benefits for which you qualify.
- Get your 'own occupation' coverage. 'Any occupation' coverage forces you into a new occupation if you're unable to perform your prior job duties.
- Buy the longest waiting period you can afford -- the length of time before benefits start.
By Calli Soules
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