Who does not like saving money? In fact, most of us are ready to make that extra effort to save money wherever possible. On the contrary to this belief system, when it comes to buying or renewing car insurance policies, we tend to be relaxed. We often end up believing whatever the insurance agent says and are happy with the final quote.
What if there are certain things that you can do to save money while renewing your expired car insurance? Using the No-Claim Bonus (NCB) to your benefit, ensuring timely renewals, and checking the Insured Declared Value (IDV) are just some of the ways to do so.
Let’s take you through a list of 8 useful tips that can help you save money on premiums and the policy in general!
1. Renew Online, Only After Making Comparisons
When you buy clothes, do you buy them without comparing multiple brands and styles? No, right? You should follow a similar mentality while renewing an expired car insurance policy as well. With the internet playing a major part in our lives, insurance providers have their own online platforms. Here, you can easily get the quotes and then compare different offers. You need to consider the premiums and the various offers that the company is providing in the cover. Take your time and choose the one that best suits you.
Furthermore, you should keep one thing in mind - you can always save money on renewing the policy through an online portal. Since the insurance providers do not have to pay any commission to an agent, in this case, you can save money on that front thanks to the lack of handling fees.
2. Check the Insured Declared Value
The Insured Declared Value (IDV) is one of the most important aspects of a car insurance policy that you must check. Before you renew your expired car insurance policy, check the IDV provided by the company. It is basically the amount you will receive in case of a theft or total loss of your car. The company studies the current market value of the car and then applies the depreciating factor to it to calculate this value. Note that this value can differ from one service provider to another.
One thing to keep in mind here is that you should not just think about opting for a high IDV because then you will have to pay high premiums as well. The lower the IDV, the lower will the value of premiums be. This is where you need to find the right balance between not paying high premiums and not facing monetary losses in case of theft or total damage to the car.
3. Put the NCB to Good Use
A No Claim Bonus is a benefit that the insurance company provides for a claim-free year. In some ways, it is to acknowledge your safe and good driving skills. The best part is that you can accumulate such bonuses until they reach the maximum limit of 50%. You can avail of these discounts to pay premiums with lesser values.
Note that you can transfer these accumulated bonuses to another car as well if you buy a new one. It is because these no-claim bonus points are offered to you and not the vehicle. The same goes for instances when you switch the insurance company while renewing your expired policy. However, make sure that you renew it within 90 days of the expiry date to enjoy the benefits of NCB.
4. Get Discounts on Premiums by Opting for Voluntary Deductibles
Now, this is something that not many people are aware of. You can actually end up paying cheaper premiums if you agree to pay a part of the claim out of your pocket. You just need to sign up for paying a fixed percentage of the claim and in return, the insurer will slash down the prices of premiums. If you choose the higher slab of deductibles, you can even end up getting a discount of 35% on premiums.
A pro tip to consider here would be for people who live in an area where there are not many vehicles or the scope of accidents is quite low. It is also beneficial for users who rarely take out their vehicles.
5. Check the Add-on Covers Thoroughly
While buying a car insurance policy initially, you do end up having a lot of add-ons, like the Engine Protector, Return to Invoice, Accessories Protection, and more. Before renewing your expired car insurance policy, make sure that you review and assess all these add-ons thoroughly. You might very well not need them anymore. By leaving some or all of them out of the policy, you can definitely save a lot of money.
6. Use Anti-theft Devices for Your Car
Now, here is a simple solution of saving a maximum of INR 500 on every premium – all you need to do is install anti-theft gadgets like audible alarm, steering wheel lock, brake lock, dashcam, etc in your car. The insurance service providers consider this as a positive sign. As a result, they end up giving a discount of 2.5% on the premium. Just like the case with Rahul, when he installed the GPS trackers in his car and in return received a discount from his insurance company on his next policy premium.
7. Be a Part of an Automobile Association
You can be a member of recognised automobile associations and enjoy a small relaxation of 5% or a maximum of INR 200 on your premiums. You just need to show the paperwork of the membership to the insurer for this.
8. Timely Renewal
Once your car insurance policy has expired, you have a period of 90 days within which you need to renew it to avail of the benefits. If not, you can lose out on the NCB bonuses and other discounts offered by the insurer. To avoid this, you should definitely renew within this period of 90 days.
All the tips mentioned here can certainly help you save money while renewing your expired car insurance. Thanks to faster internet and smartphone-friendly online insurance portals, you can renew the policy on the go too!
