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Looking for very cheap car insurance? Need to reduce the cost of your premium? Comparing prices here may help you find much lower quotes and beat your current insurer's renewal quotation.

How can I find the cheapest car insurance?

Whilst there are some factors , such as your age and postcode, which could have a huge effect on the size of your premium but which you have no control over, there are many steps you can take to lessen the expense of insuring your vehicle. Reading the hints, tips and secrets below may help you buy the best policy at the lowest cost.

Is third-party car insurance cheaper?

Insuring a car 3rd party only used to be a very economical way of buying a policy. However many drivers who paid the lowest possible premiums in this way proved to be poor risks for the insurers with a high level of accidents, motoring convictions and claims. A large number of them were young drivers (who as a group suffer the highest accident records), who had older cars which lacked modern safety features. Also a lot of them skimped on basic car maintenance, such as prompt renewal or repair of brakes, tyres and steering components. Because of this the insurers increased premiums so much for these motorists that it is now easy for a third party policy to actually cost more than a comprehensive one.

So, you should always get fully comprehensive quotes too. They may be the lowest cost option.

Should I pay a higher excess?

Increasing your excess will usually (but not always) result in a lower premium; partly because the insurers will feel that you are confident that you will drive safely, avoid accidents and be less likely to claim against your policy. However it is important to remember that the excess is money that you will have to pay out in the event of a claim, before the insurer tops it up. You could find that if you had a fault accident most of the cost of the compensation would be paid by you, with the insurer only contributing a fairly small sum. You would still however lose some no claims bonus (unless you have a protected NCB policy) plus the likelihood of an increase in your premium at your next renewal.

You should also make sure that the amount of the excess was within your budget, since we never know when a car accident is likely to happen.

Which insurers are the cheapest?

We recently carried out several hundred price comparisons and whilst companies such as LV, More Than, Admiral, and Privilege were often amongst the lowest cost insurers, this depended upon the individual motorist and his or her driving record, address, occupation etc. These insurance companies usually did not offer the lowest costs for riskier motorists such as younger drivers, those in occupations such as DJs, entertainers, and night workers, and people living in postcodes that have higher than average levels of crime, vandalism or collision damage.

The important thing is not which insurers are the cheapest overall, but which ones will offer YOU the best bargain. So, to get the most affordable deal, you need to search further.

Should I use a price comparison site?

Some of these sites claim that you can compare quotes from a panel of over 100 insurers. It is very unlikely however that you will actually get quotes from more than a small percentage of these. Their panels will only include insurers or brokers who will pay the website a commission in exchange for enquiries or policy sales; this commission is of course added on top of your premium, and you pay for it. There may well be many other companies that could offer you a much better deal than those on the panel, but you will not be shown these bargains.

In addition some of these comparison companies own, are owned by, or have business interests in, motor insurers. So, the temptation for bias in their search results is obvious. Each of them negotiates its own terms with the companies on their panel, which is why you can be offered exactly the same policy from exactly the same insurer at different prices on different comparison sites.

So the answer is; by all means compare prices, but do so on several websites, such as comparethemarket.com, prudentplus.com, or confused.com. Also bear in mind that there may well be better deals available elsewhere via independent brokers, particularly if you are a non standard motorist with an unusual car, a high claims record, or a number of convictions.

What is blackbox insurance?

Telematic or 'black box' systems rely on detectors which are installed in your car, and which record how, where and when you drive it. This means that your insurer can:

• keep track of your driving habits. Excessive braking or acceleration, fast cornering, exceeding speed limits or other erratic moves can be recorded and the information sent straight back to them.
• See whether you drive during the more dangerous times of day. Morning rush-hour is a common time for fairly low-level bumps and scrapes, whilst night-time, particularly at weekends, is a period when the more serious accidents are likely to occur because of a combination of poor visibility, tiredness, and sometimes alcohol.
• Keep an eye on your mileage, and the kind of roads that you drive on. How much time spent behind the wheel is important; statistics show that fatigue caused by too many hours of driving is a common cause of motorway pileups.

Can a black box tell if I have an accident?

If you are involved in a collision the device should detect it and it may be possible for it to recognise just how the collision occurred. This could be very important in deciding who is to blame for a road traffic accident.

Can a blackbox save me money?

If you are a safe and careful driver, then yes, it probably can. Many young drivers are frustrated by the fact that their premiums are based on the average claim records of other under 25 motorists; and this age group has a poor reputation. This could be very unfair on someone who drives very carefully, for a short mileage, in a safe modern car in a low insurance bracket. A Telematic system can reward this driver with lower premiums. On the other hand, someone who drives badly could not only find premiums increased but could actually find cover withdrawn completely. This could mean vastly inflated premiums in the future. So, if you have one of these policies, make sure that you drive carefully; you will not only protect yourself, your loved ones and innocent third parties, but also save money on your car insurance as well.

Is there a best time for buying insurance?

Research has shown that premiums can be far lower for people looking for cover a month before their renewal date is due. This is because insurance companies view them as more carefully organised people than those who scramble to arrange a policy at the very last minute; it also indicates that they are more financially stable than those who have to delay renewing their insurance until they can scrape the cost of the premium together. In these cases. Statistics indicate that these drivers are less likely to be involved in an accident, and therefore lower premiums are justified. Most insurance companies will allow you to book a new policy 30 days ahead, and you should aim to do this in order to benefit from the most cost-effective arrangement.

Can I pay for car insurance monthly?

Paying for car insurance on a month-to-month basis is a very popular method of balancing budgets. However, it can come at a high cost. There are three reasons:

• Management and interest charges are almost inevitably added to the premium. Typically these added, in 2018, about 11% on top of the basic cost of the policy but for people with a poor credit rating they usually cost a lot more.
• Insurers are wary of taking on customers who cannot afford, or who do not want to pay, upfront. This is because they may also find it difficult to afford their monthly payments, and may have to skimp on routine car maintenance.
• Some of the lowest cost insurers will only accept payment in advance. This means that not only do those who pay monthly have to pay interest on their premiums, but they cannot qualify for the lowest premiums to begin with.

This means that it is a lot cheaper for the majority of motorists to pay for their policies in full, right at the beginning.

Is it possible to pay monthly without interest?

From time to time we have seen 'no interest' policies for sale. However, the basic premium has always been higher than other companies were offering. So, these offers were not such a good bargain after all.

Will I get a better deal from a foreign insurer?

Every business that offers car insurance in Great Britain has to be registered with the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) even if it is registered abroad. This gives you certain protections, including the fact that enquiries have been made to hopefully ensure that each company is financially stable. However, a number of companies which operate out of Gibraltar have a poor record for paying out on claims, and they can sometimes be very difficult to contact. There is no point in paying for insurance if you cannot easily get help from the company when necessary, if they quibble over a claim or take ages to settle it. If you are tempted to buy a policy from such company, make sure that you look up reviews of them online before parting with any cash.

How can I avoid getting a rip-off insurance policy?

There have been cases of fraudsters offering extremely cheap car insurance at unbelievable prices on Facebook, some websites or even Google ads. Often these criminals have used the names of genuine, reputable brokers but once they have got the money the policy has never materialised, or has been worthless. A number of motorists have been prosecuted for driving without insurance after they thought they were covered by one of these fly by night operators and many others have lost hundreds or even thousands of pounds. You should always ensure that you:

• Never buy a policy through an advertisement on Facebook or a website that you cannot trust without making further enquiries into whether or not the advertiser is a genuine insurer.
• Do not buy from a company which operates out of a mobile telephone number. Reputable companies will have landline numbers; although this by itself is still no guarantee of security.
• Always pay for a policy using a credit card; if the company insists on payment by any other means you should be very suspicious.
• Check that the business is registered with the Financial Conduct Authority; their registration number should be clearly visible in their advertisement.
• Remember that if the premium seems too cheap to be true, it probably is.

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