Marriage and Car Insurance

One of the typical expenses that many people find themselves unprepared for are their car insurance premiums. The rates almost always much higher than you’d expect and they seem to increase every year, no matter how good your driving record is! While turning 25 years old is the easiest way to get a discount on your insurance rates, there may be one other major discount in store for you if you’re currently unmarried. For some insurance providers there is a discount for married couples that share the same insurance policy. With some insurance companies, this discount isn’t actually for simply getting married, it’s because you and you’re spouse are now on a shared policy. That means some people may not get any discount after marriage if they’ve already been sharing an insurance policy. You’d probably do well to shop around for a new policy after marriage, as some companies may offer a marriage discount on top of the discount for sharing a policy. Why do certain providers have marriage discounts? Once you’re married and have a family, some insurance companies generally believe you’ll be a safer driver and take fewer risks, so they offer lower rates. If you’re still looking for other ways to save on car insurance rates, try a few of these tips:

Other Ways to Save

• If you don’t already have them, install some safety or anti-theft devices on your vehicle such as a car alarm or Lo-Jack system. Many insurance companies will lower your premiums if you have these devices since they decrease the chance of theft.
• In order to get a little more out of your marriage discount and shared policy, consider car pooling with your spouse as well. One of the factors in calculating your insurance rate is the amount of miles you drive each year, by car pooling you could lower your overall amount of miles and save on your rate, not to mention on gas.
• As you know, marriage can change a lot in your life – why not change all of your insurance policies? Shop around for the lowest rates and go through the same company for all of your insurance needs if possible. Many companies offer loyalty discounts if you purchase your home insurance, car insurance, and any other type through them.
• Finally, try to maintain a good credit score, especially right before you plan to apply for insurance. More and more insurance companies use your credit rating as a factor in your premiums so get those bills paid on time!