Skip to main content

How to bring down your auto insurance cost ?

Invest Mutual Funds Online

Download Mutual Fund Application Forms


The insurance regulator has hiked the third-party motor insurance premiums in line with its decision last year to review the rates annually. Some insurers are also planning to revise their 'own damage' rates. Put these two pieces of news together and it is a fair guess that your overall premium will go up when you buy or renew your motor insurance. Don't lose hope though. There are many ways to keep the total premium on the comprehensive motor policy under control.

Let go of smaller claims

You are entitled to a no-claim bonus (NCB) for every claim-free year. If you don't make any claim for a few years, the NCB can reduce your premium cost by as much as 50%. So, don't rush to make a claim for fixing every small dent on your car. Sometimes, what you spend on repairs could be less than the amount you stand to lose as no-claim bonus. Weigh whether the damage is worth filing a claim for or is it smarter to wait for another claim-free year.

Opt for a higher deductible

You can also opt for a higher deductible amount in the policy. This means that you will pay the initial 5,000-10,000 of the repair bill and the insurance company will pay the balance. The higher the deductible, the lower is the premium. However, don't opt for too high a deductible just to bring down the cost of insurance. You might end up paying more than the amount you stand to save.

Share more information

Many insurers offer better rates these days to customers who are willing to share personal information, such as age, gender, marital status, occupation, claim history and driving track record. For instance, Berkshire Insurance, which distributes Bajaj Allianz's motor insurance policies, offers a discount of 5% to those who provide details about themselves by answering the questions in the forms. The premium for a young male who smokes will be higher than that for the same amount of cover for a young, nonsmoking female. The details help in the correct calculation of premiums and also in getting discounts of 10-25.

Be careful about add-on covers

The add-on features like depreciation cover, roadside assistance, emergency expenses, and hospital cash, may have immense utility value, but some agents try to push unnecessary covers as well. Tally the policy features with your needs before buying the add-ons. This will ensure that your premium is not inflated for options you may never use.

Sign up with auto associations

Becoming a member of the Automobile Association of India (AAI) or its affiliates gives you a discount on the premium rates from some insurers; the discount could be lower of 5% or 200 on the own damage premium for private cars. Similarly, if you install an anti-theft device approved by the Automotive Research Association of India, you could claim a discount of 2.5%, subject to a maximum of 500.

Stick to the mandated part of cover

As per the prevailing law, you have to buy a minimum cover of 6,000 to compensate third parties for any property damage. Sure, you have the option to buy a higher cover, which may come in handy if there is a huge payout, but remember that your premium will also rise. If you want to keep the premium low, opt only for the mandatory cover.

Transfer no-claim bonus while selling a car

If you are planning to upgrade your car, you can bring down the insurance cost by transferring the no-claim bonus of your old car. If you have been a careful driver and have a 40-50% no-claim bonus, get it transferred when you sell your car. The insurer will issue a no claim certificate, which will get you the discount on the new car's insurance. If the insurance of the new car works out to 15,000, a 50% no-claim bonus will reduce it to 7,500. This no-claim certificate is valid for three years from the date of issue. Termination of the insurance means your old car is without a cover. Since a buyer typically assumes the car comes with insurance, make things clear while striking the deal. In most cases, buying new insurance for the old car may still be cheaper.

 

---------------------------------------------

Invest Mutual Funds Online

Transact Mutual Fund Online

 

Download Mutual Fund Application Forms from all AMCs

Download Mutual Fund Application Forms

 

Best Performing Mutual Funds

    1. Largecap Funds:
      1. DSP BlackRock Top 100 Fund
      2. ICICI Prudential Focused Blue Chip Fund
      3. Birla Sun Life Front Line Equity Fund
    2. Large and Midcap Funds
      1. ICICI Prudential Dynamic Plan
      2. HDFC Top 200 Fund
      3. UTI Dividend Yield Fund
    3. Mid and SmallCap Funds
      1. Reliance Equity Opportunities Fund
      2. DSP BlackRock Small & Midcap Fund
      3. Sundaram Select Midcap
      4. IDFC Premier Equity Fund
    4. Small and MicroCap Funds
      1. DSP BlackRock MicroCap Fund
    5. Sector Funds
      1. Reliance Banking Fund
      2. Reliance Banking Fund
    6. Gold Mutual Funds
      1. Relaince Gold Savings Fund
      2. ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund
      3. HDFC Gold Fund

 

Popular posts from this blog

Birla SunLife Manufacturing Equity Fund

The Make in India program was launched by Prime Minister Naredra Modi in September 2014 as part of a wider set of nation-building initiatives. It was devised to transform India into a global design and manufacturing hub. The primary motive of the campaign is to encourage multinational as well domestic companies to manufacture their products in India. This would create more job opportunities, bring high-quality standards and attract capital along with technological investment to bring more foreign direct investment (FDI) in the country.   Why India as the next manufacturing destination?   The rising demand in India along with the multinational's desire to diversify their production to include low-cost plants in countries other than China, can help India's manufacturing sector to grow and create millions of jobs. In the words of our Honourable Prime Minister- Mr. Narendra Modi, India offers the 3 'Ds' for business to thrive— democracy,...
Read more

Total Returns Index brings out real Equity Funds Performers

From February, equity mutual funds have to change their benchmarks to account for dividend payments. Until now, funds used price-based benchmarks alone. TRI or total return indices assume that dividend payouts are reinvested back into the index. What this does is lift the overall index returns, because dividends get compounded. For example, the Sensex TRI index will consider dividend payouts of its constituent companies while the Nifty50 TRI index will consider dividends of its constituents. Using TRI indices as benchmarks comes on the argument that an equity funds earn dividends on the stocks in its portfolio, which they use to buy more stocks. Therefore, using an index that also considers dividend reinvestment would be a more appropriate benchmark. Shrinking outperformance With a stiffer benchmark, it is obvious that the margin by which an equity fund outperforms the benchmark would shrink. Rolling one-year returns from 2013 onwards, the average margin by which largecap funds out...
Read more

Kisan Vikas Patra - KVP

  Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP) First launched in 1988, the Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP) is one of the premier and popular saving scheme offering from the Indian Postal Department. This product has had a very chequered history- initially successful, deemed a product that could be misused and thus terminated in 2011, followed by a triumphant return to prominence and popular consumption in 2014. The salient features of KVP are as follows- The grand USP- Money invested by the applicant doubles in 100 months (8 years, 4 months). KVPs are available in the following denominations- Rs.1000, Rs.5000, Rs.10,000 and Rs.50,000. The minimum purchase value for the KVP is Rs.1000. There is no maximum limit. KVPs are available at all departmental post offices across India. These certificates can be prematurely encashed after 2 ½ years from the point of issue. KVPs can be transferred from one individual to another and from one post office to another. ----------------------------------------------------- Inve...
Read more

Mutual Fund Review: Reliance Regular Savings Equity

    Despite high churn, Reliance Regular Savings Equity has managed to fetch good returns   In its short history, this one has made its mark. Though its annual and trailing returns are amazing, the fund started off on a lousy note (last two quarters of 2005). It managed to impress in 2006 and was turning out to be pretty average in 2007, till Omprakash Kuckian took over in November 2007 and wasted no time in changing the complexion of the portfolio. Exposure to Construction shot up to 28 per cent with almost 21 per cent cornered by Pratibha Industries and Madhucon Projects . Exposure to Engineering was yanked up (18.50%) while Financial Services lost its prime slot (dropped to 6.69%) and Auto was dumped. That quarter (December 2007), he delivered 54.66 per cent (category average: 25.70%).   When the market collapsed in 2008, thankfully the fund did not plummet abysmally. But even its high cash allocations could not cushion the fall which hovered around the category average. ...
Read more

Stock Review: Havells

HAVELLS India's stock performance has been muted in the past three months, in line with the weak broader market. But, given the turnaround in its overseas subsidiary and the launch of new products in its consumer durable business, the company's stock may undergo a re-rating.    Havells is India's leading consumer electrical goods company, with consolidated sales of . 5,527 crore in the past four quarters. Its wholly-owned subsidiary Sylvania, which makes lighting and fixtures, has established brands in European, Latin American and Asian markets. Sylvania repre sented nearly half of the company's consolidated revenues in the first half of FY11.    Sylvania's poor financials hit Havells' consolidated performance in FY10. But, this has changed in the cur rent fiscal. Havells has reduced fixed costs of Sylvania by exiting from unprofitable businesses and outsourcing manufacturing to low-cost locations such as India and China. In the September 2010 quarter, Sylv...
Read more
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
Invest in Tax Saving Mutual Funds Download Any Applications
Transact Mutual Funds Online Invest Online
Buy Gold Mutual Funds Invest Now