The idea of purchasing insurance for your first car might leave you overwhelmed by the options. While it is mandatory to get third-party insurance, you need to weigh all the options and shop around. First-time car owners often purchase insurance out of instinct at the same time when they buy the vehicle.
However, you may end up spending more on your vehicle’s coverage than needed. This explains why car enthusiasts take time to research the right insurance package, and in the process, save hundreds of dollars.
In this post, you will get some valuable tips on purchasing your first car insurance. Of course, insuring your vehicle is imperative. However, you would like to try and save money where possible, while maximizing the coverage. You can also check out this site for professional insurance advice.
Types of Car Insurance
You will come across two broad categories of car insurance: third-party liability insurance, and comprehensive car insurance.
With third-party liability insurance you can seek financial protection from legal liabilities following accidental death, injuries, or damage to third-party property. However, you would not get any coverage for yourself or your car from this type of insurance.
Comprehensive car insurance is a better choice for most car owners as it covers almost everything. Why not find out more over here.
The driver/owner of the car remains insured against death or injuries in the case of an accident. Most car owners would opt for this coverage, considering the high medical bills for treatment.
With this coverage, your car would also remain secured from damages caused by man-made disasters, natural calamities, and accidents. It also covers damages or loss of the vehicle due to theft. Besides, your own vehicle policy would secure your car against damages when it is under transit.
Third-party liability, by contrast, covers a lot less. It is at a minimum, the mandatory legally required insurance. As explained, it secures your expenses for third parties after accidents.
Apart from these benefits, you can also choose add-ons to secure your car against particular risks. While it would be wise to opt for comprehensive car insurance, you may also pay an additional premium for purchasing an add-on coverage.
You need to consider different factors such as your age, location, miles are driven, credit score, and the type of your vehicle while deciding the amount of coverage that would suit your needs. Besides liability coverage, a comprehensive policy will help you with financial assistance under different heads.
Moreover, you need to be choosy about your add-ons.
Personal injury protection
In case you or any of the occupants in your car sustain injuries in an accident, this insurance plan would compensate for hospitalization charges. Therefore, choose a policy that offers adequate coverage for personal injury. You might consider the number of people who might be in your vehicle if you use it for family rides. This protection would also cover lost wages, funeral expenses, etc.
Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage
This type of package would cover those damages which might be inflicted by underinsured or uninsured motorists. This coverage would also protect you in hit-and-run cases.
Collision insurance
This type of coverage would secure your expenses in case you are at fault for your car sustaining damages, following a collision with another object or vehicle.
Before choosing a car insurance package, do not forget to consult with a specialist to get an idea of the right amount of protection under each category.
Here’s how you should go about purchasing the perfect car insurance policy for your needs:
Compare Options
The best way to compare the insurance plans for automobiles is to check out the aggregator websites. Regardless of the type of insurance, you need to compare plans. Alternatively, you may seek assistance from reputed insurance specialists.
Once you get an idea of the estimated amount, you can tally the benefits offered by each insurer. Of course, you need to check out the customer support and reputation of the insurance company as well. It’s logical to make your purchase from the insurer having a healthy claim payment history and a high claim approval ratio.
Understanding The Benefits
In most cases, the documentation process turns out to be challenging to understand. Unless it is free from jargon, car owners find it difficult to understand the terms. Now that you have professionals to help you out, it would be easier for you to get an idea of the terms and conditions.
Make sure to understand the exclusions. Besides, there might be fine print to which you need to pay attention if you want to avoid future hassles.
Check For Discounts on Bundling
At times, you might be willing to purchase insurance policies for other assets like a home. Or you might be on the hunt for health insurance. In these cases, you may enjoy bundling discounts or loyalty price-offs on your vehicle insurance.
To avail of these benefits, you would have to purchase the second policy from the same insurer. In case you are eligible for bundling discounts, you can proceed and make the payment.
Select The Right Add-ons
Given that there might be several add-ons to choose from, you need to be logical while making this decision. Some of the most relevant packages might include the following:
Roadside assistance: You might purchase this type of add-on to cover the expenses for roadside assistance. This can include minor repairs, battery jumpstart, fuel, towing, etc.
Zero depreciation: As a result of depreciation, the value of your car would be diminishing over time. A zero-depreciation add-on warrants that during the settlement of claims, the insurer would not be considering this reduction in value.
Return to invoice: If you experience a total loss of your car, the policyholder would compensate the amount that you have mentioned on the invoice.
NCB protect: Even when you make a claim after purchasing an NCB protect add-on, you would be enjoying the no-claim bonus.
Engine protection: This type of add-on helps to cover the expenses for replacing or repairing the engine of your insured vehicle.
Personal belonging loss: In case you lose any valuable personal belongings such as a laptop or a smartphone from your car during incidents, you can get the value compensated.
Even after purchasing the right car insurance policy, you need to periodically evaluate the same. This is because your lifestyle might have changed which may alter your requirements.
Insurance specialists suggest an annual review for your automobile insurance policy so that you can upgrade the same when needed. Consulting one of these experts before you make your purchase will definitely prove to be beneficial.
