High auto insurance quotes can add a great deal to the cost of buying and running a vehicle.  Fortunately, for the savvy insurance shopper, there are some easy ways to make your monthly or annual lump sum insurance payment a lot less, and to still get great coverage from your insurer.

Here are five things you can do to get lower auto insurance quotes:

1) Shop Around

You know it, we know it – but it’s all so confusing and there are so many different options and filling out all those forms just takes so much time! Suck it up – insurance is an important part of owning a vehicle. If you rush it, you’re the only one who will be hurting financially if anything happens to your vehicle.

2) Get a Higher Deductible

This can be a risky move with car insurance quotes, because you’re basically making a bet with the insurance company, and taking seriously long odds.  On a long enough timeline you will have an accident, and insurance companies employ people to figure out almost exactly when it’ll happen, and how much it’ll cost.

If you don’t mind taking a bit of a financial hit if you have an accident, and you’d rather have low premiums, then this might be a good option.  If you’re the type of person who scrapes their car door getting out of a tight parking spot every few months, this probably isn’t your best choice.

3) Stick With the Same Insurer

If you insure two or more cars with one insurer, or you buy your homeowners’ or renters’ insurance from the same company, you can often negotiate a better deal and lower combined premiums than if you were to buy them separately.  Sometimes the savings can be quite significant.

4) Reduce Cover on Old Cars

Insurance is supposed to be a form of financial protection against damage to property or an investment – it’s a form of hedging that should, ideally, work out to be financially beneficial if anything happens to that asset.  If your car is worth less than 10 times your premium, you’re probably never going to recover the cost of your insurance, even if you sink your car to the bottom of a lake. Think about dropping it down to the lowest level of 3^rd party cover.

5) Get Group Insurance Through Your Employer

Group insurance, like a group pension, works by averaging the premiums, and risk, across a large group of people (like all employees of a company).  This means that everyone gets a similar premium rate (adjusted for the value of their vehicle of course), and you could be saving a lot.  It’s not a tax-free benefit, but you should be able to knock $25-$100 off your monthly premiums.