Cheap Car Insurance For Multiple Vehicles

Many of us have more than one vehicle in our household - whether it's a car each for you and your spouse, or two or more vehicles that you use personally such as a convertible car that you drive in the summer and a conventional vehicle for more practical daily use. With several vehicles in the household however, is it possible to save money on car insurance by combining them under one policy?

The simple answer is "yes" or at least in theory - thanks to a policy type known as multi-car insurance.

Multi-car insurance is offered by an increasing number of UK providers including Admiral and Norwich Union. Some policies will allow you to insure up to five cars in one go - as long as they are registered to the same address. This means you could have a car each for your spouse, children or even a friend insured under the same policy as long as you all live together.

These policies can potentially save you money because you are effectively buying insurance in bulk. This loyalty is rewarded through cheaper premiums.

If you do opt for multi-car insurance then there are some important factors to consider:

- Monthly payments - Renewal dates could be linked together which could make annual payments expensive. So ensure you have the option to pay monthly.

- Named drivers - Are you allowed to drive more than one vehicle insured under the policy or only those you are a registered named driver for?

- No-claims discount - If one of you is involved in an accident do all of the drivers on the policy lose their no-claims bonus or just the individual who makes the claim?

- Policy options - Ensure the policy options you choose are right for everyone.

Though multi-car insurance could save you money it's still worth using a car insurance comparison website to see if you could find cheap car insurance by insuring the vehicles individually.

Tips to Slash Car Insurance Costs For New Year

January is the month in which many of us are motivated to get our finances in order. If you're one of those people then use these five tips as a simple checklist to ensure you've taken every step you can to drive your car insurance costs down.

- Tip one: Check your policy - Ensure you're not paying for policy options you don't really want or need. For example are there named drivers on your policy that no longer use the car? Are you paying for business use of the car when you only use it for commuting and domestic use?

- Tip two: Declare your security steps - Have you added a car alarm or immobiliser to your vehicle to reduce the chance of theft? Do you park in a garage overnight rather than on the street and do you use a well-lit secured parking area during the day? If so, then make sure your car insurance provider has been informed as discounts may be available.

- Tip three: Provide accurate personal details - If you've changed your job, address, or any other personal circumstances then make sure your car insurance provider has been informed. It could be that your new job is deemed less of a risk than your previous employment - perhaps because you drive fewer miles - or that your new address is in an area with lower crime. Getting married too could save you money on your car insurance as you will be deemed a more responsible driver. So if your circumstances have changed, let your car insurance provider know.

- Tip four: Assess your excess - The higher your voluntary excess is, the lower your premiums will be. So think about what you could comfortably afford in the event of an accident and adjust your policy accordingly.

- Tip five: Analyse the market - Make sure you compare car insurance policies from other providers whenever your renewal date is close.

Most car insurance companies offer their best deals to new customers so consider taking advantage of these deals by switching.

Cheap Car Insurance For Imported Cars

Many of us choose to import cars because retail prices nationally are so high. However, the money saved on buying a car from overseas can quickly be negated by high car insurance costs unless you are careful.

Imported cars such as the Toyota Estima, Eunos Roadster and Mitsubishi Pajero are often deemed more of a risk to insurers because the car insurance companies are not necessarily familiar with the vehicles in question. Their parts may be more difficult to find, repair costs may be higher and they may not be well-suited to UK roads. All of this mounts up to more risk for the insurer and higher premiums for the consumer.

High car insurance costs particularly apply to grey imports. These are vehicles that have not been built to European standard and are not EU approved. As such it's normally worth finding a car insurance quote before you buy the vehicle outright as costs can be derisory. Parallel imports - vehicles with right-hand drive that are bought outside the UK - carry less risk as they are normally built to UK standards and finding car insurance cover should be more straightforward.

So how can you find cheap car insurance for grey imports and parallel imports?

The first step is to ensure you're getting a thorough overview of the market. Several mainstream insurers offer specialist imported car coverage so use a comparison website to compare deals. Also shop around on the web for specialist insurers that may offer unique policy options that are better suited to your vehicle type.

Make sure the modifications to the vehicle are limited. If you simply want a cheaper car from overseas then pick a right-hand drive car with no additional changes - the more modifications that are made, the higher your premiums are likely to be.

Ask a prospective car insurance provider about discounts too. Security is often seen as a crucial feature for imported cars and you may enjoy cheap car insurance if you can fit a Thatcham security device or other approved alarm or tracker system to the vehicle.

Income Protection Insurance Can Ease Financial Stress

Losing your income can cause a great deal of financial stress. Accidents can happen at anytime and depending on the type of accident you could find yourself having to take several weeks or even months off from work. While your employer might pay sick pay in many cases this is nothing compared to the income you are used to bringing in. The same would apply to if you came down with an illness that kept you from earning your own living or if you lost your job entirely due to redundancy. Income protection insurance could ease your financial stress by providing you with a replacement income.

The replacement income you received from your policy would provide you with the sum you insured against when taking out the cover. Providers will ask you how much of your income you want to protect, up to a certain amount each month. The premium charged will reflect this along with your age when applying. Standalone providers offer the cheapest premiums and you need to shop around and compare quotes as they do differ greatly. You also need to get as much information as possible regarding the policy you are considering taking out. The terms and conditions will state any exclusions that need to be met along with when the cover would begin and end.

All income protection insurance policies will only payout for so long once they have started. Your policy could begin after you have been unemployed or incapacitated for just 30 days. However some policies will state that you have to wait as long as 90 days before being able to claim. The terms and conditions also vary with how long; some policies will pay out each month for 12 months while with others you might get a payment each month for 24 months.

An income protection policy would provide you with the income to ensure that you would be able to carry on with the commitment of your mortgage. You have to ensure that you are able to maintain your mortgage because if not you could be looking at having it repossessed by the lender. You would only have to miss one repayment and you would be breaking the contract you signed with your lender. If you cannot come to an agreement to catch up on what you owe, then your lender will have to start legal proceedings. The income provided by income protection would mean that you would have the money in the bank when it was needed and not have to fear about getting into arrears.

Of course you would also be able to pay your other outgoings with your income protection insurance which could include loan repayments. Being able to maintain the commitments of your loan would mean that at the very least you would get a mark on your credit rating. This could make getting a loan in the future extremely hard and might even mean that you have to take on a bad credit loan which comes with higher interest rates. You would be able to relax and concentrate on getting well or going out and finding work again knowing that at least your financial commitments are taken care of.