Tips to save on car insurance

Car insurance is one of the costliest purchases that consumers hope to never use. Here are some helpful tips on how to keep your premiums in line without taking on unnecessary risks:

• Do an annual rate check. If you’ve been with the same insurer a long time, it might be tough to beat its rates, especially if you haven’t had any claims lately. In fact, a 2014 survey by the Consumer Reports National Research Center found that only 10 percent of 19,000 ConsumerReports.org subscribers who compared premiums found that they would save money by switching insurers. It’s easy to compare multiple insurers online, at sites such as Answer Financial, Insure.com, Insweb.com and NetQuote.

• Pick a top-rated insurer. Saving money isn’t simply a matter of finding the lowest premium. Some insurers have lower premiums, but end up costing you more in the end by low-balling loss estimates, hassling the repair shop to cut corners and forcing you to pay extra for original-equipment replacement parts. They might even unfairly jack up your premiums after an accident.

• Set the right deductible. A higher deductible reduces your premium because you pay more out of pocket if you have a claim. Hiking your deductible from