Reader question:
I’m a student living near campus at a big university, and the commute alone is difficult on my budget, and on top of that I have to pay so much for car insurance. Is there anything I can do?
Malory
Sure there is, Malory.
Considering you live near your campus, there are several things that you can do. Lots of insurance companies offer certain kinds of discounts if you’re willing to do your part in lessening the number of vehicles on the road. This doesn’t mean running other vehicles off the road, which achieves the same end but not necessarily the results that the insurance companies want. Also, if you are willing to do this in order to get lower insurance quotes, there is probably something bigger going on.
What it does mean, though, is that insurance companies like it when you carpool. For one thing, if you’re carpooling, there are more people in the car to notice dangerous situations on the road, and to yell for you to watch out when you don’t notice yourself. You’ll be less likely to be gabbing away on your cell phone, and also to have the radio so high, because you’ll be wanting to talk to your carpool buddy. So, one way to get lower car insurance rates is to choose a buddy or two to carpool to school with you. You probably have a roommate or someone else who lives nearby you that goes to the same school, and they’ll chip in on your gas. So not only will you be saving on car insurance, but on your gas expenses too.
Call your insurance company up and ask them if they offer a discount for carpooling, and then gather a couple of friends so that you can take advantage of that discount. Not only will your ride to school be more enjoyable, but the discounts you have applied to your car insurance premium will be adding up while your prices are dropping down.
Cheers,
Fashun Guadarrama.