In these kinds of rough economic times, you want to save wherever you can. One of the most obvious places where you would want to save is in your car insurance premiums. But so many factors influence premiums, and all too often you seem destined to pay more and more as time goes on. Don’t give up! You, too, can save on your car insurance if you’re willing to put in the effort to become a low-risk driver. By doing your best to be a safe driver, car owner, and insurance policy holder in all aspects of your life, you can save in many different ways and enjoy the same great coverage with more spending freedom.

Car insurance companies calculate your overall risk level by taking into account things like your driving history, your age, the type of car you own, and your credit score. There’s no way to find out for sure what they rate you as, but you can look at the same things they look at and then make a reasonably good educated guess at your risk level. The first thing to do to save on your premiums is to remember these things when you’re first shopping for a car or an insurance policy. By buying less flashy, subdued car models, you reduce your risk. Buying insurance only when you have a good credit rating is also a very sensible idea. You don’t want to be stuck with awful premiums because of a temporary slump in your credit rating, do you?

Note: You can keep premiums down by keeping small claims down. If you’ve had items stolen from your car, such as a CD collection – file this on your homeowner’s insurance. Bad drivers will pay more in premiums – including you if you drive badly. You can pay up to 40% more after your fist at-fault accident. This is the industry standard, although not all insurance companies follow this guideline.

Note: Accident “forgiveness” – some auto insurers offer a first accident “forgiveness”; they will not increase your premiums for your first accident. Check with your company to see if they offer this coverage and how you can qualify. Did your friend borrow your car and have an accident? You’ll have to file a claim unless their own insurance covers them. If they are uninsured, and the damages exceed your coverage, the injured party may take legal action against you for damages and injuries. On the other hand, if your friend did not have permission to borrow your car you won’t be held liable in many cases.

Insurance companies will only cover you for the overall value of the vehicle, so don’t ever expect to get more than that. And this value isn’t necessarily the price you paid to take it out of the car lot, either. A used vehicle obviously loses significant value, so you have to calculate wear and tear when you’re trying to figure out how much coverage you can squeeze out of your insurance. This is one of several good reasons why you should take care of your car, too. Change the oil every once in a while, have it tuned up every once in a while, and repair minor problems quickly before they turn into major ones.

If you get into an accident with an uninsured motorist, and he or she is at fault, then if you hold multiple car insurance policies you might try to “stack” them. “Stacking” refers to collecting from multiple policies for the same incident. Check the language of each of your insurance policies to see if they allow stacking. If you have UM/UIM coverage on more than one car insurance policy, then you can likely make claims under each until you have recovered 100% of your damages.

If you find another car insurance company that offers better deals, you can switch to them. This means telling your old company to cancel your policy. This is a simple procedure, and all you have to do is notify your old company in writing on the date you’ve chosen to cancel. Just be sure to have the newer policy ready to go as soon as you cancel the old one! If there’s a gap, then you’ll be uninsured for a little while, and getting into an accident during that period of time can be a total disaster. Shop safe and smart and you’ll have no regrets about this simple procedure.

Susan Reynolds is the content coordinator for a leading South African Insurance Provider who specialises in Car Insurance Options.