Cheaper car insurance

When looking for a new or used car, there are many factors to consider.
First and foremost, there's price. Obviously you can't buy a car you can't afford.
The mistake many people make when looking for a car is what that price or "cost" should include. If you are buying cash then this doesn't really apply to you but if you are getting finance for this vehicle to pay it off you can't just look at the monthly instalments. Eg you've worked out that you can afford R1500 per month, you can't look for a vehicle for that exact amount per month. You need to consider the other costs involved, such as   a warranty ( some finance institutions insist on this) and of course and more importantly, insurance.

Finding cheap insurance can be made easier by choosing the right sort of car. When you know what their considerations are, you will be better equipped to find as cheap car that is also cheap to insure.

 "Which vehicles are the cheapest to insure?
We would like to discuss a few of the factors that determine whether your vehicle will qualify for lower car insurance premiums. It is important to remember that the starting point for any such discussion would be to consider the purpose of having car insurance.

Car insurance is meant to provide cover for vehicle damage or vehicle loss. Therefore – the easier to replace and repair – the lowest the car insurance premium!

Value of the Car
The biggest factor to affect your car insurance premium costs is the value of the car you would like to insure. The more expensive the car, the more expensive the car insurance premiums will be.

This is simple to understand – Should the car get stolen or damaged to a point beyond repair, the car insurance provider will be required to reimburse the insured for the value of the car.

In general, sports cars and other high-performance, flashy vehicles are classified as higher risks because they are common targets for thieves and vandals, and because statistically, the people who own them tend to drive more recklessly.

Vehicle parts
An aspect often overlooked by the car owner is the availability and cost of vehicle parts. The more expensive the parts and components needed to repair your vehicle the more expensive the car insurance premium.

The low profile car that is less expensive and easy to find also has more affordable parts needed for the repair and hence less expensive to insure.

Imported or Locally Manufactured
Be careful before buying an imported or exotic car – these cars are more costly to replace and as a result more expensive to insure. Check with your car insurance company beforehand if you plan to purchase an imported car – this might avoid nasty financial surprises!

Safety Features
With crime being such a threat to car ownership, the car insurance companies will regard vehicle safety features as very important. Most cars come with upgradeable options that cost additional money, but increase the car’s safety. A theft prevention security system and safety gear in your vehicle could reduce premiums. Modern safety measures such as DataDot technology as a security measure that could find favour with your insurer.

You can qualify for a discount on many policies if you have air bags, automatic seat belts, anti-lock brakes and daytime running lights. This could help prevent theft and accidents and they lower the potential damage in the event an accident occurs.

Extras
If expensive extras are built into the vehicle such as GPS and sound systems, this will also increase the insurance costs. Modifications and enhancements could not only create the impression of higher accident risk but will also increase your car insurance premium.

Remember that flashy sound systems or modifications might make your car more attractive to thieves – this could lead to a higher car insurance premium.

Colour of the vehicle
Even the colour of your car could have an effect on the car insurance premium. Insurers sometimes charge slightly higher premiums for darker colours (think black and navy blue) than for lighter cars (like white). [Some experts believe that darker colours can be more difficult to see in the dark or in bad light conditions, and are thus involved in more accidents.]

Car and Crime Statistics
Car insurers will analyze historical car and crime statistics and seek to find which type of vehicle is more likely to be stolen or involved in an auto accident. These cars which are un-proportionately stolen or involved in accidents tend to cost much more to insure than average cars.

Getting cheaper car insurance requires a lot of thought and some research and planning. With the right mindset it is possible for the vehicle owner to get a cheaper car insurance premium!"

Info from http://carinsurance.arrivealive.co.za

So before you buy your car, contact the insurance companies to find out what to look for and what to avoid to ensure that you keep your insurance premiums as low as possible

My first car

When I was younger, my father always told me that any teenagers first car should be a "scadonk" . His reasoning was quite simple "you are going to crash it, so rather crash a piece of scrap then a nice new car"

Strangely, my father seems to be in the minority in this opinion. Through my teenage years I watched many friends crash their fancy new BMW's and Mercs, watched their parents buy them a new one, only for them to crash that one shortly after, and every
time I remembered my dad's wise words.

So when eventually I did buy my first car, it was worse then a "scadonk"

I bought a  Fiat Uno that was barely holding together.

It had many problems. Its paint had not been finished, so if you touched or leant on it, you'de come away white, which is why it got the nickname "Chalk", If I turned left my drivers side (right) door would fly open. My boot's hydraulic lifts pulled rather then pushed so every time I had to open the boot, I had to use a plank to hold it open. When I changed gears I first had to search for the gear, and it felt like stirring porridge. It had a top speed of 80 and shook like hell when I reached that, but it got me to where I needed to go and it used the tiniest amount of petrol. It was a perfect first car!

And guess what....... I never crashed it , and (touch wood) none of my cars since,  but if I had it would have been cheap to fix

So to all you parents out there, don't buy your recently licensed teenagers new cars, because chances are they are going to crash them, get them a nice used car. It will get them to where they need to go and will teach them to value their car, so that when you do eventually spoil them with a new car, they will be more careful and more appreciative :-)