For 2009, many people have made their new year’s resolution to lose weight, spend more time with family, or stop smoking.  These are great resolutions and should be followed through until the goal is met.  For those that haven’t set a new year’s resolution or are having trouble sticking to the ones they have already set, why not make this your new year’s resolution to save money? Now may be the perfect time to look into changing your California car insurance policy, or switching companies if you think you are paying too much.

Here are some tips you can follow to help cut the cost of your car insurance.

Keep your driving records and personal information up to date.  If you have had any tickets or auto related citations in recent years that have dropped off of your record, it is important to verify that your insurance company knows about these.  If you don’t keep your driving record up to date, you could be wasting money by paying extra for infractions that are no longer on your record.  By keeping your personal information up to date, you can save money as well.  When you hit certain age marks, get married, or even purchase a home, you can often save money each month.

Be sure you are taking advantage of any discounts you are eligible for.  These discounts can be for many different things including organizations you belong to, safe car features, or even the type of job you have.  Contact your insurance company to see if you can receive discounts for having a low risk occupation, driving a vehicle that is deemed “low profile”, or driving a car with advanced safety features.  You can also save by combining your coverage, assuming more risk on your vehicle, or if you are a senior citizen.

If you are unsure if you qualify for these discounts, have your information ready and contact Auto Insurance Specialists for more information.

This content is offered for educational purposes only and does not represent contractual agreements. The definitions, terms and coverages in a given policy may be different than those suggested here and such policy will be governed by the language contained therein. No warranty or appropriateness for a specific purpose is expressed or implied.

For most car owners, there comes a time in life when you will have that unfortunate fender bender and you have to get the damage repaired.  For most people, picking a body shop and paying for the repairs is not an enjoyable experience.  While these tips will not make the process any more enjoyable, they will however help you to not spend more money than is necessary when it comes to body shop repairs.

Shop Around - One of the biggest differences you will see in body shops is the hourly rate they charge to perform the labor on your vehicle.  This can range from $30-60 an hour.  The rates can vary by the location you are in and the shop itself.  You might benefit by checking your next closest town for different rates.

Once you choose a shop and receive a quote, make sure you understand the quote you are presented.  Some shops use a computer system to generate the quote while others will do this by hand.  Whichever kind you receive, be sure the body shop technician goes over the quote in detail and that you understand it before you make a commitment.  A good shop will review this with you, but if they don’t, you should ask.  If you are not satisfied or their answers seem vague, move on to the next body shop.  Also, it never hurts to get multiple quotes from competing shops.  Some will match or beat the quote of their competitor to make sure you choose their shop.

After your car is repaired and it is time to pick it up, inspect the parts once you get to the shop.  Look to see that the old parts were in fact damaged.  If you can’t tell, ask the technician to show you what is defective and why it needed to be replaced.  If the quote calls for new parts, ask to see the old ones and make sure new parts were put onto your vehicle.  Some shops will use refurbished parts and call them new to save money for themselves. 

Most parts being put onto the car will need to be painted.  When you pick up your vehicle, inspect the parts and paint to make sure they were painted correctly.  If possible, try to inspect the paint in different lighting conditions.  When it is bright and sunny outside, the paint may look perfect, but moving the vehicle into an area with less light, and the same paint job could look different.  If this is the case, you may want to consider asking them to repaint this for you.

The last thing you should always remember is to ask a lot of questions.  Repairs can cost thousands of dollars, so you want to make sure you don’t have to come back to have the work redone at an added cost.  Many shops will warranty or guarantee their work.  Make sure you get the details in writing, so if you do have issues with the work performed you can use that as your back up.

This content is offered for educational purposes only and does not represent contractual agreements. The definitions, terms and coverages in a given policy may be different than those suggested here and such policy will be governed by the language contained therein. No warranty or appropriateness for a specific purpose is expressed or implied.