Fast Cars Gear

Archive for February 4th, 2010

Most people are not aware that the type of car that they own can affect the price they pay for car insurance. There are certain make and models that are more expensive to insure. If you are considering purchasing a new car, it is important to be aware of how the type of car you own will affect the price you pay for your insurance policy.

When determining an insurance premium for a vehicle, underwriters will assess such qualities as its safety features, risk of theft, record of repairs and their costs, and the vehicle’s safety rating. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is an organization that ranks vehicles for their safety. When assessing the safety record of a particular type of vehicle, they look at the history of accidents, history of vehicle repairs due to a safety issue, and the size of the vehicle. For instance, there have been a number of simulated collisions tests that revealed that small cars are more at risk of an accident than large cars. As well, vehicles that have anti-lock brakes will have lower insurance premiums. When assessing the risk of theft, underwriters will look at the history of theft for that particular type of vehicle. Vehicles that have a high rate of theft will have higher premiums. As well, they will look at the quality of theft prevention features of a car such as the quality of the window and door locks and if the particular vehicle has any extra security features. Another method of determining insurance premiums is the history of speeding tickets. If a particular type of vehicle has a history of getting ticketed, it will affect the premiums.

Three of the most expensive cars to insure include the Nissan GT-R: $2,533, Mercedes G-Class: $2,088, and BMW M6 – $2,236. Car insurance companies rate such cars according to the risk of having to pay out for a claim. The lower the risk of paying out for a claim, the lower the insurance premiums will be. Choosing a vehicle that has been assessed to be low risk will help keep the costs of your insurance premiums low. One other important method of keeping your insurance premiums low is to make sure you compare auto insurance quotes.

Because the Government and Consumer groups are involved in researching the quality of cars, vehicle manufacturers are now improving their vehicles in an effort to make them more safe and secure. Consumers now have broad selection of vehicles that are cheaper to insure.