Over the past few years, car insurance costs have gone up for everyone. A lot.
And for people who are new to the UK, who often face higher prices to begin with, these hikes can be especially difficult.
We’ve spoken before about how insurers price policies, plus some of the reasons car insurance has gotten so expensive. But now we’re going to answer a bigger question. How can you make your current car insurance policy cheaper? For a quick summary, watch our video below. Or keep reading for more details.
Review your personal details
Sometimes even a small change to your personal details can affect your policy price. So the first thing you should do is check everything is up to date.
The right change could make your price a bit cheaper. However, you should know that changes can make your price increase too.
Changes could include:
Your driving licence
Have you switched from using a licence from your home country to a UK licence recently? Driving with a UK licence can often bring down the cost of your insurance.
Also, did you put down the correct issue date for your licence? In general the longer you’ve been driving, the better your price will be. That’s why it’s important to factor in all the years you’ve been driving – in any country.
Unlike lots of other UK insurers, Marshmallow will look at all your driving experience to give you a fairer price. No matter where you drove before.
And if you’re still using a licence from your home country, don’t worry. We cover licences from countries all over the world for up to 12 months.
Your annual mileage
When you take out a car insurance policy, you’re asked to estimate how far you drive your car in a year. In the UK this is measured in miles, not kilometres.
So ask yourself – has this changed? Maybe you drive less now. Or maybe you got a new job that’s further away so you drive more. Either way, this could affect your price.
And remember – fewer miles doesn’t necessarily mean a cheaper price. Honesty is the best for your policy.
Your address
Have you moved since you got your last quote? Some areas are more expensive to insure a car than others. And sometimes even moving one town over can affect your price.
Your job
Remember that new job you got? It could affect the price of your insurance. Sometimes even a change in job title can make a difference.
Additional drivers
Are there any named drivers on your policy that don’t use your car anymore? Removing an additional driver will impact your policy price – it may go up or down. You should also check that their details are up to date.
Overnight parking location
Has the place you park your car at night changed? This often happens if you move address. In general, the more secure your car is at night, the better it is for your insurance.
Vehicle ownership
This is a very important detail to tell your insurer about. If you do need to make a claim, your insurance could be invalidated if you’re no longer the registered keeper of the car.
Remove add-ons you don’t need
When you took out your policy, you may have paid more for extras like Breakdown Cover, No Claims Discount Protection and more. Check what you have and if you don’t need them, remove them from your policy to make it cheaper.
Remember, sometimes other products, like certain bank accounts, come with Breakdown Cover included as a perk.
Top up your Voluntary excess
Your Compulsory excess is the amount you pay for yourself when you make a claim. This amount is set by the insurer.
However, some insurers (including us) also allow you to set your own Voluntary excess. This is an extra sum of money that you can choose to pay on top of your Compulsory excess.
So say your Compulsory excess is £200 and you set a Voluntary excess of £100. Overall, you would pay £300 towards your claim.
If you choose to pay a higher Voluntary Excess, you can make the overall price of your policy cheaper.
Get in touch
Insured with Marshmallow? If you’d like to discuss your latest renewal quote, we’d love to hear from you. Just download the app and tap Live Chat to spark up a conversation.
And if you’re here shopping around? Nice to meet you. By the way, we can save people who are new to the UK up to 45% on their car insurance.* Just thought you should know.
*In July 2023, our average quote for UK newcomers was more than 45% cheaper than the equivalent quote with zero years of driving and claim-free experience. At Marshmallow, we accept driving and claim-free history from all countries.
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