Just like auto insurance, policies have deductibles, and the same rule
of thumb applies--carry the highest deductible you can
afford.
The higher your deductible, the more premium credit you can expect to
receive from your insurance company. Your savings could reach
25%
by increasing the deductible from $100 to $1000.
Improve Your Home
Security
Most insurance companies offer discounts for smoke detectors, burglar
alarms, dead bolts, fire extinguishers, and Neighborhood Watch Areas.
Homes with a fire and burglar alarm system hooked up to a third-party
monitoring company receive higher discounts than homes with local bell
alarms.
Consolidate
Policies
Insuring two or more vehicles with the same insurance company can save
you 10 - 15% on your premiums. If you cover your homeowners insurance
and auto insurance together, you can reduce your premiums by another 10
- 15%.
Construction
Type
Before buying a home, consider its construction type, such as frame or
concrete block and steel (CBS). A wood frame house typically
costs more to insure than one built mostly of concrete.
Verify Distance To Fire Stations And Windstorm Areas
If you live in the country, you'll probably pay higher rates for your
insurance than if you lived in town. Why? It’s because of the
longer distance to your local fire station. If you live more than 5
miles from the nearest fire station, and more than 1,000 feet from a
fire hydrant, you will most likely pay a higher premium.
Before purchasing your home, you may want to get a quote for both and
flood insurance. Insurance companies may not offer you windstorm or
flood coverage, depending upon the area in which you live. If your home
is in a hurricane prone area and your insurance company offers
windstorm coverage, then installing approved hurricane shutters should
result in a premium discount.
Claims
Free Record And Renewal Discounts
If you have not had a claim under your policy during the past 3 - 5
consecutive years, you could receive up to a 15% discount, depending on
the insurance company. Plus, most companies will discount your premium
if your policy has been in force for 3 straight years.
Mortgage Free Discounts
Some insurance companies target who have paid off their mortgage and
offer them premium discounts of up to 5%.
New And Renovated
Home Discounts
A majority of insurance companies offer a discount for new homes, and
you may qualify if your home was built in the last 10 - 15 years. Also,
a recently renovated home costs less to insure, so find out when the
last major electrical, heating and plumbing update was completed on the
home.
Non-Smokers And
Early Retiree Discounts
Some companies offer a non-smokers discount of up to 15% to qualified .
To qualify, you must be a non-smoker and you cannot permit smoking in
your home by anyone. Retirees or senior citizens are usually offered
discounts because insurance companies believe they are home more often
and are therefore better able to protect their home against fire and
burglary.
Live-In House Keeper
Some insurers offer up to a 2% premium credit if you have a live-in
employee as they feel it could reduce the likelihood of burglary.
Conclusion
After reviewing the foregoing savings tips, you may think that if you
added up all your credits you could receive a 70 – 90%
reduction
in your premiums. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way.
Certain safety or other measures you take may qualify you for being
placed with the "preferred" company of a particular insurance group.
This "preferred" company will be able to give you more premium credits
than a standard company is able to.
