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Attorney Van O'Steen

Cost of Auto Insurance Should Play Major Role in Buying Car

Van O'Steen

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Most people are very price-conscious when deciding whether to buy an automobile. Cost probably is the leading determinant in narrowing the field of choice for most of us. If this were not true, we would see many more Cadillacs, Porsches and Ferraris on the road.

Cost also plays an important role in decisions regarding options on new car purchases.  Most people pass on optional expensive luxury features.

An often overlooked cost is the price of automobile insurance. Many of us fail to consider this factor because it is a step removed from the actual purchase of a vehicle and because of a general lack of awareness that insurance costs vary greatly among car models.

The price of your car is paid for only once (although financed by most of us). Insurance costs, however, are periodic, often increasing and continuous for the life of the car.  For this reason, the cost of auto insurance should be an important consideration for all car buyers without money to burn. Whether the car is new or used, costs should be investigated before signing a contract to purchase.

Cars that are expensive to repair will have higher costs for collision and comprehensive coverage.  Not all models are equal in the auto accident repair business.  Similarly, models that are favorite targets for thieves will be more expensive to insure. High-performance cars have additional insurance costs. Conversely, cars equipped with alarm systems generally will save on insurance premiums for their owners.

You can obtain good free information on relative insurance costs among various models of cars from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.  Look for the Highway Loss Data Chart.

To obtain more specific information about particular models of interest to you, contact your insurance agent in advance of a purchase—and request a quote on premiums for each. You may be surprised by the information. Ironically, cars often marketed and priced for youthful drivers are prohibitively expensive to insure.  This is because of this group’s tendency to cause more automobile accidents, especially those with serious injury.