Insurance is a lifeline we all need. In many ways it serves as an extra emergency fund to protect yourself in the event of something bad happening. Unfortunately, it can get expensive. So, it can be a good idea to find ways to save money on insurance.

Most people will have four or five different types of insurance. For example, you may have a combination of pet insurance, home insurance, contents insurance, life insurance, and car insurance. All these policies can quickly add up.

The five ways to save money on insurance covered in this post are:

1. Speak to your insurer directly
2. Use price comparison sites
3. Consider clubbing together
4. Use cashback sites like Quidco
5. Take extra precautions

Speak to your insurer directly

When it comes to renewing your insurance, your provider may automatically put your premium up. Sometimes, it is as simple as phoning them up and discussing the quote with them.

Your insurance provider may have different options available you aren’t aware of, or they may be able to offer you a discount if you indicate you might take your business elsewhere.

You may have to wait a while to get through on the phone. But, if it ends up saving you money, it will be worth it.

I saved myself over £230 this way last week. My dog’s pet insurance was up for renewal, and they wanted to put the payments up from £36 a month to £57. I phoned them up and discussed the options and ended up getting better coverage and paying just £29 a month.

Use price comparison sites

We’ve all seen the Compare the Market adverts. But, the company isn’t just good for meerkat content. Together with other comparison sites, it can help you get a whole of market view and see where you can be saving money.

These sites can scan a large range of companies, so you don’t have to. They also have access to some deals you might not get elsewhere. Additionally, you may find companies you haven’t heard about before.

However, it is always a good idea to do your own research too and look into a company before taking out a policy just because the deal looked good on a price comparison site.

Consider clubbing together

You will genuinely have to live with others to take advantage of this way to save money on insurance.

Many providers do offer multi-car coverage or group holiday cover. This will often work out cheaper than paying on your own.

At the very least, it means you only have to pay one administration fee between two or more of you.

You may well end up saving far more than this though.

For example, while I’m living with my parents, my mum and I are on a multi-car insurance policy. We pay £550 in total. This works out significantly cheaper than if I were to have an individual policy. The cheapest quote I could find was about £400.

Equally, you could combine different types of insurance to save money. One common combination is home insurance and contents insurance.

But, different providers will offer different combinations, so it may be worth having a look around.

Use cashback sites like Quidco

Cashback sites – like Quidco and Top Cashback – can offer cashback and deals on insurance policies.

Quidco also allows you to compare different policies and find the deal which is best for you. This means you can not only save money on insurance by comparing different providers, but you can also get cashback on any purchase you end up making.

The only thing to be aware of is that Quidco essentially acts as an introducer. It earns commission on every policy taken out via its site. This means it is incentivised to encourage you to take out insurance from one of its affiliated companies.

Take extra precautions

Being careful can also save you money.

Insurers look to assess risk when deciding what your premiums should be. If you can demonstrate you pose a low risk of making a claim, they are likely to charge you less.

For example, having off-road parking can make your car insurance cheaper. Although, moving somewhere with off-road parking may prove much more expensive!

With home insurance, really simple steps like having a safe in your home can reduce your premiums. Not only does a safe protect you from burglaries, it also protects your valuables from floods and other similar events. This therefore lowers your risk.

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Did you know I offer freelance writing services and personal finance workshops and talks for schools, workplaces and organisations? I also regularly feature in the media. Get in touch via kroyalsfreelance@gmail.com or reach out on Twitter @Katie20Percent if you’d like to find out more.

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