If you have ever wondered how your insurance company determines your car insurance quote, the answer is that there are a number of factors involved. The first factor, believe it or not, is your credit rating. Second is your driving record, and then come personal statistics including your age, gender, marital status, education and employment histories, address, and make and model of vehicle.

If you can determine how much weight your specific insurance company places on each of these factors in computing your car insurance quote, you may be able to change some of them and get a lower premium. If, for instance, you know the model of car you are driving is one which frequently shows up on the list of Top 10 most frequently stolen vehicles, you might be persuaded to trade it in for a less desirable model.

If You Can't Afford Your Quote

This is especially true if the car insurance quote you are first given is simply beyond your budget. You are taking a huge risk if you decide to drive uninsured, and would be much better off doing whatever it takes to lower your car insurance quote, even if it means exchanging your current set of wheels for something else.

If you can cut down on the amount of driving you do, by car pooling or moving closer to the places where you usually spend your time, you can lower you car insurance quote. If you move to an area with both a low crime rate and small amount of traffic, you can lower your car insurance quote. If you must stay in a high crime area, you can lower your car insurance rate by adding safety features like wheel locks and alarms to your vehicle.

You may find that your insurance company bases a significant percentage of your car insurance quote on your age, gender, and marital status. You are stuck with both your gender and age, but if you get married you should notify your insurance agent immediately and ask for a revised car insurance quote.

If you are like the vast majority of drivers, you have no idea what percentage of your car insurance quote is based on each of the individual factors which your insurance carrier uses to determine it. So your best bet, if you are on a limited income, is to improve as many of them as you can. This applies to your driving and credit histories in particular.

What Are You Really Paying For?

The final thing you should learn about your car insurance quote is how much of your premium actually goes toward purchasing your coverage and how much of it goes to cover underwriting and other of the insurance company's expenses. Many larger insurance companies do not have underwriting costs, and may be able to give you lower car insurance quotes for that reason alone. When you understand the mathematics several different insurance companies use when they give you car insurance quotes, you will be able to choose the one to provide you with the best coverage for the best price!