Lower Your Car Insurance Rate with Safety and Anti-Theft Options

If all you carry on an older vehicle is liability car insurance, anti-theft options probably won’t do much to lower your car insurance rate (because of its lower value, which may be less than the deductible). However, if you carry comprehensive coverage on a newer vehicle, a small investment in theft deterrence and safety options can mean significantly lower premiums.

In fact, if you drive a car that is in high demand by car thieves and/or live in a region (such as Las Vegas, Nevada or Yakima, Washington) where the chances of having a vehicle stolen are statistically much greater, such devices are almost mandatory. At the very least, good theft deterrence systems will give you much greater peace of mind, because the consequences of having a vehicle stolen can go far beyond the simple loss of property.

Alarms are Good – But…

Probably all of us have been awakened in the dead of the night by a car alarm going off in the neighborhood. Cheap car alarms can be set off by almost anything – even a change in the temperature. Nonetheless, they can be very effective in scaring off a would-be car thief. Because of the problems with cheap ones however, it’s best to spend a nickel and buy a decent model that only goes off when someone actually attempts to break into the car.

Other Options

Theft deterrence can also be visual – and often, this works just as well, or better. Representatives of the top insurance companies agree with the conclusions of the National Insurance Crime Bureau that would-be car thieves who see a steering wheel lock are much more likely to decide that attempting to steal the vehicle would not be worth the effort – and move on. The same is true of brake pedal and wheel locks.

Steering wheel and brake pedal locks are fairly inexpensive – they can be purchased from between $15 and $100 and most auto parts stores. Wheel locks can cost as much as $200; these are however the most visible of deterrents as well as the most effective. If you have a fairly new vehicle that is still worth a great deal, it’s probably a worthwhile investment.

Get the Options

Some car manufacturers offer locks with numeric keypads and even vehicles that require voice or fingerprint identification in order to start. Another common option uses a GPS device and allows the owner or law enforcement to track the vehicle and immobilize it from a remote location should a car thief attempt to abscond with it. These can add a bit to the car’s sticker price, but will definitely lower your auto insurance estimate.

How Much Can You Save?

This is a good question – and one that only your insurance agent can answer. S/he will best be able to tell you what types of theft deterrence devices will result in the greatest savings on your comprehensive car insurance premiums.