Best Car Insurance Quote – 3 Things to Do

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Everybody knows that to get the best car insurance quote, it’s important to shop at least five different car insurance companies. But before you even get those quotes, there are a few things you can do to make yourself (and your used car in Kemptville) more attractive to insurers.

1) Keep Your Credit Clean:

Studies have shown a direct correlation between your credit score and the likelihood that you will file an auto insurance claim. For this reason, almost all insurers pull your credit report. Your credit report shows an insurer if you pay your bills in a timely fashion and have had the same credit accounts for a long time. Someone who does this is considered more stable than someone who pays late and frequently opens and closes accounts. This information is used to create your “insurance risk score”, which is one factor that determines your car insurance rate.

Tip: If your credit history is not strong, start cleaning it up. If there is unusual credit activity on your account, wait about a month for it to return to normal before shopping for car insurance quotes.

2) Think About the Type of Car You Plan to Buy:

Insurers have a rating system for every car make and model. Most use a system devised by the Insurance Service Office, which starts with the cost of the vehicle and then factors in safety and theft data. Cars are given a rating from 1 to 27, and the higher the number, the higher your premium.

Tip: Look up your car’s relative risk online. If you’re trying to keep your car insurance premiums low, it’s best to consider this risk before you buy that high-risk sports car.

3) Pay your insurance premium in full:

“Fractional premium” fees are usually charged when you pay your annual premium in six-month, quarterly or monthly installments. There is almost always an administrative fee to break down these payments also. This can really add up.

Tip: Ask about fees for paying in installments. If the fees are small enough, it may be worth it. If not, bite the bullet and pay for the insurance premium in full.

OK, you have cleaned up your credit, chosen a low-risk car and have budgeted to pay your full car insurance premium up-front. With your to-do list all checked off, you’re now ready to shop for your best car insurance quote.

If you are looking for a quality used car in Ottawa, Scott Subaru has got you covered. We offer a huge selection of used cars and used trucks in Ottawa and surrounging areas. Let our professional staff find you the perfect vehicle for your budget and your lifestyle!

Your Credit and Your Car Loan

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When it comes to getting a car loan in Ottawa, credit and car loans are intertwined in a way that makes them somewhat codependent. In order to get a great car loan, you’ll need to have great credit. However, in order to have great credit, it’s wise to have a history of car loans that you have successfully managed or repaid.

Here are a few ways that we want our customers to be aware of when it comes to car loans in Kanata and credit working together:

How credit is built

Credit is determined by five different factors: payment history, types of credit, amounts owed, new credit, and length of credit history. These five factors all account for varying percentages of a credit score. However, payment history accounts for 35 percent of a credit score – the largest percentage. Payment history means the track record that an individual has developed based on loans that he or she has taken out and then repaid.

In order to develop a track record of repaying loans, it is important to actually take a loan out in the first place. Many people begin to build their credit by taking out small loans, such as a car loan, and then committing to repaying it. When repaying the loan, customers are able to develop positive credit histories.

Starting from zero

It is true for many people that they have no credit because they have a history of paying for cash or simply have not yet needed to take out a loan. However, it is important to develop a credit history so that people can qualify for low interest rates and high loan amounts. For example, if you ever wan to get a home mortgage loan, you’ll need to have good credit to get a good rate. Some people start by opening small accounts, such as credit card accounts – even if they don’t use those credit cards. Taking out a small car loan in Ottawa is also an excellent way to begin to build a credit history that will help you to get a lower interest rate down the road.

Stay positive

It’s important to keep a positive credit score by making wise financial decisions whenever possible. This means that you’ll need to repay your loans if you take them out. You should minimize debt in order to improve your credit score if it is bad. There are other tricks and tips that we are happy to share with you that will help you to get a better credit score and get a better loan. Contact Mike Fair, your Chevrolet Dealer in Smith Falls today for details or more information.

How to Care for Your Used Car

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Every week, we sell dozens of used cars in Smith Falls to customers with the expectation that those used cars will be durable enough to last for many years to come. After all, before we ever put a used car on the lot, we make sure that our experienced technicians have completely inspected the used car to ensure that it is in the best possible condition.

However, there are a few tips that we’d like to encourage our customers to become familiar with in order to ensure that they maintain their used cars in Smith Falls as well as possible. While we can prevent and address many of the most common issues that arise with used cars, it’s always best for the life of the car if our customers are able to maintain them as well as possible on their own.

Here are a few tips that we suggest our customers follow when caring for their used cars in Ottawa:

Be a “good” driver

The definition of a good driver varies from person to person, but most of our customers would agree that a good driver is courteous to others on te road and maintains a fairly even highway speed to avoid antagonizing other drivers. When you start and slow your engine a lot – either on the highway or in city driving, you’re adding stress to the engine, transmission, and differential. You can also do some damage of the brake pedal that will decrease its life expectancy. We recommend using cruise control as often as possible and accelerating or decelerating at an even speed as much as possible.

Forget things tend to fade away

While this adage may be good for some things in life, it’s not so good for car components. If you spend an entire summer without turning on your heater, chances are good that you may have a couple of issues with your heater when winter comes. While we certainly don’t recommend blasting your heater all summer, we do recommend turning it on once or twice during the season – just to give it a primer. The same thing goes for your air conditioning, four wheel drive systems, parking brakes, and all other parts of your car. Use them to avoid losing them!

Start slow

This is especially helpful during cold weather driving – start your engine slowly to help it warm up before you take off down the road. You need to make sure the oil pumps through the entire engine before taking it off for a drive in order to improve its life and effectiveness.

Contact Mike Fair Chevrolet, you Chevrolet Dealer in Smith Falls today for more information about how you can keep your used car running better longer!