When comparing car insurance quotes it’s important to look at what you’re covered for as well as the price as insurers differ in what they include in their standard cover.

While one insurer might include windscreen cover as standard, another might exclude it. Other common exclusions include legal expenses, a courtesy car and breakdown cover. You’ll be able to buy these as add-ons to your policy. 

However, be careful as the cost of optional extras can soon mount up so it’s important to make sure that you don’t pay for something that you don’t need. And remember that you should always compare prices for add-ons such as breakdown cover in case a stand alone policy is cheaper.

A separate breakdown cover policy might also give you a wider choice of cover options. The same goes for European car insurance, as it may be cheaper to purchase a separate short term policy which covers overseas travel rather than paying for it as an add on to a conventional policy. 

Mainstream insurers cover a wide range of motorists and vehicles, but if you or your car is particularly unusual, you might need a specialist car insurance policy. 

There are specialist classic car insurance providers out there for instance that offer policies aimed at these particular types of vehicle. MoneySupermarket.com compares deals available through these specialist providers along with conventional car insurance companies in order to find you the right deal at the most competitive price.

MoneySupermarket.com will also seek out policies if it is you who has the specialist requirements. Perhaps you have yet to pass your test and require a learner driver car insurance policy. If this is the case, then MoneySupermarket will retrieve all the policies which are relevant to you given your requirements.

Motorists often like to customise their cars, but it is important to tell your insurance company as any modification could affect your premium, even if it’s a minor tweak, such as a spoiler or tinted windows. If you keep quiet about any changes to your vehicle and subsequently made a claim, the insurer could refuse to pay up. So honesty is always the best policy because otherwise you will effectively be committing insurance fraud. 

Not all modified car insurance policies will necessarily be more expensive however; with security enhancing modifications such as the addition of alarms and/or immobilisers making it less likely that your car will be stolen and hence reducing the chances of you making a claim.

Watch out, too, if you drive your car for business, even if you only use it to visit clients, as a standard policy will usually only cover social, domestic and pleasure use, unless you specify otherwise. You can compare dedicated business car insurance policies on our comparison site.  

Many households these days own more than one vehicle, in which case it might be worth considering a multi car insurance policy. You can usually insure up to five vehicles, and it cuts down on paperwork as well as premiums. People who insure multiple vehicles with the same company can often shave 10% or more off their premiums. 

All car insurance policies carry an excess, which is the amount you have to pay towards any claims. The excess usually comes in two parts: the compulsory excess, and the voluntary excess.

A typical compulsory excess might be £200, so if you make a claim for £500, the insurer would pay only £300. It’s worth bearing the excess in mind before you put in a claim. If the damage is not serious, it might be better to pay the full cost out of your own pocket in order to protect your no claims bonus. Check the small print of the policy though because the excess does not always apply to minor claims, such as windscreen repair. 

You choose the level of your voluntary excess, usually starting at £50 or £100. If you are prepared to agree to a higher voluntary excess, you might be able to negotiate a lower premium. But be careful! Remember that you must pay the excess in the event of a claim, so it should be within your budget.

You can purchase a separate excess insurance policy through our website, which ensures that you won’t be forced to face this unexpected expense. But do bear in mind that you will need to pay for excess insurance alongside your conventional car insurance policy.

You can apply for car insurance direct from the insurer, through a broker, or with the help of a car insurance comparison site. If you contact an insurer directly, the firm will only give you details of its own cover so you will not be able to assess whether or not it is good value for money in relation to the rest of the market. 

Car insurance brokers can search the market to find the best deal for their client and offer advice on the right type of policy. However, some brokers select from only a limited number of insurers - and some insurers do not sell through brokers.

An online car insurance comparison site is a quick and easy way to compare hundreds of insurance policies, whether you want mainstream cover or a specialist policy. You will find cheap car insurance quotes provided by some of the country’s leading insurers on MoneySupermarket.com which could help you find the best policy for your circumstances.

When you apply for car insurance you will need to answer a number of questions, so it’s a good idea to have the information to hand. The insurer will want to know about you, your age, occupation, address and any previous motoring convictions. It will also ask for the age, make and model of the car, a rough idea of the annual mileage and where it is kept overnight. You should give details of any modifications to the car and whether you intend to use the vehicle for business.

You can carry a no claims discount from one insurer to another, but you might have to send proof of your claims history. Remember too that you will need a valid MOT certificate if your car is more than three years old.

Insurance fraud is a criminal offence, so it is important to be open and honest with your answers. You should also inform your insurer if anything changes during the policy term. Failure to disclose any relevant information could invalidate your policy so that it would not pay out in the event of a claim.

Standard car insurance policies run for 12 months – and if you pay the annual premium up front it can take a big bite out of your budget. However, most insurers give you the option to pay in monthly installments, so you can spread the cost over the year and make the payment more manageable. But watch out! It will cost you more if you opt for a monthly car insurance policy as you’ll be charged interest so it is worth paying upfront if possible. 

Short term car insurance does not run for a full year. In fact, you can insure your car for just one day on a short-term policy, which can come in handy if you want to borrow a friend’s car, or maybe a relative wants to drive your own vehicle for a few days. But don’t forget about continuous insurance enforcement. It is an offence to keep a car that is not insured unless it has been officially declared off the road. 

If you are struggling with sky high premiums, you might want to consider telematics insurance. It sounds a bit technical, but it basically means that the insurer will use a satellite tracking device or ‘black box’ fitted in your car to monitor how, when and where you drive.

Some insurers will fit the device for you, but you might be sent the unit through the post with straightforward instructions on how to get it working.

There are various black box insurance policies available and they work slightly differently. But they all reward careful drivers. So, if you drive few miles, or you are prepared to avoid driving at night or during the rush hour, you might save money with black box insurance. Some telematics firms claim they can cut your car insurance bill by as much as 50%.

Black box insurance could be particularly beneficial to young drivers who have not yet built up a driving record and so pay a high price for car cover. Telematics can also be a good option for low mileage drivers.

The cost of car insurance might be coming down, but nobody wants to pay over the odds for cover. Yet many of us still stick with the same insurer at renewal, when we could probably find a better deal elsewhere. Loyalty rarely pays, so motorists should always shop around if they want to find a competitive car insurance premium.

MoneySupermarket can help you to find cheap car insurance quotes from leading insurers at the click of a mouse. The service is free and independent – we simply aim to find you the best deal available.

You should also try to limit the number of claims you make on the policy as the cheaper you are to insure, the less you pay for cover. You could try, for example, limiting your mileage. Think too about the security of your vehicle. Have you fitted an approved alarm and immobiliser? If your car is kept in a locked garage overnight, it will cost less to insure than a vehicle that is parked on the street.

Motorists might want to consider some kind of advanced driving course as it can reduce the likelihood of an accident by 25%. It can also lead to a discount on your car insurance. The Driving Standard Agency’s Pass Plus scheme is aimed specifically at newly qualified drivers and you can read more about its potential impact on our pass plus insurance page.

However, there are other options available to all motorists. The Institute of Advanced Motorists, for example, runs advanced driving courses, or there’s the Advanced Drivers and Riders Course offered by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (ROSPA).

Another tactic that can result in cheaper car insurance prices is to add an older, more experienced motorist to the policy as a named driver. So, a young man might add his mum or dad to the policy to bring down the premium because there increased levels of experience will make them statistically less likely to make a claim. However, you should never put forward an additional driver as the main driver. For example, if your mum or dad rarely drives your car they should never be listed as the main driver. The practice is known as fronting and is a form of insurance fraud. It can invalidate the policy, making it difficult for everyone involved to get cover in the future - they could even end up on the wrong end of a prosecution. You can read more about the impact of named drivers in our named driver car insurance guide.

We have a number of ways to help you trim your car insurance premium on our money saving tips page.