Being smart about car insurance can save money

Insurance agents say increasing your deductible on comprehensive and collision insurance can save you anywhere from 5 to 25 percent.

"The things you can cut down on are the rental reimbursement, the towing. If you can put two vehicles on a policy, do that because there's the multi-vehicle discount," insurance broker Rob Squatriglia said.

Combining auto with home owner insurance policies can also save.

And newer cars are not only safer, they're cheaper to insure.

"The newer the car, the more discount you're going to get," Squatriglia said.

The exception to the new car rule is with new drivers. Giving teenage drivers old cars allows you to take off comprehensive and collision coverage.

"For a child it would make a big difference," Squatriglia said. "Comprehensive and collision are a big chunk of that."

A new teenage driver could add up to $3,000 a year to the policy, but good grades could cut hundreds off that bill.

Edmunds.com also recommends:

• keeping a clean driving record

• paying all of your bills

• driving a low-profile vehicle

• driving less and

• parking in a garage or installing a security system.

Lowering your liability isn't such a good idea.

"Cheaper isn't always better," Squatriglia said. "You don't want to reduce coverage on liability when that's the catastrophic type of thing that can occur."