With hundreds of companies now offering car insurance policies, it’s easier than ever to find a cheap deal - yet many people are too loyal, too apathetic or too confused to leave their current insurer. Here are a few quick and easy ways to make sure you save on your car insurance.

Shop online
Comparing prices online is the best way to find cheap car insurance. Comparison sites will find the cheapest deals for car insurance uk, by comparing insurers such as ASDA Finance and Cooperative Insurance, but bear in mind that each site will cover different insurers and brokers. The trick is to use a combination of sites – this way, you can cover up to 60 insurers and 60 brokers at speed. After finding the best and cheapest quote, check the website of the insurer to check that the policy is suitable for you. While doing this, it’s also worth playing with the policy details to see if you can get the price down.

Avoid monthly plans
Most insurers will offer you then option of paying monthly, and it can be tempting to avoid shelling out a large lump-sum. But a ‘pay monthly’ option generally means that the insurance company is loaning you the full premium and charging you incredibly high interest. The best bet, if you really can’t manage to pay off the annual sum in full, is to take out a credit card with 0% interest and then make the repayments to that.

Consider ‘pay as you go’
Insurers like Norwich Union and More Than offer pay-as-you-go comprehensive cover. This type of car insurance is aimed at young drivers or those who use their car relatively infrequently, and charges a fixed amount which depends on where and how much you drive, calculated by a free GPS device fitted to your car.  If you drive less than 6,000 miles per year and rarely drive between 11pm and 6am then you may find you can save on pay-as-you-go.

Check for special offers
If you use a comparison service to find the cheapest car insurance, you may miss out on some of the special offers available. For example, First Direct is currently promising to beat your renewal quote by £30 or £50 if you’re insuring two cars, provided that your annual premium is over £200 for comprehensive or £120 for non-comprehensive. The Post Office is also offering new customers £50 cashback for taking out its car insurance before 30th June 2008, while ASDA Finance and Cooperative both offer a 10 per cent discount if you apply online. Bear in mind also that newer insurers offering cheap car insurance - such as Yes Insurance – may not feature on some comparison sites.

Get cash-back on top
By signing up to insurance through a cashback website, you can get between £30 to £50 cashback on top of your policy. Some sites get paid for selling products and are prepared to give you some of the advertising revenue. It’s a great way to pay less overall for your car insurance. 

Insurance companies reward safer drivers. By making a few small yet crucial changes to your car and your motoring habits, you could knock a good chunk off your annual car insurance premium. Here’s how to go about it.

1. Drive more safely: It’s as simple as that. A safe driver is less likely to be involved in accidents that might jeopardise their no-claims bonus – and a no-claims bonus of five- to ten- years can represent almost 70 per cent off your premium with companies like Ensure and Cooperative. If you’re a born boy-racer, you might even think about insuring your no-claims bonus so that you don’t lose it in the event of an accident.

2. Make your car safer: Owners of ‘safer’ cars are likely to be charged a lower premium on their car insurance. If you decide to change your car, you should check with your insurer that the new model won’t be significantly more expensive to insure. To make your existing car safer, consider fitting an approved alarm, immobiliser or tracking devise. This can represent a discount of between 5% and 10% depending on your insurer. Lastly, think carefully about your parking options. Cars which are parked in garages are on driveways are far cheaper to insure than those which are kept on the roadside. See if you can negotiate off-street parking, or clear the junk out of your garage and keep your car in there.

3. Agree to a mileage restriction: It’s a simple calculation – the more time you spend on the road, the more likely you are to have an accident. Some car insurance companies will offer you the option of restricting your mileage in order to save money on your premium. Others, such as Norwich Union, working in conjunction with ASDA Finance, even offer a ‘pay-as-you-drive’ car insurance scheme aimed at younger and low-use drivers.

4. Prove your ability: You may be a careful driver, but it’s important to offer your car insurance company proof of this. By joining the Pass Plus scheme or taking an advanced drivers course, you can show them that you are a low-risk proposition. Some insurers will offer discounts of up to 35 per cent to those prepared to take further driving lessons.

5. Don’t compromise your policy: Adding a young and inexperienced driver to your policy may be false economy. It is likely that the premium will be calculated on the youngest driver, who will generally not have a no-claim bonus.