All posts in May 2015

Online Car Insurance in Australia Is it a distant dream

By como on

Getting Online Car Insurance in Australia is nowhere near what it is in the UK and US markets. Over there you have all the major insurance companies and underwriters allowing online aggregators to act like a broker between them and consumer. But where are the car insurance comparison websites in Australia? Currently they only offer 1 underwriter and that is comparing apples with apples.

Over the last 5 years in Australia, competition through comparison websites has come online for a range of products including travel insurance, health insurance, gas/electricity prices, home loans and credit cards. So why hasnt the car comparison market opened up! The answer is because none of the general insurance heavy weights want to jump on board and support car insurance comparison websites.

All the quotes I have received online from a comparison site show policies from a Budget owned and underwritten policy. You are getting the same policy features and the same underwriter. In fact the only difference in most of the policies is the price and the brand name the consumer sees. The underwriter determines the risk profile of a driver and a retailer takes an arranging fee or commission. So it is important to have several underwriters when comparing. That is the true test of comparison.

Each underwriter has its own formula for pricing a policy and they can vary massively. I got online quote using the same profile and found a company could be $2000 more expensive for a particular individual but be $80 cheaper for another. These swings make it vital for more than 1 underwriter when comparing.

What needs to happen is one of the larger car insurance providers such as Allianz, Suncorp, CGU, Vero, GIO, QBE, AIG need to participate and join Budget offering comparison online. At the moment the big boy companies go through brokers to sell their product and if they went online it could kill the retail broker industry. Budget however, is a South African based company and in comparison is relatively new to the market. Unlike the others, it has used the internet and website owners to get their products to market much like Suncorp, AIG and Allianz use brokers.

Unless one of the big 5 insurance companies want to join Budget and do business with online car insurance aggregators, then it may be a while until the Australian people join the US and UK and see real online competition.

How To Get Cheap Car Insurance And Tips

By como on

How to get cheap car insurance is very common question heard from many car owners and drivers in and around to us all. There are many ways one can avail cheap car insurance successfully. Online options are definitely a wise choice in this context. Here, cost effective car insurance is a great reality through following some of the proven successful steps. These steps are often followed by many individuals all over the world. These steps are not tough to follow, and offer utmost benefits in return for all. Try them in order to obtain affordable car insurance price successfully.
Many insurance companies have strict rules for pricing car insurance basing on so many factors. Recognized insurance agents are very much aware of these rules, and seen often helping their clients for obtaining low cost car insurance. Cost of the premium will be decided basing on so many aspects. It is a good idea to learn more about these aspects, when planned to obtain low priced auto insurance. Many people are learning more about these aspects, and gaining utmost control over their car insurance premium rate successfully. It is not a tedious task to accomplish too.
Car make, type, year of manufacturing and safety features bundled within the car are some of the significant aspects that can dictate your car insurance premium cost. Check these aspects with your insurance agent before shopping your car insurance. If you can keep these aspects in the required manner, then it is quite easy to obtain cheap car insurance successfully. Automatic seat belts, airbags, anti-theft lock and some more can be wise safety options for car in order to obtain the low cost premium rate easily. Security devices are highly attracting low cost premium for cars nowadays from all insurance companies.
Loyalty is always significant factor that can obtain good benefits in return. This loyalty factor will be similar with seller and buyer in the insurance markets. Insurance companies are always interested in offering reduced premiums to their loyal customers. Here, loyalty with insurance companies from customers can be counted basing up on the timely payment of premium, long tenure, multiple policies and some more. It is always a good idea to consider your personal insurance, car insurance, home insurance and other from the same insurance company. This can help you well to obtain reduced premium rate successfully.
Getting cheap car insurance from online websites is another proven choice all over the world. Many recognized insurance agents and insurance companies are selling their products directly from online websites. This online market is one place that is always brimming with competitive prices than the local insurance market. Importantly, finding the lowest cost car insurance through various quotes comparison sources is making this place a best place for insurance shopping. It is suggested using all the possible options to obtain the cheap or low cost auto insurance. All the mentioned tips are quite easy to accomplish, and consume very less time too.

Car insurance Park and ride

By como on

Park and ride services are becoming an increasingly popular choice for commuters.

They allow motorists to leave their car in specially designated parking facilities which are situated adjacent to a public transport facility. Commuters can then continue on their journey using the appropriate public transport service.

Basically, the service allows people to drive their cars to the parking lots and leave their car behind whilst they travel onwards to their destination, usually situated within an urban area. Commuters then return by public transport on the same day. Park and ride services are not designed for overnight or long term parking.

The advantages of park and ride

By providing parking spaces on the urban edge, park and ride services they help to keep down congestion levels on busy roads within town centres. This also helps to keep pollution to a minimum in populated areas.

Drivers can avoid the expense of using a parking bay within the urban area, as well as the stress involved in trying to locate such a parking space.

An increase in popularity of the service has resulted in a wider coverage, thus boosting the convenience on offer.

The disadvantages

Although popular amongst commuters, there is resistance to the growing spread of the service from certain quarters. Some believe that the park and ride service has a negative effect on traffic patterns in rural areas.

Paul Hamblin, Head of Transport for the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), explained, “Increasingly large areas of countryside are being buried under tarmac in the name of sustainable transport. But in reality, almost every trip relies on using the car at one or both ends. These schemes do not reduce our dependency on the car.”

CPRE want to see better public transport that reaches peoples doors, not more park and ride schemes. Find out more at www.cpre.org.uk.

The park and ride database

Most park and ride services can be found by using the National Park and Ride Directory database.

Commuters can enter the details of their area to locate their nearest and most convenient park and ride services. The database includes information about public transport links, car park facilities such as costs and security, as well as offering maps and sat-nav co-ordinates.

Before you use a park and ride

Motorists should ensure that they have adequate car insurance before using a park and ride service. If the car does not have insurance its possible to get a car insurance quote quickly by phoning an insurance broker or by requesting auto insurance quote online.

The insurance policy will offer guidelines that need to be followed, but its best to check that the park and ride facilities offer surveillance and security before making use of them.