Renewing your policy

Read the renewal notice properly

Compare the new premium against what you're paying now, and look at the declarations page rather than only the total. Coverages and deductibles can change at renewal.

If the premium rose, ask why. Insurers should be able to explain it, and sometimes the answer reveals an error — a violation that should have aged off, a vehicle you no longer own, an address that's out of date.

The ten-minute check

• Are all listed vehicles still yours?
• Are all listed drivers still in your household, and is anyone missing?
• Has your annual mileage changed — a commute ending, or a new job?
• Are the limits still right for your assets?
• Do the deductibles still match what you could pay tomorrow?
• Is collision and comprehensive still worth carrying on the oldest vehicle?
• Have you added anything — a garage, an alarm, a new safety feature — that earns a discount?

Ask for a discount review

Discounts are frequently applied only on request, and eligibility changes. Life events that commonly unlock one include marriage, moving, changing jobs, retiring, a child getting good grades, or paying off a vehicle.

Ask what you currently receive and what else exists. It's a short conversation with a real chance of a result.

Shop periodically, not obsessively

Insurers reweight factors over time and the cheapest carrier for you can change. Checking the market every year or two is sensible; checking constantly rarely pays for the effort.

Renewal is the natural trigger, since you have a current declarations page in front of you to quote against.

If you're non-renewed

An insurer declining to renew is different from cancelling mid-term, and it isn't necessarily about you — carriers sometimes exit a state or a segment.

Act immediately, since your coverage has an end date. Get replacement coverage in force before that date, and ask the reason, because it affects how you should shop.