Are you getting low mileage on one of your vehicles? Do you or your partner rely on ridesharing or public transportation and not as much on a car? If you’ve said yes to either of these questions, you might want to look into downsizing to one car.
Making this downsize to one vehicle will save you money that you have otherwise spent on gas and trips to the mechanic. If it’s in okay shape, you might even make some decent cash selling your extra car to a shop or directly to another family through your local newspaper or Craigslist. Did you know that having only one car can even help you save on car insurance quotes?
If saving money is very important to you, you might want to look into selling one of your vehicles. It isn’t always the best decision for everyone to do so, but if the benefits outweigh the sacrifices, you might want to start shopping for a new one-car policy.
How does having one car affect my insurance?
Your car insurance rates are based on a large number of factors, including age, driving history, and marital status. If you downsize from two cars to one, you’ll impact these factors, as you will be lowering the amount you drive and have one less vehicle to insure. A lot of insurance companies already give discounts to drivers with low mileage, as the less they drive, the less likely they are to be in an accident. Reducing to one vehicle cuts your chances of an accident in half; this makes you very favorable in the eyes of you auto insurance company.
How do you know if downsizing is the right option for you?
It may not be the best situation if you live in an area in which ridesharing is hardly an option and it is difficult to rely on traveling by bike or foot. You actually might spend more money on ridesharing services and taxis than you otherwise would have spent on insuring a second car. Make sure you look into what could be the best decision for your lifestyle and location before you put your second car on the market.
Now what?
If you’ve weighed out the options and decided that you want to make the jump from two cars to one car, make sure you check your insurance rates to try to get the best possible deal for insurance on one vehicle. We’re here to help you get the best rates on single-car or multi-car insurance policies.