Tired of Getting Gouged By Car Insurance? Here's How to Take Back Control

For millions of Americans in the past few years, car insurance has gone from a low-cost afterthought to a bafflingly expensive and stressful monthly bill. It's exhausting to contemplate just how much the price of car insurance has skyrocketed. But let's look at the numbers: according to Bloomberg analysis, from January 2020-January 2024, car insurance rates went up by 37%.

Car insurance can be a painful part of the monthly budget, because unlike a car payment, it never goes away. And many drivers don't feel as if car insurance premiums are fairly priced. Even for drivers who follow the speed limit and don't get in car crashes, car insurance rates might still have gone up in the past few years.

For anyone who's tired of feeling overcharged and helpless about car insurance premiums, here are a few ideas for how to take back control.

1. Shop around for car insurance

It's surprising how many people just stay with the same auto insurance company year after year, even though better deals might be out there. Research from The Motley Fool Ascent found that 75% of drivers do not shop for car insurance quotes every year, and 20% of drivers have never shopped for price quotes on car insurance.

This is a huge missed opportunity. When drivers don't shop for price quotes, they end up just accepting the first (higher) price that their current car insurance company offers. But the magic of the free market could potentially help drivers reduce their costs. By embracing competition, and making auto insurance companies work harder for their business, drivers can potentially get cheaper car insurance.

2. Raise deductibles and change coverages

Car insurance is intended to protect drivers from worst-case scenarios and disastrous costs that they can't afford. But what about drivers who have a healthy emergency fund? People who have some cash in the bank should reconsider whether they really need a $500 or $1,000 deductible. How necessary are optional coverages like roadside assistance or rental car reimbursement?

Drivers who have decent financial stability should consider re-evaluating their car insurance policies, and be willing to cover some of their own financial risks from a car crash, instead of expecting car insurance to cover every little thing. When drivers accept a higher deductible, and agree to take the risk of paying for their own rental cars if their car is in the shop after a crash, this can help drive down the cost of car insurance premiums.

3. Get a safe driver discount plan

A common refrain among car insurance customers is: "My car insurance premium isn't fair, because I am a safe driver!" Now drivers have a chance to prove it. Many of the best car insurance companies now offer special programs, called "usage-based insurance" or "telematics car insurance," to reward safe drivers with discounts.

If drivers sign up for these special plans and agree to share some driving data with the car insurance company, they can be rewarded for demonstrating safe driving behaviors like safe stops and starts, following the speed limit, and avoiding driving during higher-risk times of day. Some of the best safe driver rewards plans offer savings up to 30%-40%.

Bottom line

Drivers should not get discouraged by high prices of car insurance. People still have options and can take action to get a better deal -- by shopping around, changing their auto policies, or using special car insurance with safe driver discounts.