A flawless driving record and Everest-like credit scores are helpful when it comes to saving money on car insurance, but not absolutely necessary. There are tons of tips out there that promise big savings - and most have some truth to them. These are the most successful methods for saving big on a policy.

Maximize coverage, minimize cost.

Safety First

1. Drive Safely and Lawfully

This is the biggest part of your insurance payments. If you've made mistakes in the past, just make sure you are good going forward. Consider taking defensive driving courses to get better - there are big discounts.

2. Vehicle Safety

Get as many safety features as you can on the vehicle. Lo-jack costs next to nothing but will really lower your payments. Airbags are another up-front cost that will save you lots of cash into the future.

Getting a new vehicle? Pick one with a high safety rating.

Deducting to Save

There's a simple rule when it comes to calculating your premiums: the higher the deductible, the lower the premiums. This doesn't mean that you should agree to pay tens of thousands of dollars before your insurance helps - there wouldn't be much of a point in getting insurance if you did. What it does mean is that you should pay the highest deductible that you can actually, reasonably afford. This way, you'll end up getting the best deal.

Discounts

Low mileage, good student, mature driver, defensive driver, covered garage: these are just some of the discounts that most insurance providers offer. There are hundreds of discounts out there, some varying company to company, but you might have to put a bit of pressure on your provider before they will tell you about them. They are never going to offer them up, so it is good to have some quotes from other insurance companies on hand to put the fear of God in them.

Careful with the Coverage

If you want to pay the lowest amount possible while still meeting your needs, you've got to know exactly which type of coverage you want as well as how many dollars you want covered. Make sure that you aren't double covered as well. If you've got stellar medical coverage/health insurance through your employer, no need to take out a medical policy on your vehicle. If you're the safest driver in the world, you might not need much coverage since you are unlikely to be responsible; personal injury protection (PIP) might be enough.

You deserve all the credit

Credit rating is a big part of your premiums, but you don't have to have perfect credit to get big savings. Get a credit report and fix any errors that might be on there - they are extremely common! If you can settle any outstanding fees or even get the amount you owe on a credit card down to 1/3 of the limit, even better!

Auto Insurance Quotes

Saving money is as easy as free online auto insurance quotes. You can get a good idea from these estimates which auto insurance providers are charging what, so make sure to spend some time comparing these auto insurance quotes.