High risk auto insurance are generally issued to

• Individuals who have a bad driving record
• Teenagers
• Owners of expensive or “muscle” cars
• Individuals staying in high crime areas

If you are considered a high risk driver, you will be happy to know that there are ways to enable you to save money on your insurance. Some high risk auto insurance plans are actually more affordable than the other policies and with some research you will find that you do not have to pay a lot of money. Some of the steps that you can take are:

• Inquire from your insurance agent about the steps that you need to take to get rid of the high risk tag. He/she will be able to educate you on the different ways that you can adopt to lower your insurance premiums.
• Pay off all the fines and contact the Department of Motor Vehicle office and get your driving history cleared.
• Switch over to low risk cars that are equipped with features such as anti-theft devices and air bags.
• Increase your deductible from $250 to $1000 and this can save up to 40% on the premiums that you pay annually.
• Know if there are any discounts for which you might be eligible such as drivers education discounts, low-mileage discounts and others. Make sure to ask your insurance company about the various rebates that they have on offer.
• Take the help of a comparison website like AutoInsuranceByState.com to compare the insurance rates of different companies. As auto insurance rates can vary by thousands of dollars, you can save a huge amount of money by comparing the rates.

With these tips you can save a lot of money on your insurance payment.

Most auto insurance companies turn to one of three price guides when settling total loss claims. Each one offers its view of what used cars are worth based on

• year
• model
• mileage
• condition
• and options.

The National Auto Dealers Assn Official Used Car Guide (NADA is used by banks, car dealers and government agencies as well as insurance companies.

The NADA its figures are based on an analysis of wholesale car sales retail car sales in each region. Most auto insurance companies termed “substandard” by insurance department officials do not use any price guide. They are exempted from the regulation requiring use of a guide because they offer only stated value. A stated value policy automatically deducts 2 percent — or any other predetermined amount —per month from the purchase price of the vehicle.

Substandard carriers generally cater to high-risk drivers who have trouble obtaining policies from the first-line or second-line companies.