Conduct An End-of-the-year Auto Insurance Review

It's almost the new year, which means it's time to eat too many cookies, think up resolutions and re-evaluate your auto insurance policy. That's right - the holidays are the perfect moment to make sure you aren't overpaying for the basic necessities, like insurance. If you find your rates are higher than they should be, you can find a better price elsewhere and store your savings in the bank for presents next Christmas or Hanukkah.

Comparison shop

The first thing you should do is check out other auto insurance rates in your area. You can't really tell if you're paying too much if you don't know what's out there. CoverHound is the perfect place to go. You can put in your information and receive quotes from companies in your area. If the quotes are dramatically lower than what you're paying now, give some of those other insurers a call to learn more about your options.

Sign up for a class

Sometimes the rate you're paying for auto insurance is competitive for your area, but you still want to lower it a bit. You can achieve this by signing up for an extra driving class. Most insurance companies offer discounts for such classes. For young drivers, a driver's education course is necessary to get the discount, and for adults, a defensive driving course will make you eligible. Give your insurer a call to see where they stand on driving classes, and the steps you need to take to receive the discount.

Install a tracking device

Another option to lower your car insurance rate is to install a mileage tracking device. These devices snap right in to your car's diagnostic port. You may not know what that is, but every car made after 1996 has one. Low-mileage drivers can get a discount on their insurance, and now, in-car trackers can show companies just how little you use your car to reduce your premium even further.

IntelliDrive and Snapshot are two tracking options, but there are many out there depending on your insurer. Some of these trackers gather other data too, such as speed and braking habits, to show your insurer how great and safe of a driver you are.

According to Kiplinger, the average discount for drivers using Snapshot is 10 to 15 percent, though discounts up to 30 percent are possible depending on your driving habits.