People who take care of their vehicles often enjoy low car insurance rates when compared to those who aren’t as careful with their possessions. That generally happens because people who maintain their cars have fewer claims than people who don’t really care about their vehicles. Anyone can have a problem with a vehicle or get into an accident, but a properly-maintained vehicle will be much less likely to stop working or have any other type of problem that could result in a collision or insurance claim. Every claim you file on your insurance could cause your rates to go up or your policy to eventually be cancelled, so avoiding them is important.

If you want to avoid making claims and have a chance at low cost car insurance, vehicle maintenance is worth paying attention to. Whether you do it yourself or take it in for service, simple checks can mean big savings, and that’s great news – especially when the economy is tight and people need to save their cash. When you’re planning on getting some car insurance quotes, that’s a good time to focus on car maintenance. Here are some specific things to check for:

• Tires – check the pressure in all of your car’s tires, because tires that are over-inflated or under-inflated can be a driving hazard. They heat up more than properly-inflated tires, they can cause blowouts and flats, and they also lose tread faster. That compromises your safety and costs you more money in the long run, neither of which is a good choice.

• Oil and Water – low oil can cause an engine to work too hard and can damage the delicate components within it. Low water can cause it to overheat. You won’t see good insurance quotes and low cost car insurance if you destroy your vehicles and make frequent repair and accident claims on your policy. Checking the oil (and changing it as recommended) and checking the water are basic skills, and anyone can learn to do them.

• Brakes and Steering – Many brake systems and steering systems on newer cars are almost impossible to access. They’re very tightly sealed. Older cars, though, are a different story. The fluid in these can be checked much more easily, and it’s a good idea to make sure that fluid levels are appropriate. If you have an automatic transmission in your vehicle, checking the transmission fluid at the same time is also a great idea.

There are plenty of other systems on your vehicle, but the fluid levels and the tires are some of the most important areas to keep up on. They’re also some of the easiest for you as a vehicle owner to check, which means you won’t have to take your car or truck to a dealer or mechanic and spend a lot of money to have these things examined and small adjustments made to them.

People maintain their houses and take care of fire dangers and other risks that surround them, but they often fail to do the same for their vehicles. It just doesn’t seem to be that important to them, or they forget to do it. Don’t be one of those people who doesn’t take care of the things they’ve purchased. Just by being proactive with your vehicle maintenance and careful with your driving, you can get low car insurance rates. If you think you’re paying too much, check around for car insurance quotes from several different companies and compare the insurance quotes you get with what you’re already paying. Low cost car insurance doesn’t have to be out of reach for you.