Savvy Senior: How Seniors Can Save on Auto Insurance
By
Dear Savvy Senior,
Can you offer any tips to help seniors save on their auto insurance? I recently turned 70 and got hit with a 25 percent premium increase on my car insurance and am looking for ways to save. — Older Driver
As auto insurance rates across the country continue to rise for all drivers, seniors can face an even bigger price hike, once they reach their 70s and their driving skills begin to decline. Fortunately, there are ways you can reduce your premiums. To find out what discounts may be available to you, contact your auto insurer and inquire about these options.
Increase your deductible: Paying a higher deductible could save you big on premiums. For example, raising your deductible from
Adjust your coverage: If you’re driving an older vehicle, you may want to consider dropping collision and/or comprehensive coverage if your premium is more than 10 percent of the car’s value. Collision insurance covers damage to your car if you’re involved in a crash (or if you’re the victim of a hit-and-run) and comprehensive covers damage caused by acts of nature (such as storm damage), vandalism, theft or fire. But if you’re scaling back to liability coverage, make sure you have enough to pay for damages out of pocket if you’re in an accident or your car sustains damage due to weather, theft or another non-collision event.
Take a defensive driving course: Some insurance companies offer defensive driving discounts – between 5 and 15 percent – to drivers who take a refresher course to brush up on their safety skills. Organizations such as
Report your milage: Most insurers offer discounts to customers who drive limited miles each year, which is usually beneficial to retirees who drive less because they don’t commute to work every day. These discounts usually kick in when your annual milage drops below 7,500 or 10,000 depending on your provider.
Bundle policies: If your auto insurance policy is issued by a different company from the one insuring your home, call each insurer and ask if bundling the policies would be cheaper.
Sign up for driver monitoring: Some insurers offer discounts based on how and when you use your car. They will monitor things like your acceleration, braking habits, driving speeds and phone use, via smartphone app or a device that plugs into your car’s diagnostic port. Drivers can be rewarded anywhere from 10 to 30 percent for safe driving.
In addition, many insurance providers also offer discounts to drivers who do not have any violations or accidents for three or more years.
Ask about membership discounts: Many insurers offer discounts through professional associations, workers’ unions, large employers or membership organizations such as
Improve your credit: You may be able to lower your car insurance premium by paying your bills on time and reducing the amount of debt you carry. Insurers look at how their customers manage credit to get an idea of risk and to price policies. Better rates are given to those with good credit scores, typically 700 or above.
Comparison shop: To find out if your current premium is competitive with other insurers, shop around through insurance marketplace websites like TheZebra.com, Insurify.com, Lemonade.com or Policygenius.com. Or use an independent agent (see trustedchoice.com/agent) to help you compare.
Where Solo Agers Can Find Help
Dear Savvy Senior,
I’m a divorced 68-year-old childless cat lady and have been thinking a lot lately about who will look after me when I get older and my health falters. What resources are available to solo seniors like me, and where can I turn to find a reliable person to be my emergency contact, as well as lookout for my health, financial matters and living arrangements in my elder years? —
This is a very common concern for the 22 million solo agers across
While older adults who have children or are married usually name offspring or spouses as proxies/decision makers, solo agers most often choose a sibling, niece or nephew, or rely on a trusted friend or neighbor. Whomever you choose, talk to them first to make sure they’re up for the task.
If, however, you don’t have anyone you feel comfortable with, or who is willing to take on that responsibility, you can hire someone.
One of the best resources for this is an aging life care manager. These are trained professionals in the area of geriatric care who often have backgrounds in nursing or social work and can serve as your emergency contact, oversee your care and even act as your executor. They can also connect you with professional legal and financial services in your area that can help you manage your affairs.
Aging life care managers typically charge anywhere from
If you can’t afford this, there are other reliable sources you can turn to for specific help. For example, if you haven’t already done so, you need to prepare a basic estate plan (including a power of attorney, advance directive and a will) to ensure your wishes are carried out if you become incapacitated and when you die.
To help you prepare these documents, your best option is to hire an experienced estate planning attorney, which can cost anywhere between
To locate someone, the
If you need help with bill-paying there are services like SilverBills (silverbills.com), or you can work with a daily money manager (aadmm.com) who, in addition to paying bills, can handle tasks like balancing your checkbook and organizing tax information. And to help you navigate care and senior housing options there are certified senior advisors (csa.us).
It’s also a good idea to meet with a financial adviser to help figure out what services and living arrangements you can afford and what steps you can take to ensure that your financial resources last your lifetime. If you don’t have an adviser, you can find a fee-only, fiduciary financial planner trough the
Some other helpful resources you can turn to include Aging Alone Together (dorotusa.org/agingalonetogether), a program offered by
Also see Navigating Solo (navigatingsolo.com), a national clearinghouse of resources for solo agers and information about solo-ager groups in the
How to Protect Yourself from Identity Theft Scams
Dear Savvy Senior,
I am very concerned about
Dear Worried, It’s a great question! I’ve been hearing from many older readers around the country that are deeply troubled by the news that the
The major concern among data privacy experts is what could happen if your
If you’re concerned about the privacy of your personal information, the best way to protect yourself is to put a “fraud alert,” or better yet a “credit freeze” on your credit file.
A fraud alert is a notification placed on your credit report that signals to potential creditors to take extra steps to verify your identity before extending credit in your name. While a credit freeze completely restricts access to your credit report, essentially preventing anyone from opening new accounts in your name without your explicit authorization.
A credit freeze provides much stronger protection than a fraud alert, but there is a drawback. When you freeze your credit, you won’t be able to open new credit cards or get a new loan while the freeze in place. It does not, however, prevent you from using the credit cards you already have open.
If you do need to get a new credit card or some type of loan, you can always lift the freeze on your account until you get the card or loan approved, and then refreeze it.
You’ll also be happy to know that a credit freeze is completely free to put in place and lift, as are fraud alerts. And neither action will affect your credit score.
To set up a fraud alert, you’ll need to contact one of the three major credit reporting bureaus – Equifax, Experian and
Equifax: 800-685-1111 or Equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services
Experian: 888-397-3742 or Experian.com/help
If you haven’t been a victim of identity theft, you’ll need to set up an “initial fraud alert,” which lasts for one year, although you can renew it for additional one-year periods.
To set up a credit freeze you’ll need to contact each of the three previously listed credit reporting bureaus – Equifax, Experian and
But remember, before you apply for new credit card or loan, you’ll need to temporarily lift the security freeze by following the procedures from each of the credit reporting bureaus where you placed the freeze.
If, however, you don’t want to set up a fraud alert or credit freeze, you can still keep an eye on your credit file by reviewing your credit report regularly. You can get a free credit report each week from Equifax, Experian and
Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443,
© 2025 the Standard-Speaker (Hazleton, Pa.). Visit standardspeaker.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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