We have 2 cars (ok I feel kind of guilty about that but we do use both of them....and mine is a crappy little thing anyway) and May to July is a really expensive time for us as both cars need insurance, tax, MOT, servicing and repairs. Last year the bill came to £3,000 and so I have been worrying about this years repairs and tests etc. But we've managed to find some bargains this year and I wanted to tell you a bit about where you can save some money with all of your car stuff!
Insurance
SHOP ABOUT - In my experience it is best to change your provider every year as your current provider rarely (if ever in my experience) charges less than a new company will charge you....even if you do try and barter. Sites like confused.com and comparethemarket.com are pretty good but beware that the price they give does include some "generalising" and the actual price can change at the point of purchasing it.
LOOK FOR MULTI-CAR DEALS - If you have 2 or more cars you can save LOADS of money by going for a multi-car deal such as the one that Admiral does. I've just saved nearly £250 on their multi car policy.
MOT
BOOK ONLINE - Some places now give you a discount for booking online. The one that I just booked into for mine gives a £20 ($35-ish) discount for booking online.
DEALS - The place that I've booked mine into sells an insurance that is possibly great news if you have a car that's a few years old (or if you know there is likely to be a problem with your car). Basically you pay £50 (about $80 ish?) and any repairs that are needed on non-durable parts is done free, up to a value of £600.
Servicing
DO IT YOURSELF - Its a bit difficult servicing your own car, but on some models its pretty easy. Interim services for people who do alot of mileage have a good potential for saving money as the actual work needed is (depending on the car!) easy. Generally speaking its an oil or air filter change and it takes about half an hour (ok, maybe an hour the first time you do it!
LOOK FOR DEALS - Look out for bargains on places that sell oil filters etc as they sometimes do a special offer where you can pay as little as £10 to get an oil filter changed.
AVOID CAR DEALERSHIPS - Unless you absolutely have to get your car serviced by a car dealership, try and find somebody who can recommend an independent garage. Not only are you more likely to be able to strike a deal with them, but you're also more likely to get a friendly and more personalised service. Beware that warranties may be an issue if you use an independent garage....although I have a feeling this was supposed to be getting sorted out in some legislation....whether it ever happened or not I don't know!
Tax
BREAK DOWN THE COST - If you have 2 cars, try and break the payments down by buying a 6 month disc for one car and a 12 month one for the other.
THINKING OF BUYING A NEW CAR? If you're thinking of buying a new car, then remember that smaller cars and hybrids are cheaper to tax
Repairs
You can sometimes save money by buying parts online but also try bartering a little on the price - and ALWAYS go through the bill with the garage before you leave and query anything you're either not happy with or work that was carried out unauthorised.
So I hope you found those tips useful :)
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