Speeding tickets usually don’t seem like a big deal, but they can have a significant impact on your car insurance rates. In fact, you might wind up paying higher premiums for years after being ticketed, resulting in excess costs that far exceed any fine you’ll have to pay. Fortunately, getting affordable car insurance is still possible even if you've been pulled over for driving too fast.

How to Lower Your Insurance Rates After a Speeding Ticket

1. Take a Safe Driver Course

After getting a traffic ticket, you may lose a safe driving discount and other cost reductions, along with having to pay higher premiums. You may be able to offset some of these increases by taking a safe driving course approved by your insurance company.

Completing one of these programs may remove points from your license, which could affect an insurer’s risk calculations. While this won’t fully prevent a premium increase, it can help keep them a bit lower, softening the financial blow.

2. Reduce Your Coverage

If you’re still making payments on your car, the lender will probably require you to carry comprehensive and collision coverage. You may be able to eliminate these policies to reduce your rates if you drive an older vehicle. However, you will have to pay out of pocket if you cause an accident or a storm damages your car.

3. Raise the Deductible

The deductible is how much you have to spend before the insurance kicks in to pay for damages. If your policy has a $500 deductible, and a falling tree branch causes $2,000 worth of damage to your car, the insurer will only pay $1,500.

As a general rule, policies with higher deductibles have lower monthly premiums. If you adjust your plan, it could potentially save you hundreds of dollars per year. Before making any changes, make sure you will have enough cash to pay the deductible if you need to file a claim.

4. Ask for Discounts

Discounts can be the key to affordable car insurance, but many carriers only offer them if you ask. You might qualify for a discount if you drive less than 5,000 miles per year, install an alarm in your vehicle, or combine auto and homeowners insurance policies.

5. Keep Your Record Clean

While avoiding tickets won’t immediately bring premiums down, it’s the best way to minimize the long-term effect of a citation. Driving the speed limit, leaving plenty of space between you and other vehicles, and following the rules of the road can lower your insurance costs to normal levels within a few years.

If you’re looking for affordable car insurance in the Cincinnati, OH, area, trust the experienced agents at Bob Shropshire Bail Bonds. They specialize in helping drivers with less-than-perfect records get the coverage they need at the best prices possible. Visit their website for more on their insurance options, and call (513) 721-3915 to request a quote.