By Doug Cohen

With gas prices and food costs rising, personal incomes are not what they used to be. Families are forced to find money-saving tips anywhere they can. One way you can begin cutting costs right away is to comparison shop your auto insurance policy. Here are three ways to help your family save money on car insurance now.

1. Loyalty? That plus 50 cents will buy you a Coke. Ever heard that saying? Why be loyal to any company that is overcharging you? Car insurance rates are constantly fluctuating, often getting cheaper. So rather than being locked into a high rate for six months or a year, shop around each month and do not be afraid to switch policies midterm for a lower rate.

2. Give me a little credit, will you? Car insurance companies have loads of discounts available. Make sure you're getting all the credit you deserve. Here is a list of some of the credits you may be eligible for, and a few we're betting you've never heard of:

• Airbags Credit (tell them how many your car has for more discounts!)
• Automatic Seat Belts Credit
• Anti-lock Brake (ABS) Discount
• Alarm System (Anti-theft) Discount
• Low Mileage Use Credit
• Professional Affiliations Discounts (Ask!)
• Good Driver Discount
• Accident-Free Credit
• Senior Discount
• Groups and Memberships Discount (like RCI, CostCo, AARP, etc.)
• Traction Control Discount
• Multi-Car Discount
• Multi-Policy Discount
• Car Theft Locator Discount (a.k.a. Vehicle Recovery System Discount, GPS Car Tracking System Discount, Lo Jack or Low Jack Discount, etc.)
• Daytime Running Lights Discount
• College Graduate Discount
• Defensive Driving School Discount
• Hybrid Vehicle Discount (Bet you didn't know about this one!)
• Military Discount
• Travelink (Ride-Share) Discount,
• And others too, just ask!

3. Step up and start saving! Oftentimes we carry low (like $100) collision deductibles because we think we're getting a good deal by doing this. Yet in reality we're actually paying more money for mere bragging rights. But what if you never have an accident in five years? And let's say you're paying an extra $300 every six months for the enjoyment of having a low deductible. After being accident-free for five years, that just cost you $600 times five years, or $3,000. But let's say you do have an at-fault accident in that five years, and your collision deductible is not $100 but $500. Then you're out of pocket the extra $400 for the higher deductible, but you saved $3,000 over this time from which to pay it. So you're still ahead by $2,600. Get my drift?

Today more than ever, every dollar and every penny counts. It just makes good sense to take control of your finances by looking for ways to trim the budget any way you can, especially when it can be done without disrupting your family's safety.