By Greg Bartlett

Insurance isn’t just a good idea, it’s a necessity and a requirement. I recently purchased a car and had to go through the same process as all car owners – insuring the vehicle before it can be legally driven. But insurance can sometimes be very expensive, and people like me love to find ways to decrease insurance premiums, especially during these difficult economic times. You may seek discounts for safe driving, for being retired, for having auto-theft equipment installed, for being in the military, or for being or having a good student. Another way to lower insurance costs is by using GPS tracking.

Some insurance programs offer discount rates if a GPS tracking system is installed in a vehicle. This is especially useful if you have multiple members of your family driving, particularly teen drivers, who increase insurance rates sometimes exponentially. Since you are able to keep track of your vehicle with a GPS device no matter who is driving, insurance companies often offer lower rates if you do install a GPS device.

One study noted that insurance rates can be lowered by as much as 20% for those who install GPS tracking systems in their vehicles. One company offers discounts of between 5 and 15% for vehicles with a GPS system installed. Corporate fleets often take advantage of these discounts and find added benefits for doing so. Not only are they decreasing their insurance premiums, but they are also increasing worker productivity and efficiency, saving the company even more money.

Occasionally an insurance company will even require a GPS device to be installed. Whether it’s because you have too many high-risk drivers in your family or because of the number of vehicles in your corporate fleet, the insurance company may feel that GPS tracking is the only way to properly protect and monitor the vehicle that it is insuring.

GPS systems for vehicles have become much more popular in recent years, not just because of the advantages they offer in protecting and tracking your assets and in offering easy and efficient navigation, but also in reducing insurance premiums. So go ahead and invest in a GPS device. It will be worth it – you can use it to find restaurants, gas stations, and the quickest way to avoid a traffic jam. You can also use it to track your vehicle and family, and as an added bonus, it’ll save you money on your insurance.