Newsletter - April 2005

TRADE OR SAVE?

If you trade your car every three to four years then you probably aren't especially concerned about maintenance except what's necessary to keep your warranty in force.

On the flip side, you can realize a solid return on investment by keeping your vehicle through what's called the 'Cinderella Era'. It's that period of time after the payoff when your car is still in good shape and needs modest repairs.

Runzheimer International, a management-consulting firm that measures travel and living costs, show that trading a vehicle in every eight years instead of every four can save more than $2,480 a year after the payoff. That includes repairs and maintenance, taxes, license fees, registration and insurance.

Periodic repair bills; oil changes, replacing brakes, belts and hoses, are a drop in the bucket compared to all costs associated with a new vehicle purchase.

I DIDN'T KNOW THAT!

Your credit history can dramatically affect your auto insurance premium. Recent studies have shown that more than 90% of insurers use credit information to create an "insurance risk score", which they then use as a factor to determine your auto insurance rate. The theory is that there is a direct correlation between your insurance risk score and the likelihood that you will file a claim. Insurance scores are intended to evaluate your stability, meaning if you pay your bills in a timely fashion, have had the same credit accounts for long periods of time, you're considered more stable than someone who pays late or sporadically or someone who opens and closes accounts frequently.

What you can do:

Unfortunately, your insurance risk score is not available to you, but it may be similar to your credit score. If you have unusual credit activity that is limited in its time frame, you will benefit from waiting a month for activity to return to normal before buying auto insurance, so your score returns to normal.

If your credit history is shaky, be prepared to pay higher premiums since your insurance company may deem you a higher risk.

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Addison Auto Repair & Body Shop
2005 South Holly Street • Denver, CO 80222 • 303-691-9484

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Serving Virginia Village, Holly Hills, Southmoor, Cherry Hills Village, Greenwood Village, University Park, University Hills, Belcaro, Hilltop, Cherry Creek, Washington Park, Bonnie Brae, Southmoor Park and greater SE Denver area since l982.

We work (mechanical repair and auto body work and hail damage) on all makes of cars and trucks, including: Chevy, Dodge, Ford, Honda, Jeep, Kia, Lexus, Nissan, Plymouth, Saab, Subaru, Suzuki, Toyota and Acura through Volvo.