Excelsior Correspondent
A student’s car is the first own vehicle for many. The independent, adult life, often connected with moving to a new, larger city, is a perfect time to buy one. However, not every car will make life easier in the long run. We provide advice on what car to choose to ensure that the students’ idyll does not change into an expensive problem.
A student’s car should have several basic properties to ensure that using it will make life in the city easier and not more difficult. It needs not be impressive, expensive or extra fast. It must fulfill its major function, i.e. go from the students’ dormitory to the university and enable them to return home for the weekend safely. What is more, it cannot be expensive in terms of its purchase price and maintenance costs. Although this may sound strange, it should not be perfect so that we are not sorry if there is any collision or accident. Below, please see some tips on how to choose a student’s car.
The car price — As most of us know students who enter adult life often have a limited budget. This means the car they choose must not cost too much. Today, you can find many older, second-hand cars for an affordable price.
Car maintenance — The parts for the student’s car should be inexpensive and easily available. This will help to avoid high costs in the case of failure which may happen in older cars. This criterion is important for one more reason — inexperienced drivers are more prone to have collisions. Some scratching or broken bumpers are parts which are easier to repair at some lower cost.
The car size — The vehicle should be compact. Most universities are situated in larger cities with heavy traffic and limited space. A small, compact car will make it easier to drive in the streets and to find some place to park.
Economical — A student’s car should have low fuel consumption. The optimum consumption in the city is ca. 5–6 liters. Small cars do not consume much fuel which makes driving them more economical.
Electrical vehicle — This is a perfect solution though more expensive and thus less affordable for a wider group of drivers. In the long run, however, it is much more economical and, which is also important, eco-friendly.
How to safeguard from unforeseen expenses?
The first car, particularly the one to be driven by young people, may be exposed to many hazards. Collisions and accidents happen even to experienced drivers, but those who start their driving adventure stand a higher chance of causing or participating in some incident.
However, the consequences of such incidents can be not only problematic, but also very expensive. Even if you ignore the expenses connected with repairing the damage emerging during the collision, the accident participants may be encumbered with liability for losses suffered by third parties and their property.
This is why, in particular when the driver is a student with a limited budget, before going on a road everyone should buy an appropriate car policy which will minimize the risk of unforeseen expenses and painful consequences. The most important components of the policy include:
Assistance — it will ensure the first, basic assistance and support at the time of any fortuitous event. This is not only related to providing the most important information, including emergency phone numbers or assistance facilities, over the phone, but also child care when her or his guardians suffer in the accident.
Third party liability insurance — it will ensure protection if any loss is caused to any third party or their property as a result of what we do. The guaranteed sum of the third party liability insurance should be at least EUR 100,000.
Accident insurance — it guarantees covering the costs and any benefit disbursement if our health suffers as a result of the fortuitous event. This is important also during foreign trips as it provides coverage for the accident-related treatment or rehabilitation. What is more, the accident insurance guarantees compensation if the insured person dies.
Comprehensive cover — this policy will ensure disbursement of the relevant compensation if the car is damaged due to the injured party’s fault. It also covers theft of the vehicle, the act of the forces of nature and the so-called vandalism acts (or more general third party acts).
If you want to choose the appropriate insurance for you, use the car insurance calculator on rankomat. Thanks to that, you will compare different policies and choose the appropriate one for you and best matching your needs, and then you will easily buy it online in several simple steps, without leaving your home.
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