In fact, garages don’t guarantee lower car insurance premiums because they present their own set of risks to your car. For example, you could easily bump or scrape your vehicle when pulling in or out of the garage, or it could be damaged by any tools or equipment you have stored. In addition, if your house is broken into, your vehicle could also be stolen as a result. Or if your garage is separate from your house, you might not hear a break-in. Therefore, garages aren’t without their risks to insurers.
So, when it comes to parking your vehicle, it’s not necessarily about where you park but more about where you live and your circumstances on the whole. You could even find that if you live in a particularly high-risk area, you’re obliged to park your car in a garage or other secured location in order to even take out a policy.
As a general rule of thumb though, insurance for vehicles parked in garages, as opposed to on the road, will be cheaper on that basis alone. But it only marginally brings your premium down: your quote will be impacted much more by other factors. Those with garages are less likely to live in built-up areas, so crime will be lower on the whole anyway – making it a lower risk.
If you declare that your car is parked in a locked garage, then your garage must be locked overnight else you could invalidate your policy. Plus, you mustn’t be dishonest about where you park your car just to get a cheaper premium as this is considered fraud. In either event, the additional cost, hassle and consequences far outweigh any savings you might make.
