There used to be a time when a gentleman visited the tailor as a matter of routine in order to be measured for a new suit because, in those days, men's suits were made according to individual specifications.
Nowadays, everything from men's suits to gourmet meals can be purchased ready-made from the shelves of a supermarket or department store, and people no longer require a one-on-one meeting with a person like a tailor.
But what does bespoke suit tailoring have to do with car insurance? Well, quite a lot, actually.
The underlying relationship between a man's tailored suit and car insurance lies in the notion of customization, and even though it is no longer customary for men to have all of their suits specially made, the concept of getting an automobile estimate which has been tailored to a person's individual needs is alive and well.
The first instance where you are likely to notice customization as it relates to car insurance is when a quotation is being drawn up.
At this point, you will find that you will be asked a number of questions, perhaps by an insurance rep over the phone or by way of an electronic online form.
If you look at the kind of questions you are being asked you will notice that they relate to factors like your age, gender, the age of your vehicle, whether you use it for business purposes or not, where it is parked at night and if it is fitted with a vehicle tracking device, for instance.
Ultimately, these individual questions will, by their very nature, lead to a quotation that is customized according to your age, gender, type of car you drive, etc.
which means that not everyone will pay the same for insurance.
For example, the young male student below the age of 25 who drives a vehicle manufactured in 2002 that he parks in the street outside the house where he lives with his parents will not receive the same estimate as, say, a woman over 25 driving a late-model car with an alarm which she uses for both business and personal purposes and parks inside a garage in a secure complex at night.
As you can see, the scenarios of these two individuals are almost the exact opposite of one another and their insurance cover is likely to follow suit.
However, there is another way in which car insurance can be customized and that is according to how many kilometers a vehicle owner drives in a month.
Moreover, it is in this aspect of automobile cover that the advantage of being able to tailor one's car insurance according to one's needs is fully realized.
Some people do not drive very much for various reasons whilst others are on the road a lot.
It is obvious from this example that the folks who do not drive much could stand to pay a lot for insurance cover that they do not need which is why certain insurers offer policies that allow the policy holder to pay only for the kilometers they drive.
Therefore, if you are one of those folks who does not drive much, it stands to reason that you will want to take a leaf from the page of the gentleman who used to get his suits specially made for him and to tailor your cover so as to avoid paying excessively for car insurance.