Looking for a quote for car insurance in the UK? Here's something worth reading before you make your final decision.Shopping for the cheapest quote can be a time consuming process if you want the best deal. It's not necessarily as simple as getting to the first comparison site you come across, filling in your details and clicking the "Buy" button. That would just be way too easy, along with the missed opportunity of finding a cheaper quote.You've probably heard of the numerous sites that compare a whole host of insurance companies to find you the best deal, advertising often on television. Comparison sites are not bad places for finding cost effective motor insurance but better deals can also be found from insurers who decide not to affiliate themselves with these sites.Though there are many advantages, there are also downsides to comparison sites. When getting a quote for car insurance or buying a policy the insurer has to pay that comparison site a commission for every quote or sale made. Effectively the site is acting as a middleman and the amount for that commission is in the end passed on to the customer. Good news for the comparison sites that make quite a large sum of money from this process, though not such good news for us customers. There are, however sites that have chosen to remain independent. Just take a look around, you're sure to find them. Direct Line is a good one to try.Now, I might have been a little too hard on comparison sites so far. As I've said, they aren't bad places to find motor insurance. In fact they can be the great places to find a quote. Go take a look at Comparison.com and GoCompare.com. Both the biggest players in the game with a multitude of insurance companies under their belt vying for your custom. On the plus side, these sites have helped make the motor insurance industry competitive almost to the point of being cut throat. That's more of what we like to see!Ultimately though, you are also looking for more than just price when shopping around for a car insurance quote. You should check the excesses and exclusions carefully so they match what you need. MSN's insurance service is certainly worth a try. Powered by Insurancewide, it includes car, home, travel, life and various other forms of cover and does look at more than just price when it is comparing quotes. The benefits of using Insurancewide's service are that it uses innovative technology to provide the fastest, most independent and easy-to-use way to compare insurers in the UK and no insurer can buy their way to 'top spot' on the service. There are three vital elements making up their method of insurance comparison: the insurer's relevance to customer needs; the price, which is influenced by underwriters' risk factors and loadings; and the success rates achieved by insurers when dealing with similar customer profiles. Our comparison system takes into account all three of these elements before directing you to the best value provider, not just price alone.Before buying your policy there is another thing to be aware of. If once insured for your own car, are you allowed by the policy to drive other cars? In other words, once insured can you drive someone else's insured car with their permission?. Policies used to allow this more often than they do nowadays and it's a huge advantage to have. You never know when you might need to drive someone else's car. With a policy that states you can well, then you can!