• Insurance companies want to know every little thing about the person behind the wheel.yellow car, a honda japanese sport car model image by alma_sacra from Fotolia.com
  
  When you apply for car insurance, a company looks at a variety of factors to decide how much you should pay. Some of the criteria are obvious, such as your driving history and criminal record. However, some of the other factors insurance companies consider will surprise you.
  
  

Gender and Age

• Young, unmarried males have very high insurance rates because they are more likely to be involved in accidents, the Illinois Department of Insurance says. The biases against young, single males might seem unfair, but there is substantial evidence to back it up. Dr. Stanley Schuman, a scientist who conducted a study of young male drivers for the University of Michigan, noted that this particular group caused one-third of all fatal accidents. For men, turning 25 and getting married are two things that will almost certainly decrease your car insurance payments.
  
  

Credit History

• Applicants with good credit scores will receive lower insurance rates, the New York State Insurance Department says. According to Kimberly Lankford, a contributing editor for Kiplinger's Personal Finance, the relationship between the two is not based on insurance companies fearing that payments will be late or missed. People with low credit scores are far more likely to be involved in accidents. Insurers believe those customers are more likely to file insurance claims.
  
  

Profession

• What you do for a living has a major impact on your insurance premiums, according to a 2007 article from Reuters news service. Soccer players, comedians, bee-keepers, and telephone salesmen were among those deemed more likely to be involved in an accident. As a result, these professionals paid a higher insurance rate. Meanwhile, secretaries, naturalists, chauffeurs, and underwriters were deemed to have a much lower risk of being in an accident.