Ever wanted to know what factors affect your auto insurance premiums? Here you are.
State of Your Residence.
You might be surprised but insurance rates for the same person and the same vehicle vary significantly from state to state.
These differences reflect the increased risk of loss as well as increased operating cost for auto insurance companies in your State.
For example, auto insurance rates in hurricane- and tornado-prone areas are usually much higher than in regular places.
Your Age.
Insurance rates for too young and too senior drivers are usually noticeably higher than for the average-age drivers.
These two categories of drivers are considered to incur a higher risk of traffic accidents and therefore are more expensive for insurance providers.
Your Gender.
This factor would make the feminist movement very happy – male drivers usually pay higher auto insurance premiums than females!
The reason – statistics shows that men are more likely to drive aggressively than females and hence they are more risky for insurers.
Your Marital Status.
Married drivers usually pay lower auto insurance premiums than single drivers!
Statistics shows that married people are usually more responsible drivers and get involved in average in fewer auto accidents than the single drivers.
Your Driving Experience.
This basically translates into two main questions:
At what age you have started driving?
Drivers who started driving at their 40's or 50's can expect higher insurance rates than average drivers.
Some auto insurance carriers would ask even more specific question - at what age your got your first driver license in the USA or Canada.
For those auto insurance carriers only North American driving experience is counted.
Note also, that if you moved to the USA from Great Britain, Japan or any other country with left-hand traffic (total of 76 countries, territories and dependencies) you will likely to pay a much higher premium.
What is your total driving experience in years?
More driving experience you have - the better your chances to get a low rate.
Your Driving Record.
It is understandable that safe drivers get better insurance rates than the ones who have traffic tickets or accidents. Keep you personal driving records clean.
To learn how to drive safely and avoid traffic accidents visit our Defensive Driving Tips center;
to get traffic ticket help click Trafic Tickets Help Center menu item in the left.
The Age and Condition of Your Vehicle.
Brand new cars are more expensive to repair; this can drive the insurance package price up. Also, speedy sport cars are more accident-prone and therefore have higher insurance rates.
Is Your Car Leased or Still Being Financed or Owned Outright?
If your car is not legally owned by you - for example, the car you drive is from lease or the car was purchased by you but is not paid off yet - you might be requested to buy more than just liability coverage insurance.
The more expensive bundle of Collision Coverage plus Comprehensive Coverage is often required in these cases.
Average Miles You Drive Daily.
Cars used sparingly, say - only 5-10 miles a day – understandably introduce a lesser risk of traffic accidents and therefore are cheaper to insure than the cars which make 150 miles every day.
Your Car's Safety Features.
Cars equipped by anti-theft devices such as alarms, steering wheel- or pedal locks decrease the risk of loss.
Also, cars with ABS, air bags, rear-view cameras and other safety gadgets considered to be safer and therefore are cheaper as far as auto insurance is concerned.
Most of modern cars do have these factory-built features.
Deductable You are Willing to Pay.
A deductable is your co-pay in the case of an auto accident; the rest gets paid by Insurance Company.
The higher your deductable is – the more losses you are willing to share with the insurance company - the lower your insurance package price will be.
