The make and model of vehicle you are seeking coverage for is one of the main factors when comparing quotes for cheap car insurance for drivers requiring a SR22 in South Carolina. Vehicles with lower acceleration and performance, modern passenger safety features, or a low likelihood of having liability claims will cost quite a bit less to insure than high performance models. The next list estimates insurance prices for a selection of the most cost-effective vehicles to insure.
Make and Model | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
---|---|
Ford Escape XLT 2WD | $2,855 |
Honda CR-V LX 4WD | $2,875 |
Hyundai Elantra GLS Touring Station Wagon | $2,881 |
Toyota Prius | $2,992 |
Chevrolet Traverse LTZ 2WD | $3,077 |
Jeep Wrangler Sahara 4WD 2-Dr | $3,149 |
Ford F-150 XLT Regular Cab 2WD | $3,212 |
Volkswagen Jetta 2.0T Station Wagon | $3,261 |
Ford Focus S 4-Dr Sedan | $3,263 |
Subaru Outback 2.5I | $3,286 |
Subaru Forester XT Limited Edition AWD | $3,298 |
Toyota Tacoma Double Cab 4WD | $3,326 |
Ford Edge SE AWD | $3,367 |
Hyundai Tucson Limited 4WD | $3,382 |
Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid | $3,388 |
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Price data assumes married male driver age 40, two speeding tickets, two at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and South Carolina minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include homeowner, multi-policy, and multi-vehicle. Prices do not factor in specific South Carolina garaging location which can decrease or increase premiums considerably.
Looking at the data, vehicles like the Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, Hyundai Elantra, and Toyota Prius will definitely be a few of the more affordable vehicles to insure for high risk drivers. The price for car insurance will trend higher just because there is more claim exposure for drivers requiring a SR22, but generally speaking those vehicles will most likely have the lowest prices that you are likely to find.
For South Carolina drivers, one of the factors used to establish the amount you pay each year for auto insurance is where you keep your car. Urban areas that are densely populated like Florence, Summerville, and North Charleston tend to have more expensive car insurance rates, whereas areas with lower crime rates and fewer weather claims benefit from having to pay less for coverage.
The following table lists the most costly cities in South Carolina for drivers requiring a SR22 to purchase auto insurance in.
Rank | City | Premium Per Year |
---|---|---|
1 | Florence | $1,298 |
2 | Goose Creek | $1,284 |
3 | Summerville | $1,252 |
4 | Sumter | $1,252 |
5 | North Charleston | $1,250 |
6 | Charleston | $1,235 |
7 | Columbia | $1,213 |
8 | Socastee | $1,187 |
9 | Myrtle Beach | $1,186 |
10 | Saint Andrews | $1,184 |
11 | Mount Pleasant | $1,177 |
12 | Hilton Head Island | $1,162 |
13 | Greenville | $1,144 |
14 | North Augusta | $1,139 |
15 | Aiken | $1,130 |
16 | Greenwood | $1,110 |
17 | Taylors | $1,095 |
18 | Rock Hill | $1,091 |
19 | Anderson | $1,083 |
20 | Spartanburg | $1,083 |
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Premium amounts are approximated as specific South Carolina garaging address can increase or decrease coverage prices substantially.
Shopping around for cost effective auto insurance is hard enough, and finding out which company has the best auto insurance rates for drivers requiring a SR22 will require a bit more work. Premiums will probably be quite a bit more than the average rate in South Carolina attributed to the posibility of more claims that comes with selling coverage for high risk drivers, but economical coverage should be attainable if you find the right company. Each auto insurance company has their own guidelines to establish rates, so to begin we’ll rank the auto insurance companies with the overall cheapest rates in South Carolina.
Keep in mind that South Carolina auto insurance rates are influenced by many factors that can increase your annual premium. This price variation is why South Carolina drivers need to spend some time comparing rates to get the cheapest auto insurance quotes for drivers requiring a SR22. Rates are calculated by many different factors and can change substantially, so the best price six months ago may now be costing you a lot of money.
Best Cheap Insurance Rates for SR22 Drivers
Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
---|---|---|
1 | The Hartford | $745 |
2 | USAA | $1,015 |
3 | State Auto | $1,138 |
4 | Auto-Owners | $1,153 |
5 | SC Farm Bureau Mutual | $1,248 |
6 | Southern Farm Bureau | $1,260 |
7 | National Grange Mutual | $1,321 |
8 | Travelers | $1,397 |
9 | State Farm | $1,408 |
10 | Progressive | $1,594 |
11 | Allstate | $1,621 |
12 | Encompass | $1,657 |
13 | Nationwide | $1,778 |
14 | Safe Auto | $1,965 |
15 | GEICO | $2,041 |
16 | Bristol West | $2,395 |
17 | Liberty Mutual | $2,439 |
18 | Safeco | $2,771 |
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The Hartford has some of the most affordable car insurance rates in South Carolina at around $745 annually. USAA, State Auto, Auto-Owners, and SC Farm Bureau Mutual also are some of the best South Carolina car insurance companies.
As the example above demonstrates, if you are a customer of SC Farm Bureau Mutual and switched to USAA, you could earn savings of around $233. Drivers with Southern Farm Bureau might save as much as $245 a year, and National Grange Mutual policyholders might lower prices by $306 a year.
It’s important to note that these prices are averages for all types of insureds and vehicles and do not factor in a price increase for drivers requiring a SR22. So the insurer that is most affordable for your situation may not even be featured in the company chart above. That emphasizes why you need to compare rates from multiple companies using your own personal information and vehicle type.
Finding cheap car insurance for drivers requiring a SR22 in South Carolina is probably important to most drivers, and one good way to save on the cost of insurance is to not insure for full coverage. The illustration below illustrates the difference between premium costs with full phyical damage coverage and with liability coverage only. The prices are based on a clean driving record, no claims, $250 deductibles, marital status is single, and no additional discounts are factored in.
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If the expense is averaged for all age categories, physical damage insurance costs $2,394 per year more than carrying just liability coverage. At some point, almost every driver questions if paying for full coverage is worth it. There is no exact rule for excluding comp and collision coverage, but there is a general guideline. If the annual cost of your full coverage insurance is 10% or more of replacement cost minus your deductible, then it’s probably a good time to buy liability coverage only.
There are a few cases where buying only liability insurance is not in your best interest. If you still have a loan on your vehicle, you have to keep full coverage as part of the loan requirements. Also, if your savings is not enough to buy a different vehicle in the event your current vehicle is totaled, you should not opt for liability only.
When comparing auto insurance for high risk drivers, the companies with the most market share are State Farm, Progressive, Geico, and Allstate. They all offer your standard coverages, but each one has a slightly different set of options and discounts that shoppers can choose from. The next table ranks some of the different options shoppers can expect to find with each one.
State Farm | Progressive | Geico | Allstate | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Claims Handling | 2nd | 4th | 3rd | 1st |
Overall Satisfaction | 4th | 3rd | 1st | 2nd |
Number of Discounts | 3rd | 4th | 2nd | 1st |
Policy Cost | 2nd | 3rd | 1st | 4th |
Amount of market share | 18.3% | 8.8% | 11.4% | 10% |
A.M. Best rating | A++ | A+ | A++ | A+ |
Rating based on usage | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
Accident forgiveness coverage | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Mechanical breakdown insurance | No | Yes | Yes | No |
Emergency roadside service | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
New car replacement | No | No | No | Yes |
Coverage for ridesharing | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Types of agents used | Only from State Farm agents | Buy online or from an independent agent | Online or through a Geico agent | Can only buy from Allstate agents |
Number of agents | 18,000+ | 30,000+ | 150+ | 11,000+ |
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There are many different ways to find cheaper auto insurance in South Carolina, but the most preferred are through a captive (or exclusive) agent such as Allstate or State Farm, a non-exclusive or independent agent, or direct from companies such as Geico or Progressive.
They all have the same basic principle, but each is slightly different in how they work.
Independent insurance agents are appointed by several companies and can get policy pricing from each one. These agents are not locked into one company and can get prices from more than one company, which may give you improved odds of finding cheaper coverage. If your premiums go up, your policy is moved internally without you having to go to a different agency.
An exclusive agent is only able to quote rates with a single insurance company, two examples being an Allstate or State Farm agent. This type of agents cannot shop your coverage around, so if finding the cheapest auto insurance is your goal, you will want to shop around.
Choosing to buy auto insurance direct means you forego a local agent and instead shop direct online or over the phone from a company like Esurance or Geico. Buying direct can be a good choice for people who do not have a need for a risk management assessment and have a decent understanding of how auto insurance works and possible exclusions.
What is the best method to buy cheap car insurance for drivers requiring a SR22 in South Carolina? It would be premature to say buying from a direct car insurance company saves the most money since that eliminates agent commissions, but in reality, that is not true. It would also be easy to say using an independent agent guarantees the cheapest rates because they can shop around, but that assumption is also not accurate. In many cases, exclusive agencies may have prices that other companies cannot beat.
Since auto insurance companies use so many rating factors, the one way to not overpay for auto insurance is to do a thorough rate comparison. Take some time and get prices from all three in order to have enough rates to compare. We compiled a list of companies with some of the cheapest online rates that you can click here to view.