How Much Does Auto Insurance Cost for Drivers with a Bad Driving Record in California?

For California drivers, one of the considerations that help determine the amount you pay for auto insurance is where you call home. Densely populated urban areas like Los Angeles, Oakland, and Sacramento tend to pay slightly more, whereas areas with lower crime rates and fewer weather claims profit from lower rates.

The next table sorts the more expensive cities in California for drivers with a bad driving record to purchase car insurance in.

Rate quotes are comparative as the vehicle garaging location can lower or raise coverage rates greatly.

Trying to buy budget car insurance is not most people’s favorite thing to do, and deciding which company offers the most affordable insurance rates for drivers with a bad driving record may require even more rate comparisons. Insurance rates will be significantly pricier than the average rate in California because of the extra risk related to selling coverage for bad drivers, but reasonable insurance should be available if you do a thorough comparison.

Every auto insurer has a unique approach to set their prices, so to begin we’ll rank the overall cheapest insurance companies in California. It’s important to understand that California insurance rates are impacted by many factors that may substantially change the price of coverage. Events such as a birthday, buying a home instead of renting, or getting a ticket for careless driving can trigger price changes that can now make some companies higher when they were quite affordable.

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USAA quotes some of the most affordable car insurance rates in California at around $1,109 each year. Century National, Wawanesa, CSAA, and Nationwide would also make the list of some of the lowest-priced California auto insurance companies.

As illustrated above, if you are a customer of Century National and switched to USAA, you may realize savings of in the neighborhood of $69. Insureds with Wawanesa could save as much as $72 a year, and CSAA customers might reduce rates by $77 a year.

If you want to see how much you could save, click here to begin a quote or quote rates from the companies below.

Remember that these policy rates are averages across all ages of drivers and types of vehicles and are not factoring in a rate surcharge for drivers with a bad driving record. So the car insurance company that can offer you the best price may not even be in the list above. That points out the importance of why you need to get car insurance quotes using your own driver information and specific vehicle type.

The make and model of vehicle requiring insurance is probably the largest consideration when comparing affordable insurance for drivers with a bad driving record. Vehicles with high performance features, poor safety features, or a high likelihood of having liability claims will cost much more to insure than more economical and safe models.

The data below outlines auto insurance prices for a handful of the cheaper vehicles to insure in California.

Premium data assumes married female driver age 30, two speeding tickets, two at-fault accidents, $500 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, multi-policy, and homeowner. Premium costs do not factor in vehicle garaging location which can decrease or increase prices noticeably.

Based upon the rates shown, you can expect makes and models like the Honda CR-V, Honda Accord, and Hyundai Elantra will definitely be some of the cheapest vehicles to insure for bad drivers. The price for an auto insurance policy will be more costly just due to the fact that there is more liability risk for drivers with a bad driving record, but in general those specific models will have the best rates that you’ll find.

The diagram below highlights how deductible choice can increase or decrease yearly insurance costs when searching for cheap insurance for drivers with a bad driving record. The costs are based on a married female driver, full coverage, and no discounts are applied to the premium.

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As shown above, a 30-year-old driver could save $476 a year by switching from a $100 deductible to a $500 deductible, or save $712 by choosing a $1,000 deductible. Younger drivers, like the 20-year-old example, could potentially save up to $1,008 annually by selecting a higher deductible.

When insureds make the decision to increase the deductibles on their policy, it will now be necessary to have emergency funds available to allow you to pay the extra out-of-pocket expense, which deters some drivers from choosing higher deductibles.

Discount California auto insurance

Insurance companies that offer cheap insurance for drivers with a bad driving record in California may provide rate discounts that can reduce rates by 40% or more if you are eligible to receive them. A list of companies and their possible discounts are outlined below.

The chart below illustrates the difference between yearly insurance costs with and without discounts applied to the policy premium. Data assumes a female driver, one accident and two citations, California state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $1,000 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows the average rate with no discounts. The lower bar shows the rates with homeowner, passive restraint, multiple vehicle, continuous coverage, vehicle safety, and anti-theft discounts applied. When discounts are applied, the the average amount saved on insurance for drivers with a bad driving record is % or $.

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Cheapest car insurance: Progressive, Geico, State Farm, or Allstate

When comparing car insurance for bad drivers, the first places to look would be Progressive, Geico, State Farm, and Allstate. The following table points out pricing and service ratings, as well as optional policy coverages that policyholders can buy.