How Much is Auto Insurance for Good Drivers in Montana?

When shopping for the cheapest car insurance for safe drivers, one of the many considerations that control the cost of insurance is your zip code. Larger areas like Whitefish, Kalispell, and Columbia Falls tend to have more expensive car insurance rates, whereas areas that are not as densely populated receive better rates.

The following table ranks the most expensive areas in Montana for good drivers in which to buy car insurance.

Information shown are approximated as the vehicle garaging location can change coverage prices substantially.

The vehicle you are seeking coverage for is one of the primary factors that determines the availablility of cheap auto insurance for good drivers in Montana. Vehicles with higher performance, poor passenger safety features, or high incidents of liability claims will cost significantly more to insure than more economical and safe models.

The next list presents car insurance costs for the cheaper automobiles to insure in Montana.

Data rating is based on single female driver age 40, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $500 deductibles, and Montana minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, safe-driver, homeowner, claim-free, and multi-policy. Rates do not factor in specific zip code location which can change prices noticeably.

Looking at the data, we can presume that models like the Honda CR-V, Ford F-150, Chevrolet Traverse, and Nissan Altima are going to be the most budget-friendly vehicles to insure for safe drivers.

Finding decent, affordable insurance is not the easiest thing to do, and determining which companies offer the cheapest car insurance rates for good drivers will involve even more shopping around. Coverage rates will be somewhat cheaper than the average price in Montana, with the lower cost attributed to the decrease in risk related to selling insurance for safe drivers. Reasonable coverage should be easy to buy without having to search too hard.
Every car insurance company uses a different method for filing rates in each state, so to begin we’ll rank the most budget-friendly car insurance companies in Montana.

It’s important to understand that Montana car insurance rates are calculated based on many things that control the policy premium. That is why it is critical to compare rates when trying to find cheap auto insurance quotes for good drivers. Rates are influenced by many different factors and change dramatically, so the best option when you last compared rates may now be quite expensive.

Best Auto Insurance Prices for Good Drivers

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Safeco has some of the lowest car insurance rates in Montana at around $828 each year. Progressive, USAA, State Farm, and MetLife also make the cut as some of the cheapest Montana car insurance companies.

As depicted above, if you have coverage with USAA and switched to Safeco, you might realize a yearly savings of approxmiately $227. Policyholders with State Farm might save as much as $274 a year, and MetLife customers might lower prices by $312 a year.

Be aware that those policy rates are averaged across all types of drivers and the different vehicles they drive and do not take into consideration a rate discount for good drivers. So the auto insurance company that can offer you the lowest price may not even be in the rate chart shown above. That illustrates why you need to quote rates from many companies using your own specific driver and vehicle information.

How accidents and tickets impact rates

In a perfect world, the ideal way to receive the most affordable car insurance rates for safe drivers is to drive safe and avoid accidents and traffic violations. The information below illustrates how violations and accident claims can influence insurance costs for different ages of insureds. The premium estimates are based on a married male driver, comp and collision included, $1,000 deductibles, and no discounts are applied to the premium.

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In the previous chart, the average cost of auto insurance in Montana per year with no violations or accidents is $2,054. Add in two speeding tickets and the average cost surges to $2,821, an increase of $768 each year. Then include one accident along with the two speeding tickets and the 12-month cost of car insurance for good drivers jumps again to an average of $3,603. That’s an increase of $1,549, or $129 per month, just for not maintaining a clean driving record!

State Farm, Allstate, Geico, or Progressive: Who is cheapest?

If you are shopping around for car insurance, the companies with the most market share are State Farm, Allstate, Geico, and Progressive. Between them, they insure almost half of all auto insurance written. The data below points out pricing and service ratings, plus some optional coverages that policyholders can buy.

How to get cheap auto insurance for good drivers in Montana

It’s not impossible to find cheaper rates, and here are many money-saving solutions that can help drivers get more affordable coverage.

• Drivers with good credit often pay less
• Buy a car with high safety ratings
• Assess whether full coverage is needed
• Bundle car and home insurance and save money
• Staying accident-free helps keep rates low
• Compare prices frequently to find the best deal

That last idea is particularly valuable, as was pointed out in this write-up. Insurance rates in Montana go up and down frequently, so drivers shouldn’t hesitate to switch companies if you can save money.

Staying with the same car insurance company is fine, but we do not recommend it if that devotedness results in you overpaying money that could be spent on other things. It takes less than five minutes to shop around to find cheaper auto insurance for good drivers.

Cheap insurance quotes for safe drivers

Thanks to technology, drivers have a lot of ways to find lower-cost car insurance in Montana, but the most common are from a captive (or exclusive) agency such as State Farm or Auto-Owners, an independent or non-exclusive agent, or direct from companies such as Progressive or Geico.

Each way has the same basic process, but it’s important to understand the differences in how they function.

Independent agents have contracts with many companies and can quote your policy with all of them. These types of agents are not required to write business for one company and can give you more rate choices, which may give you improved odds of finding cheaper coverage. If a cheaper rate is found, your policy can be easily switched to a different company and that require little work on your part.

Exclusive agencies are restricted to one insurance company like a State Farm or Liberty Mutual agent. Exclusive agents normally do not have the ability to provide multiple price quotes, which does not give you the best rate comparison.

The last way is buying direct, which means you do not use local insurance agents and instead shop direct online or over the phone from a company like Esurance or Progressive. Buying car insurance direct can be good for consumers who do not have complex finances and know how car insurance works.

So which of the methods works best to find cheap auto insurance for good drivers in Montana? We would first guess that buying direct saves the most money since that prevents the need to pay agent commissions, but in reality, that is not true. An argument could also be made that going through an independent agent is the best way to go since they can provide multiple quotes, but that idea is not necessarily true either. In a lot of cases, exclusive agents may have prices that other companies cannot beat.

Since car insurance rates vary so much, the only real way to not overpay for car insurance is to get as many comparison quotes as possible. Smart shoppers will get price quotes from independent, exclusive, and direct in order to be able to find the lowest price. For a list of companies with some of the cheapest Montana car insurance rates, click here to view.