How Much are Auto Insurance Quotes for Drivers Under 21 in California?

The cost and performance of the vehicle driven is one of the largest considerations when quoting cheap car insurance for drivers under 21 in California. Vehicles with higher performance, poor safety features, or a high likelihood of having liability claims will cost substantially more to insure than more modest models.

The lists below illustrates insurance rates for a number of the cheaper vehicles to insure.

Data assumes single male driver age 18, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Estimates do not factor in vehicle garaging location which can raise or lower premiums substantially.

Table data assumes single male driver age 18, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Prices do not factor in specific California garaging location which can decrease or increase coverage rates greatly.

Cost estimates assume single male driver age 18, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Prices do not factor in your specific California location which can lower or raise insurance rates significantly.

Figuring out which company offers the cheapest car insurance rates for drivers under 21 will require a little more sweat in order to find the best policy. Every car insurance company has their own process for determining rates in each state, so let’s examine the car insurance companies with the overall best prices in California.

It’s important that you understand California car insurance rates are calculated based on many things that control the price you have to pay for coverage. Improving your credit rating, increasing liability limits, or getting into an accident can trigger rate changes that can make some companies cheaper than competitors.

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Wawanesa offers some of the lowest car insurance rates in California at around $1,146 annually. USAA, Century National, Nationwide, and CSAA are also some of the best California insurance companies.

In this example, if you are currently insured with CSAA and switched to USAA, you might achieve yearly savings of approxmiately $79. Customers with 21st Century could save as much as $183 a year, and Grange customers might reduce rates by $292 a year.

To get a fast rate comparison, click here to begin a quote or visit several of the following companies.

It’s important to note that these policy prices are averages across all drivers and vehicles and are not factoring in a rate increase for drivers under 21. So the insurer that can offer you the lowest price may not even be shown in the rate chart shown above. That is why you need to quote rates from many companies using your own specific driver and vehicle information.

For minors, one of the big things that is used by car insurance companies to determine the policy price is where you normally keep your vehicle in California. Cities that have higher claim levels or more people like Los Angeles, Oakland, and Sacramento tend to have more expensive car insurance rates, whereas areas that tend to be more rural can boast about having cheaper rates.

The information below sorts the most expensive places in California for drivers under 21 to purchase car insurance in.

Price information shown is estimated as specific location information can alter rates noticeably.

The information below shows how different deductible levels can influence premium costs when getting quotes for cheap insurance for drivers under 21. The rates are based on a married female driver, comprehensive and collision coverage, and no discounts are applied.

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The data above shows that a 50-year-old driver could save $300 a year by changing from a $100 deductible to a $500 deductible, or save $456 by switching to a $1,000 deductible. Young drivers, such as the Age 20 example, could possibly save up to $750 annually by choosing a larger deductible amount. When insureds make the decision to increase the deductibles on their policy, it’s a good idea to have enough in a savings account to enable you to pay the extra out-of-pocket expense that deters many people from opting for higher deductibles.

Driving violations and accidents

One of the best ways to maintain cheap car insurance rates for minors is to be a safe driver and avoid accidents and traffic violations. The example below illustrates how traffic citations and fender-benders can raise premium costs for different age categories. The rate quotes are based on a married female driver, comprehensive and collision coverage, $100 deductibles, and no other discounts are factored in.

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The data in the chart shows the average cost of car insurance per year with no violations or accidents is $2,171. Add in two speeding tickets and the average cost swells to $3,101, an increase of $931 each year. Now add two accidents along with the two speeding tickets and the yearly cost of car insurance for drivers under 21 goes up to an average of $6,258. That’s an increase of $4,087, or $341 per month, just for not driving responsibly!

How to find budget-friendly car insurance for drivers under 21

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

• Buying home and auto insurance together can earn discounts
• Vehicles with safetly features generally cost less to insure
• Don’t waste money on full coverage for older vehicles
• Increase your physical damage deductibles
• Good credit can mean cheaper rates
• Pay for smaller claims out-of-pocket
• Shop around for lower rates once a year

That last idea is incredibly necessary, as we stressed in the prior article. Rates can be changed at any time, so don’t be hesitant to switch carriers if a more affordable price is available.

Brand loyalty is great, but it’s not a great idea if your bullheadedness ends up costing you potentially thousands of dollars a year. Take a few minutes and compare rates and find cheaper insurance for drivers under 21.

Cheapest insurance quotes for minors

Drivers have a lot of different ways to comparison shop for car insurance in California, but the most common are through a captive (or exclusive) agent such as Allstate or Liberty Mutual, an independent insurance agent, or buying direct from a company like Progressive or Geico. All three ways can provide car insurance quotes, but they differ slightly in how they give price quotes.

Independent agencies can place your business with multiple companies and can get policy pricing from each one. They have the ability to compare multiple rates, which may give you improved chances of finding a lower rate. If they quote lower rates, your policy can be easily switched to a different company and you can remain with the same agent.

A captive, or exclusive, agent is only able to quote rates from one insurance company, two examples being Farmers Insurance or State Farm agents. Exclusive agents generally are unable to provide prices from multiple companies, so if rates are not competitive, they cannot shop around.

Choosing to buy car insurance direct means you forego the middleman (the agent) and buy direct either online or via phone. This car insurance option may be preferred by drivers who do not have a lot of assets and have a good understanding of the limitations of car insurance.

So comparing independent agents, exclusive agents, and direct, which one works best to find cheap car insurance for drivers under 21 in California? We’d like to say buying direct results in the best prices because there isn’t an agent involved, but that is generally not the case. And we’d like to say going through an independent agent is the best way to save since they can provide multiple quotes, but again, it’s not necessarily true. In many circumstances, exclusive agents have extremely competitive rates that other companies cannot beat.

Due to the large number of rating factors, the only true way to get the cheapest rates is to get rate quotes and compare. If you have the time, get price quotes from independent, exclusive, and direct to give yourself enough choices. For a list of companies with some of the cheapest California car insurance rates, click here to view.