Who Has Cheap Auto Insurance Quotes for Business Use in California?

Who Has Cheap Auto Insurance Quotes for Business Use in California?

When shopping for insurance for using your car for business, one of the many considerations that help determine the cost of insurance is where you choose to live in California. Cities with larger populations or higher claim trends like Los Angeles, Oakland, and Sacramento will most likely have higher rates, whereas areas with lower vehicle theft rates and fewer weather claims profit from lower rates.

The information below illustrates the highest-priced places in California for business use to buy auto insurance in.

California cities ranked by car insurance cost
Rank City Annual Premium
1 Los Angeles $2,083
2 Glendale $2,058
3 Oakland $1,755
4 San Francisco $1,745
5 Sacramento $1,703
6 San Bernardino $1,644
7 Stockton $1,603
8 Long Beach $1,578
9 Moreno Valley $1,551
10 Santa Clarita $1,548
11 Fontana $1,535
12 Fresno $1,517
13 Garden Grove $1,508
14 Modesto $1,502
15 Riverside $1,497
16 Anaheim $1,488
17 Santa Ana $1,483
18 Huntington Beach $1,416
19 San Jose $1,395
20 Irvine $1,384
21 Fremont $1,348
22 Bakersfield $1,340
23 Chula Vista $1,337
24 San Diego $1,327
25 Oxnard $1,318
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Rate quotes are comparative as zip code location can change premiums substantially.

Determining which companies offer the cheapest insurance rates for business use may require a little more sweat than just getting one or two price quotes. Every insurance company uses a slightly different approach to set their prices, so let’s take a look at the insurance companies with the overall best prices in California.

It’s a good idea to be aware that California insurance rates are based on many factors that may substantially change the price you have to pay. Simply improving your credit, having a claim, or having an accident may generate price changes that can make some companies more affordable than others.

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California car insurance ranked by cost per year
Rank Company Cost Per Year
1 USAA $1,121
2 Century National $1,178
3 Wawanesa $1,192
4 CSAA $1,234
5 Nationwide $1,263
6 21st Century $1,379
7 Grange $1,433
8 Progressive $1,512
9 GEICO $1,529
10 Mercury $1,548
11 Allstate $1,559
12 Allied $1,588
13 The Hartford $1,623
14 MetLife $1,638
15 State Farm $1,733
16 Unitrin $1,733
17 Esurance $1,739
18 Travelers $1,806
19 Bristol West $1,831
20 Farmers $2,006
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USAA may offer some of the best car insurance rates in California at around $1,121 a year. Century National, Wawanesa, CSAA, and Nationwide are also some of the cheaper California auto insurance companies.

As shown in the rates above, if you have coverage with CSAA and switched to Century National, you might achieve a yearly savings of roughly $56. Insureds with Nationwide might save as much as $85 a year, and 21st Century customers might reduce rates by $201 a year.

To compare your rates to other California insurance companies, click here to start your custom quote or quote rates from the companies below.

These premium estimates are averaged for all drivers and vehicles and are not factoring in a price increase for business use. So the auto insurance company that can offer you the best rate may not even be featured in the list of companies above. That emphasizes why you need to get auto insurance quotes using your own specific driver information and vehicle.

The vehicle model needing coverage is probably the largest consideration when shopping around for the most affordable insurance for business use. Vehicles with limited top-end speed, good crash test ratings, or a positive history of liability claims will cost substantially less to insure than adrenaline junky models.

The next list outlines insurance premiums for a number of the cheapest automobiles to insure.

Cheapest Auto Insurance Rates for Business Use in California
Vehicle Insured Estimated Cost for Full Coverage
Honda CR-V LX 4WD $1,557
Honda Accord LX 4-Dr Sedan $1,566
Toyota Tacoma 4WD $1,732
Dodge Grand Caravan CV $1,739
Ford Escape XLS 2WD $1,756
Subaru Outback 2.5I $1,774
Chevrolet Traverse LS 2WD $1,808
Volkswagen Jetta SE 2.5 Station Wagon $1,867
Hyundai Elantra GLS 4-Dr Sedan $1,959
Ford Edge Sport 2WD $1,969
Toyota Corolla LE $1,959
Subaru Forester X Premium AWP AWD $1,972
Toyota Prius $1,979
Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sport 4WD 4-Dr $2,015
Hyundai Santa Fe GLS 2WD $2,017
Ford Focus S 4-Dr Sedan $2,027
Honda Odyssey EX W/Rear Entertainment $2,017
Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid $2,025
Chevrolet Silverado LT Extended Cab 4WD $2,033
Hyundai Tucson Limited 4WD $2,070
Toyota RAV4 2WD $2,075
Ford Explorer Limited 2WD $2,070
Chevrolet Equinox LS AWD $2,075
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Data variables include single male driver age 50, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $500 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, homeowner, multi-policy, safe-driver, and claim-free. Premium amounts do not factor in specific location which can influence insurance rates significantly.

Based on these rates, you can presume that makes and models like the Honda CR-V, Honda Accord, Toyota Tacoma, and Dodge Grand Caravan should be the most budget-friendly vehicles to insure for using your car for business. The price of auto insurance will tend to be higher just due to the fact that there is more claim exposure for business use, but overall those vehicles will have the lowest insurance prices compared to other vehicles.

Rate difference between full and liability-only coverage

Finding cheap car insurance for business use in California is the goal of most vehicle owners, and one common way to find cheap insurance is to only pay for liability coverage. The information below illustrates the comparison of yearly insurance costs when comparing full coverage to liability only. The prices are based on a clean driving record, no claims, $500 deductibles, drivers are single, and no discounts are factored in.

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If all age groups are averaged, comp and collision coverage costs an additional $2,075 per year over and above liability only. Lot’s of drivers question if it’s a good idea to buy full coverage. There is no clear-cut rule of when to drop full coverage, but there is a guideline you can use. If the annual cost of coverage is more than around 10% of the replacement cost minus the deductible, then it could be time to drop full coverage.

There are some circumstances where removing full coverage is not financially feasible. If you have an outstanding loan on your vehicle, you have to maintain full coverage in order to satisfy the requirements of the loan. Also, if you can’t afford to buy a different vehicle if your current one is damaged, you should not drop full coverage.

Driving violations and accidents

In a perfect world, the ideal way to maintain cheap car insurance for business use in California is to be an attentive driver and avoid accidents and traffic citations. The illustration below illustrates how traffic citations and accident claims can affect auto insurance costs for each different age group. The data assumes a married male driver, comprehensive and collision coverage, $1,000 deductibles, and no additional discounts are factored in.

google.charts.setOnLoadCallback(drawVioqcibChart);function drawVioqcibChart() {var data = google.visualization.arrayToDataTable([[‘Age of Insured’, ‘No Violations or Accidents’, ‘One Speeding Ticket and No Accidents’, ‘One Speeding Ticket and Two Accidents’],[‘Age 20’, 2713,2953,5195],[‘Age 30’, 1399,1639,3883],[‘Age 40’, 1369,1605,3847],[‘Age 50’, 1257,1497,3739],[‘Age 60’, 1233,1473,3715],[‘Age 70’, 1451,1691,3933]]);var options = {title: ‘Impact of Violations and Accidents on California Car Insurance Prices’,titleTextStyle: {color: ‘#333’, fontSize: 17, bold: true},width: ‘100%’,height: 600,’chartArea’: {left:100,top:50,’width’: ‘100%’, ‘height’: ‘70%’},legend: {position: ‘bottom’,textStyle: {fontSize: 12}},colors:[‘#b2da64′,’#eed355′,’#e39e71’],hAxis: {title: ‘Annual Auto Insurance Cost for Average Vehicle in California’,minValue: 0,format: ‘$###,###’},vAxis: {title: ‘Age of Insured’}};var formatter = new google.visualization.NumberFormat({fractionDigits: 0,prefix: ‘$’});formatter.format(data,1);formatter.format(data,2);formatter.format(data,3);var chart = new google.visualization.BarChart(document.getElementById(‘qcibvio’));chart.draw(data, options);}

The data charted above shows the average cost of a car insurance policy in California per year with a clean driving record and no accidents is $1,570. Get one speeding ticket and the average cost rises to $1,810, an increase of $239 each year. Now include two accidents along with the one speeding ticket and the annual cost of insurance for business use goes up to an average of $4,052. That’s an increase of $2,482, or $207 per month, just for not driving attentively!

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

When comparing rates for car insurance for using your car for business in California, four companies to consider are Progressive, Geico, State Farm, and Allstate. They all have slightly different coverages and options that you can choose from. The next table illustrates some of the different options and features that may be available in California.

Comparison of Progressive, Geico, State Farm, and Allstate
Progressive Geico State Farm Allstate
Discounts Offered 4th 2nd 3rd 1st
Policy Cost 3rd 1st 2nd 4th
Customer Satisfaction 3rd 1st 4th 2nd
Claims Rank 4th 3rd 2nd 1st
Market share percentage 8.8% 11.4% 18.3% 10%
Customer recommendation 88% 87% 88% 86%
Mechnical breakdown Yes Yes No No
Rate for vehicle usage Yes No Yes Yes
Rideshare coverage Yes Yes Yes Yes
Accident forgiveness coverage Yes Yes No Yes
New car replacement No No No Yes
Emergency roadside service Yes Yes Yes Yes
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