Who Has the Cheapest Auto Insurance Quotes for a School Permit in New Mexico?

Who Has the Cheapest Auto Insurance Quotes for a School Permit in New Mexico?

Since we’re writing about car insurance, the word affordable should not be used as a descriptor for car insurance rates. It’s just a fact that cheap car insurance for a school permit is just plain contradictory. Don’t let that get you down, though, because we will tell you how you can still find auto insurance that is more affordable than your current policy.

One of the key things that play a part in determining the amount you pay for auto insurance is where you normally keep your vehicle in New Mexico. Areas that are densely populated or have higher claim frequency like Albuquerque, South Valley, and Los Lunas tend to have more expensive car insurance rates, whereas areas with less people or fewer weather incidents tend to receive cheaper rates.

The next table displays the most expensive cities in New Mexico for a school permit in which to buy car insurance.

New Mexico cities ranked by car insurance cost
Rank City Annual Rate
1 Albuquerque $1,375
2 Santa Fe $1,342
3 South Valley $1,336
4 Artesia $1,330
5 Los Lunas $1,302
6 Hobbs $1,284
7 North Valley $1,277
8 Espanola $1,260
9 Los Alamos $1,256
10 Rio Rancho $1,256
11 Roswell $1,210
12 Las Vegas $1,195
13 Gallup $1,188
14 Clovis $1,180
15 Carlsbad $1,177
16 Lovington $1,159
17 Portales $1,151
18 Farmington $1,148
19 Deming $1,143
20 Las Cruces $1,142
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Information shown are estimated as vehicle location can alter coverage prices considerably.

Finding good, affordable auto insurance is tough enough, and determining which companies offer the cheapest auto insurance rates for a school permit will take more quotes for comparison. Policy rates will probably be quite a bit more expensive than the average price in New Mexico, with the extra cost attributed to the potential for more claims that comes with selling insurance for a learners permit, but competitively-priced coverage may be possible if you are thorough. Every auto insurer uses their own method for determining prices, so let’s take a look at the auto insurance companies with the overall cheapest rates in New Mexico.

Best Car Insurance Prices for Students

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Cheapest New Mexico auto insurance companies
Rank Company Cost Per Year
1 USAA $657
2 Allied $920
3 Safeco $1,004
4 Farm Bureau Mutual $1,178
5 Farmers $1,315
6 The Hartford $1,326
7 State Farm $1,349
8 Central Mutual $1,368
9 Travelers $1,537
10 Progressive $1,550
11 California Casualty $1,575
12 MetLife $1,578
13 GEICO $1,624
14 Encompass $1,694
15 Allstate $2,337
16 Liberty Mutual $2,529
17 Sentry $3,082
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USAA has some of the lowest car insurance rates in New Mexico at around $657 a year. Allied, Safeco, Farm Bureau Mutual, and Farmers would also be considered some of the cheapest New Mexico insurance companies.

In the above rates, if you are currently insured with Farmers and switched to Allied, you may realize an annual premium reduction of roughly $395. Policyholders with The Hartford may save as much as $406 a year, and State Farm policyholders might lower prices by $429 a year.

Understand that those estimates are averages across all insureds and vehicles and and are not figured with a rate increase for a school permit. So the auto insurance company that is best suited for you may not even be shown in the rate chart shown above. That underscores the importance of why you need to get auto insurance quotes using your own specific driver and vehicle information.

The vehicle model that is being insured is a significant factor when shopping around for the cheapest auto insurance for a school permit in New Mexico. Vehicles with higher performance characteristics, poor safety features, or an increased likelihood of liability claims will cost more to insure than more modest models. The list below estimates auto insurance costs for a selection of the most budget-friendly vehicles to buy coverage for.

Cheapest Auto Insurance Rates for a School Permit in New Mexico
Make, Model, and Trim Level Estimated Cost for Full Coverage
Honda Accord EX 4-Dr Sedan $2,664
Honda CR-V EX 2WD $2,669
Ford Escape XLT 4WD $2,691
Chevrolet Traverse LS AWD $2,717
Toyota Prius $2,884
Jeep Wrangler Sport Islander Package 4WD 2-Dr $2,967
Dodge Grand Caravan CV $2,994
Kia Forte LX 4-Dr Sedan $3,001
Ford F-150 STX Regular Cab 4WD $2,994
Subaru Forester XT AWD $3,079
Hyundai Santa Fe GLS 2WD $3,135
Ford Edge SE AWD $3,140
Ford Fusion S 4-Dr Sedan $3,162
Hyundai Tucson Limited 2WD $3,167
Nissan Altima 2.5 4-Dr Sedan $3,162
Toyota RAV4 Sport 4WD $3,167
Ford Explorer Limited 2WD $3,187
Subaru Outback 2.5I Premium $3,197
Chevrolet Malibu LT $3,187
Honda Civic EX 4-Dr Sedan $3,303
Hyundai Elantra Blue 4-Dr Sedan $3,312
Toyota Tacoma X-Runner 2WD $3,330
Chevrolet Impala LTZ $3,336
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Data assumes single female driver age 17, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and New Mexico minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Rate information does not factor in specific zip code location which can revise coverage prices greatly.

Based upon the table data, you can expect vehicles like the Honda Accord, Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, and Chevrolet Traverse are likely to be a few of the cheapest vehicles to insure for a learners permit. Prices will be higher anyway because of the fact that there is more inherent risk for a school permit, but generally speaking those makes and models will have the cheapest car insurance rates compared to other types of vehicles.

Tickets and at-fault accidents raise rates

In a perfect world, the ideal way to maintain the cheapest auto insurance for a school permit in New Mexico is to be a safe driver and not have accidents or get tickets. The example below shows how speeding tickets and fender-benders can influence yearly insurance costs for each different age category. The premiums are based on a single male driver, full physical damage coverage, $1,000 deductibles, and no other 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’, 2297,2471,4105],[‘Age 30’, 1215,1391,3025],[‘Age 40’, 1183,1355,2991],[‘Age 50’, 1083,1255,2891],[‘Age 60’, 1051,1227,2859],[‘Age 70’, 1305,1479,3115]]);var options = {title: ‘Effect of Tickets and Accidents on New Mexico 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 New Mexico’,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);}

In the chart above, the average cost of car insurance in New Mexico per year with no accidents or violations is $1,356. Add in one speeding ticket and the average cost hikes up to $1,530, an increase of $174 each year. Now get two accidents along with the one speeding ticket and the annual cost of auto insurance for a school permit increases to an average of $3,164. That’s an increase of $1,809, or $151 per month, just for being a little careless behind the wheel!

How to get discounts on New Mexico auto insurance rates

<img class="shadow floatright" src="http://www.quoteclickinsure.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/best-car-insurance-school-permit-nm.jpg" alt="Cheaper New Mexico auto insurance for a learners permit” />Insurance companies that offer the cheapest auto insurance for a school permit in New Mexico may provide premium discounts that could potentially reduce rates by as much as 30% if you are eligible. Larger auto insurance companies and some of their more popular discounts can be found below.

  • Farmers Insurance offers discounts including bundle discounts, mature driver, early shopping, alternative fuel, and electronic funds transfer.
  • State Farm may include discounts for student away at school, passive restraint, safe vehicle, Steer Clear safe driver discount, good student, multiple autos, and anti-theft.
  • Liberty Mutual may offer discounts for hybrid vehicle, newly retired, safety features, exclusive group savings, multi-car, and new graduate.
  • MetLife may have discounts that include defensive driver, good student, multi-policy, good driver, claim-free, accident-free
  • Progressive offers discounts for online signing, online quote discount, continuous coverage, multi-vehicle, and multi-policy.

The chart below shows the difference between car insurance rates with and without discounts applied to the policy premium. The price estimates are based on a male driver, no accidents or driving violations, New Mexico state minimum liability limits, comp and collision included, and $500 deductibles.

The first bar for each age group shows the average rate with no discounts. The second shows the rates with good student, paid-in-full, vehicle safety, continuous coverage, paperless filing, and anti-theft discounts applied. With discounts applied, the the amount saved on auto insurance for a school permit is 28% or $729.

google.charts.setOnLoadCallback(drawDiscqcibChart);function drawDiscqcibChart() {var data = google.visualization.arrayToDataTable([[‘Age of Insured’, ‘Male Driver No Discounts’, ‘Male Driver with Discounts’],[‘Age 17’, 5321,3803],[‘Age 30’, 1797,1299],[‘Age 40’, 1771,1279],[‘Age 50’, 1617,1169],[‘Age 60’, 1569,1131]]);var options = {title: ‘Effect of Discounts on Insurance Rates for a School Permit’,titleTextStyle: {color: ‘#333’,fontSize: 17,bold: true},width: ‘100%’,height: 500,’chartArea’:{left:100,top:50,’width’: ‘100%’, ‘height’: ‘70%’},legend: {position: ‘bottom’},colors: [‘#6791b9’, ‘#98bee2’],hAxis: {title: ‘Annual Auto Insurance Cost for Average Vehicle in New Mexico’,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);var chart = new google.visualization.BarChart(document.getElementById(‘qcibdisc’));chart.draw(data, options);}

Cheapest insurance quotes for a learners permit

Drivers have many ways to purchase auto insurance in New Mexico, but the most prevalent are through an independent agent, an exlusive agent like State Farm or Liberty Mutual, or buying direct from a company like Progressive or Geico.

All three ways can provide auto insurance quotes, but each is slightly different in how they work.

Independent agents can place your business with multiple companies and can compare coverage rates with all of them. They possess the freedom to give you a larger rate selection, which can give you better odds of saving money. If your premiums go up, it’s easy for the agent to move the policy without having to get a different agent.

An exlusive, or captive, agency is ‘exlusive’ to one insurance company, for example Allstate or Farmers Insurance agents. Exclusive agents cannot quote prices from more than a single company, so you might not find the best rates.

The third popular method of shopping for auto insurance is direct, which means you bypass local insurance agents and instead shop from a direct company like Esurance or Geico. Shopping for auto insurance direct is good for drivers who do not need high amounts of coverage and know more than average about how auto insurance works and possible exclusions.

What is the best way for finding the cheapest auto insurance for a school permit in New Mexico? We’d like to tell you buying from a direct company yields the cheapest rates since no commissions are paid to an agent, but that generally is not the case. A valid argument could also be made that buying auto insurance from an independent agent saves the most money because they can shop around, but that assumption is also not accurate. For the right applicant, exclusive agencies have really good rates well below independent agents AND direct companies.

Because there are so many factors that make up auto insurance rates, really the only way to get the cheapest rates is to do a thorough rate comparison. To cover all the bases, get price quotes all three ways in order to find the best price. For a list of companies with some of the cheapest New Mexico auto insurance rates, click here to view.

How to find cheaper insurance for a school permit

Lowering your rates is not difficult, and here are some of the recommended penny-pinching ideas that can help drivers locate low-cost coverage.

  • Remain accident-free and save
  • Higher deductibles save money
  • Safer vehicles cost less to insure
  • Clean up your credit
  • You will pay more if you get tickets or have at-fault accidents
  • Compare prices frequently to find the best deal

The last idea is particularly important, as we noted in the article above. Prices can change in a short period of time, so drivers shouldn’t hesitate to change insurance companies if you find a better deal.

Many drivers prefer to stick with one company, but it isn’t a good idea if that dedication is costing hundreds of dollars year after year. Spend a few minutes and compare rates and find cheaper insurance for a school permit.