Who Has Cheap Car Insurance Quotes for Good Students in California?

Who Has Cheap Car Insurance Quotes for Good Students in California?

For student drivers, one of the big things that control car insurance rates is where you keep your car in California. Areas that are densely populated or have higher claim frequency like Glendale, San Francisco, and Sacramento tend to pay more, whereas areas with fewer weather claims and lower vehicle theft rates can boast about having cheaper rates.

The information below lists the priciest cities in California for good students in which to purchase auto insurance.

Where does California rank for car insurance cost?
Rank City Average Per Year
1 Glendale $2,121
2 Los Angeles $2,083
3 San Francisco $1,745
4 Oakland $1,738
5 Sacramento $1,720
6 Long Beach $1,610
7 Stockton $1,603
8 Santa Clarita $1,595
9 San Bernardino $1,580
10 Garden Grove $1,570
11 Riverside $1,542
12 Moreno Valley $1,536
13 Fontana $1,535
14 Modesto $1,502
15 Anaheim $1,474
16 Fresno $1,457
17 Santa Ana $1,439
18 San Jose $1,395
19 Fremont $1,389
20 Irvine $1,384
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Rate quotes are comparative as the specific area where the vehicle is garaged can change coverage prices noticeably.

Establishing which company quotes the cheapest insurance rates for good students will involve a bit more work in order to find a policy that fits your budget.

Every insurance company uses a little different formula to determine premium rates, so we’ll go over the insurance companies that tend to have lower prices in California.

Find the Cheapest Car Insurance for Students

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Who has the cheapest car insurance in California?
Rank Company Cost Per Year
1 USAA $1,155
2 Wawanesa $1,157
3 Century National $1,178
4 CSAA $1,222
5 Nationwide $1,263
6 21st Century $1,366
7 Grange $1,477
8 Allstate $1,497
9 Progressive $1,512
10 GEICO $1,529
11 Allied $1,541
12 Mercury $1,548
13 The Hartford $1,575
14 MetLife $1,654
15 State Farm $1,682
16 Esurance $1,688
17 Unitrin $1,699
18 Bristol West $1,795
19 Travelers $1,860
20 Farmers $2,006
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USAA offers some of the lowest car insurance rates in California at around $1,155 annually. Wawanesa, Century National, CSAA, and Nationwide would also make the list of some of the lowest-priced California insurance companies.

In the rate table above, if you currently buy coverage from Century National and switched to USAA, you might achieve an annual premium reduction of in the neighborhood of $23. Drivers with CSAA might save as much as $67 a year, and Nationwide customers might see rate reductions of $108 a year.

Understand that those premiums are averages for all drivers and vehicles in California and and are not calculated with a rate discount for good students. So the company that is best for you may not even be in the above list. That illustrates why you need to get rate quotes using your own personalized driver profile and vehicle information.

The make and model of vehicle driven is probably the biggest factor when comparison shopping for cheap car insurance for good students in California. Vehicles with lots of horsepower, a lack of safety features, or a history of substantial liability claims will cost significantly more to insure than safer models. The list below showcases insurance costs for a number of the most budget-friendly automobiles to insure in California.

Cheapest Auto Insurance Rates for Good Students in California
Make and Model Estimated Cost for Full Coverage
Ford Escape XLS 2WD $5,552
Honda CR-V LX 4WD $5,557
Chevrolet Traverse LS 2WD $5,611
Toyota Prius $6,031
Hyundai Tucson GLS 2WD $6,168
Subaru Forester XT AWD $6,451
Ford Focus S 4-Dr Sedan $6,531
Toyota Tacoma 2WD $6,539
Toyota Sienna LE $6,589
Chevrolet Equinox LS AWD $6,597
Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 4WD $6,589
GMC Sierra SLE Regular Cab 2WD $6,598
Volkswagen Jetta LE 4-Dr Sedan $6,589
Toyota RAV4 2WD $6,598
Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer AWD $6,647
Dodge Grand Caravan Crew $6,652
Chevrolet Malibu LT $6,647
Honda Civic EX 4-Dr Sedan $6,893
Hyundai Elantra Blue 4-Dr Sedan $6,902
Toyota Camry XLE $6,951
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Prices above based on single male driver age 17, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Information does not factor in specific California garaging location which can alter coverage prices substantially.

Looking at the numbers, you can presume that vehicles like the Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, Chevrolet Traverse, Toyota Prius, and Hyundai Tucson are most likely to be a few of the cheapest vehicles to insure for student drivers.

Price comparison of only insuring for liability

Finding cheap car insurance for good students in California should be important to most vehicle owners, and one good way to buy cheap insurance is to only pay for liability coverage. The example below illustrates the comparison of insurance premiums with full physical damage coverage compared to only buying liability only. The rate quotes are based on no claims or driving citations, $250 deductibles, single status, and no discounts are taken into consideration.

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If averaged for all ages, comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy costs an additional $2,314 per year over and above liability only. At some point, every insured wonders if you should buy full coverage at all. There is no clear-cut formula for excluding full coverage, but there is a general school of thought. If the annual cost of comprehensive and collision coverage is 10% or more of replacement cost minus your deductible, then you might want to consider buying only liability coverage.

Who has the cheapest insurance quotes for student drivers?

There are many different ways to buy insurance in California, but the most common ways are using an exclusive agency such as State Farm or Allstate, an independent agent, or from a direct company like Progressive or Geico. They all have the same end result, but each is slightly different in how they work.

Independent insurance agents can place your business with multiple companies and can compare coverage rates with each one. These agents do not sell for just one brand and can give you more rate choices, which can give you improved odds of finding cheaper coverage. If your agent finds a cheaper company, they simply move your policy to a different company without you having to go to a different agency.

An exclusive ageny is limited to a single insurance company, two examples being an Allstate or State Farm agent. Exclusive agents cannot give you multiple price quotes, so drivers will want to get other quotes as well.

The third popular method of shopping for insurance is direct, which means you do not use an agent and instead buy from a direct company like Esurance or Progressive. This insurance option is a good choice for people who do not need advice for risk management and know more than average about what coverages, limits, and deductibles they need.

When shopping for insurance, which way works best to find cheap car insurance for good students in California? We would first guess that shopping direct results in the best prices because there is no agent taking a commission, but in reality, that argument does not hold true. A good argument could also be made that using an independent agent results in the best rates because you have more choices, but that is not accurate either. And often times, exclusive agencies have very competitive rates that independents and direct companies can’t touch.

Due to the fact that insurance rates vary so much, the best way to buy the cheapest coverage is to do a thorough rate comparison. Take some time and get rate quotes from all three to have the best selection of rates to choose from. For a list of companies offering online discounts in California, click here to view.