You have probably seen the catchy advertisements from companies like GEICO and The General that promise the cheapest price, so drivers just need to pick the company with the cutest commercial, right?
It’s not that simple, unfortunately, as there are a ton of unknowns like where your residence is in South Dakota, your credit rating, and the number of years you have been licensed, that all impact the price you pay. The content below covers the best ways to save on auto insurance and should give you a jump start in finding the best auto insurance.
One of the more important considerations that is used by car insurance companies to determine the amount you pay each year for auto insurance is where you choose to live in South Dakota. Cities with larger populations like Pine Ridge, Belle Fourche, and Lead tend to have more expensive auto insurance rates, whereas areas with less congestion tend to receive slightly lower rates.
The illustration below lists the more expensive cities in South Dakota for 18 year olds to purchase car insurance in.
Rank | City | Annual Rate |
---|---|---|
1 | Pine Ridge | $1,373 |
2 | Hot Springs | $1,266 |
3 | Belle Fourche | $1,263 |
4 | Spearfish | $1,263 |
5 | Lead | $1,247 |
6 | Mobridge | $1,227 |
7 | Sturgis | $1,201 |
8 | Rapid Valley | $1,199 |
9 | Rapid City | $1,181 |
10 | Box Elder | $1,169 |
11 | Pierre | $1,111 |
12 | Milbank | $1,097 |
13 | Yankton | $1,076 |
14 | Huron | $1,062 |
15 | Dell Rapids | $1,053 |
16 | Vermillion | $1,051 |
17 | Mitchell | $1,037 |
18 | Harrisburg | $1,033 |
19 | Aberdeen | $1,022 |
20 | Sioux Falls | $1,015 |
21 | Tea | $1,013 |
22 | Watertown | $1,005 |
23 | Brandon | $1,004 |
24 | Madison | $1,003 |
25 | Brookings | $1,001 |
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Premium amounts are estimated as specific South Dakota zip code can raise or lower premium rates significantly.
The type of vehicle you are insuring is a large consideration when comparing quotes for cheap insurance for 18 year olds in South Dakota. Vehicles with limited speed and performance, modern passenger safety features, or a positive history of liability claims will cost quite a bit less to insure than higher performance models.
The table below outlines coverage costs for a number of the most budget-friendly vehicles to insure.
Make and Model | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
---|---|
Chevrolet Silverado LS Regular Cab 4WD | $665 |
Chevrolet Traverse LTZ 2WD | $667 |
Ford Explorer XLT 2WD | $679 |
Ford Escape XLT 2WD | $693 |
Ford Focus SE 4-Dr Sedan | $702 |
Volkswagen Jetta SE 2.5 Station Wagon | $704 |
Toyota RAV4 2WD | $716 |
Chevrolet Equinox LT 2WD | $725 |
Subaru Outback 2.5I Premium | $729 |
Honda CR-V EX 2WD | $741 |
Honda Civic Hybrid 4-Dr Sedan | $766 |
Ford Fusion Sport 4-Dr Sedan | $775 |
Toyota Sienna Limited | $766 |
Kia Optima LX | $774 |
Nissan Rogue S AWD | $766 |
Toyota Camry Hybrid | $815 |
Chevrolet Impala LT | $818 |
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Data rating is based on single female driver age 40, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and South Dakota minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, claim-free, safe-driver, homeowner, and multi-policy. Rate information does not factor in specific South Dakota garaging location which can impact auto insurance rates greatly.
Based upon these rates, models like the Chevrolet Silverado, Chevrolet Traverse, and Ford Explorer will definitely be a few of the more affordable vehicles to insure for teen drivers.
Insurance companies that sell cheap insurance for 18 year olds in South Dakota may additionally offer premium discounts that could potentially reduce rates by as much as 35% if you are eligible to receive them. Larger auto insurance companies and their offered discounts are shown below.
Discount | Progressive | Allstate | State Farm | Geico | Nationwide | Liberty Mutual |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Multi-policy | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Multi-vehicle | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Theft prevention | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Anti-lock brakes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
Air bags | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
New car | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
Accident-free | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Defensive driver | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Armed forces | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Affinity/occupation | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Paid in full | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Paperless billing | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Customer loyalty | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No |
Sign early | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | No |
Smart student | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Student at college | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
Homeowner | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
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The information below visualizes the comparison of yearly insurance costs with and without discounts applied. The rates are based on a female driver, no violations or accidents, South Dakota state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $100 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows insurance cost with no discounts. The second bar shows the rates with anti-theft, homeowner, claim-free, marriage, multiple policy, and defensive driving course discounts applied. In this example, the the amount saved on auto insurance for 18 year olds is 38% or $674.
If you are looking for the best auto insurance for teen drivers in South Dakota, the companies that insure more vehicles than anyone else are Allstate, Geico, State Farm, and Progressive. They all have the same basic coverages, but each one has a unique set of features, discounts, and options that policyholders can choose from. The data below compares some of the different features shoppers can find with each company.
Allstate | Geico | State Farm | Progressive | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Client Satisfaction | 2nd | 1st | 4th | 3rd |
Claims Handling | 1st | 3rd | 2nd | 4th |
Discounts Offered | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th |
Overall Cost | 4th | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
Customer recommendation | 86% | 87% | 88% | 88% |
A.M. Best rating | A+ | A++ | A++ | A+ |
Emergency roadside service | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Mechnical breakdown | No | Yes | No | Yes |
Rideshare insurance | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Usage-based rating | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
New car replacement | Yes | No | No | No |
Accident forgiveness coverage | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
Insurance Agents | Allstate exclusive agents | Both online and from Geico agents | Can only buy from State Farm agents | Indpendent agents or online |
Number of agents | 11,000+ | 150+ | 18,000+ | 30,000+ |
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Here are a few money-saving ideas that can help South Dakota drivers buy the cheapest coverage.
The last idea is remarkably crucial, as we stressed in this piece. Insurance prices can be adjusted at any time, so you should be ready to buy from a new company if you can save money.
Many drivers tend to have loyalty to a certain company, but it isn’t a good idea if that faithfulness ends up costing you lots of hard earned cash every month. Take a couple minutes and compare prices to find cheaper car insurance for 18 year olds.
You have a lot of ways to purchase auto insurance in South Dakota, but the most common are through a non-exclusive or independent agent, a captive (or exclusive) agency such as Allstate or Liberty Mutual, or direct online or over the phone from a company like Geico or Progressive.
You can use whichever you prefer, but shoppers should understand the differences in how they provide rate quotes.
Independent agencies have contracts with multiple insurance companies and can provide price quotes from all of them. These types of agencies are usually affiliated with several companies and can give you a larger rate selection, which may provide you with improved chances of finding a lower rate. If you are not satisfied with one company, your policy can be easily switched to a new company which is easy for the insured.
A captive, or exclusive, agent is only able to write business for a single insurance company such as State Farm and Auto-Owners agents. Exclusive agents are unable to compare other company’s rates, so if finding the cheapest coverage is your goal, you will need to shop around.
Consumers who buy auto insurance direct skip local agents and instead buy direct from companies such as Esurance or Geico. Buying direct can be good for people who do not have a complex risk profile and understand what specific coverages they need.
Which way is best to buy cheap insurance for 18 year olds in South Dakota? We would first guess that shopping direct results in the best prices since that prevents the need to pay agent commissions, but unfortunately, it’s not that cut and dried. We could also assume that buying auto insurance from an independent agent saves the most money because they can quote many companies, but again, that’s not a true statement. And occasionally, the exclusive agents may have very competitive prices that independents and direct companies can’t touch.
Due to the large number of rating factors, the only true way to not overpay for auto insurance is to get as many comparison quotes as possible. It’s a good idea to get quotes from all three to give yourself plenty of rates to compare. A great place to start is our list of online companies offering discounts: click here to view.