Smart Auto Insurance Blog

California auto insurance has had its ups and downs with auto insurance rates, and for 2011, California ranks 29th in auto insurance affordability according to the article from Mark Glover of The Sacramento Bee.  This was based on a new report released by InsWeb Corp.  This is actually an improvement from their ranking last year which was 34 in the Car Insurance Affordability Index survey.

In order to rank the states in their affordability, InsWeb looked closely at all 50 states and Washington DC.  InsWeb compared household incomes with the average auto insuance costs throughout the state to determine affordability.  For the 2nd year in a row, Massachusetts came in first place with a factor of 2.09%.  Louisiana came in last place with a factor of 6.76%.  California had a factor of 3.34% which was pretty close to average.

Being in one of the more expensive states for auto insurance makes it even more important to compare auto insurance online, or through an agent.  Rates can vary significantly from insurance company to insurance company.  They will look at many factors including location, driving record, and car make.  If you think you are paying too much for auto insurance shop around to make some comparisons.

In many states teenagers can receive their drivers license at age 16 once they have passed a written test as well as a driving test.  At this point you will need to look into auto insurance for your new driver.  Many auto insurers such as Progressive and Acceptance Insurance offer policies to these young drivers, but rates may be higher and if you add the driver onto your existing policy you can expect to see your premium increase, in some cases relatively drastically.

You can see your auto insurance rates come down over the years with your teen on your policy by encouraging good grades which can earn discounts and demanding safe driving habits.  The Department of Motor Vehicles in various states offer teen driving education from everything like passing the written test to the importance of never drinking and driving.  There are online tools for your Internet savvy teen to browse articles and online quizzes to help educate your child on safety guidelines on the road.

Many auto insurance companies also offer online programs for teens.  USAA Auto Insurance explains to your student how to buy a car as well as how to handle distractions while driving.  State Farm has launched a unique campaign called “Not Now, I’m Driving” (NNID) which has teen-friendly YouTube videos and messages from famous actors sending the message about the importance of never texting while driving.  Allstate and Geico also have programs geared towards making your teen a safer driver which will hopefully save lives and as a nice perk, hopefully facilitate lower auto insurance rates for you over time.