Car Insurance Rates by Vehicle

Almost every state in the union requires a vehicle owner to prove financial responsibility in order to register and operate a car legally on its roadways. This almost always means purchasing auto insurance for your vehicle. Car insurance helps cover the costs of injuries and property damage resulting from an accident. There are many different types of coverage you can get for your car, but there are four main types of protection. Liability insurance helps cover the costs of injury and property damage to someone who suffers such losses in an accident that you have caused. There are maximum dollar limits to this coverage which you will find carefully defined in your policy. Liability, like almost all types of car insurance coverage, also requires you to pay a set amount out of your own pocket first before your insurance company starts paying out damage claims. This is known as your deductible.

The second main type of car insurance coverage is called comprehensive insurance. Comprehensive covers your vehicle for damages suffered from things like weather, vandalism, theft and other factors deemed out of your control. Collision insurance is the type of coverage that will pay for damages to your own vehicle in the event of an accident. Finally, personal injury protection insurance helps cover you for any medical bills you or your passengers incur as a result of being in an accident, regardless of fault.

It’s important to keep in mind that the rate you will pay for car insurance are variable. Insurance premiums are influenced by a wide array of factors such as driving record, age and place of residence. Even things like your gender and marital status can influence your premiums. Insurance companies are in the business of measuring risk and pricing it into their policies. Each company may place slightly different weights to various personal factors of drivers and helps explain why there are such differences in prices.

One last factor that will influence your insurance rate is the type of car you own.

Car Insurance for Different Types of Cars

There are a variety of types of automobile available to consumers these days. The old standby car types still exist: the standard sedan and coupe, with four doors and two doors respectively. These days, car owners can also choose from sport utility vehicles, or SUVs, minivans and pickup trucks. In addition, consumers can also look into electric and hybrid vehicles. As we’ve already indicated, the cost of car insurance depends on many factors and the type of vehicle you have have different insurance price points. Generally speaking, a pickup truck may more expensive vehicle to insure. Although the rear bed is is mostly flat steel, with no expensive seating, air conditioning and audio components, pickups are generally much larger than other vehicles and, because of their mass, can cause more damage to other vehicles in the event of an accident. A minivan is generally among next least expensive to insure. Going up the pricing ladder, an SUV is a bit more expensive to insure and then come sedans and coupes. Sports cars are often the most expensive vehicle to insure. These are general rules of thumb and the final rate you pay can also be determined by the trim line of your exact make and model.

Does the Body Type of a Car Affect Insurance?

Often times a car’s body type will influence your insurance premiums. A convertible will give you a very pleasant ride in warm weather, giving you the feel of sun and fresh air as your drive. But the soft top is much more easily damaged by weather, falling tree limbs, stones, and vandalism than a hard top vehicle. You may find that your insurance costs for a convertible are higher than for other type of cars. Sports cars with high powered engines can attain higher speeds than a small four cylinder, 100 horsepower sedan. The ability to go faster may inadvertently enable drivers to break the speed limit more often. Insurance companies see speeding as a contributing factor to increased car accidents and therefore will often charge more for insurance.

• Car insurance rates for coupes
• Car insurance rates for Pickup Truck
• Car insurance rates for SUV
• Car insurance rates for Minivan
• Car insurance rates for Sedan
• Car insurance rates for hybrids and electric cars
• Sports Car Insurance
• Exotic Car Insurance
• Luxury Car Insurance
• Food Truck Insurance

Does Make and Model Affect Insurance Rates?

The make and model of your car will be one of the pricing factors your insurance company will take into account when calculating your annual premiums. Insurance companies crunch reams of data about the details of accidents. Among the things they calculate are the frequency in which different types of cars get into crashes. Luxury cars use expensive materials and high tech components which are expensive to repair or replace in the event of an accident. So, these types of vehicles usually result in higher insurance costs. Almost every car brand will offer at least a couple of different trims lines. The more accessories you put in your vehicle – high priced audio gear, leather seats, advanced electronics, etc. – the higher your premiums are likely to be. Having a comfortable ride is a pleasure. But bear in mind that the more you pay for your vehicle, the more you may also need to pay for your insurance. However, there are wide differences in what the average consumer will pay for the exact same make and model of car, so it really does pay to shop around and get price quotes from different insurance providers.

Choose your vehicle make

Acura

Audi

BMW

Cadillac

Chevrolet

Chrysler

Dodge

Ford

GMC

Honda

Hyundai

Jeep

KIA

LandRover

Lexus

Mazda

Mercedes-Benz

Mitsubishi

Nissan

Subaru

Toyota

Volkswagen

Cheapest Makes and Models to Insure

A general rule of thumb for car insurance prices is that the more expensive your car is, the higher your insurance costs may be. Luxury cars use high quality parts and materials and therefore cost more to replace or repair. Auto insurers usually pass those higher repair costs on to customers in the form of higher premiums. Cars with higher safety ratings will typically be less expensive to insure. Almost and model of car will offer different trim lines, or packages of accessories, for buyers to consider. Higher trim lines can also increase your premiums. Take these factors into consideration when purchasing or leasing your vehicle.

Cheap and Expensive Car Body Types for Insurance

Convertibles and sports cars will typically cost more to ensure than other vehicles. Among other reasons, they tend to more frequent targets of auto theft. Some SUVs will command higher premiums also. As we seen insurance prices will typically increase with the price of your car. It pays to budget carefully before you buy your car. Make sure that you factor in all ongoing costs for your car.

Conclusion

The price of car insurance is determined by many variables. Insurance providers carefully research the frequency of accidents, injuries and thefts associated with different makes and models of cars, and they incorporate their findings into their prices. However, different insurance carriers will weight those factors differently. This means it will really pay to compare prices before you buy insurance. Shop around and get free quotes from three or more vendors and you will inevitably save your self some money. It’s what smart shoppers do. At General.com, we have a free online tool that will make comparison shopping easy. Get no cost, no obligation quotes easily and quickly and you too will pay less for your insurance.