You have probably seen the captivating commercials from car insurance companies like Progressive and Farmers that say if you switch you’ll get big savings, so drivers just need to pick the one with the catchiest commercial, right?
It’s just not that simple, as there are a whole slew of unknown elements like if you are a homeowner, whether you are female or male, if you just need liability coverage, and how safe your vehicle is. This article covers some of these criteria and should give you a good start to your coverage search.
The car, truck, or SUV driven is a large factor that determines the availability of the most affordable coverage for 16 year olds. Vehicles with lower acceleration and performance, advanced safety features, or a low likelihood of having liability claims will cost much less to insure than higher performance models. The next list shows auto insurance prices for a selection of the cheapest vehicles to buy insurance for.
Make, Model, and Trim Level | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
---|---|
Honda CR-V EX 4WD | $8,606 |
Ford Escape Limited 4WD | $9,125 |
Toyota Prius | $9,205 |
Chevrolet Impala LS | $10,043 |
Honda Odyssey EX W/Rear Entertainment | $10,052 |
Ford Edge SEL 2WD | $10,043 |
Ford Focus SE 4-Dr Sedan | $10,050 |
Toyota RAV4 Limited 2WD | $10,119 |
Chevrolet Malibu LS | $10,126 |
Ford Fusion S 4-Dr Sedan | $10,119 |
Dodge Grand Caravan Hero | $10,125 |
Toyota Tacoma Double Cab TRD Off-Road Package 4WD | $10,199 |
Ford F-150 XLT Crew Cab 4WD | $10,208 |
Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer AWD | $10,199 |
Hyundai Elantra Blue 4-Dr Sedan | $10,561 |
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Prices above based on single female driver age 16, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and New York minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include claim-free, and safe-driver. Table data does not factor in specific zip code location which can alter rates greatly.
By looking at the data, we can assume that makes and models like the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Toyota Prius, and Chevrolet Impala are most likely going to be some of the more affordable vehicles to insure for new drivers. The price for an auto insurance policy will trend higher just because there is more liability risk for 16 year olds, but in general those specific models will have the lowest insurance rates that you’ll find.
Figuring out which companies have the cheapest auto insurance rates for 16 year olds may require more time in order to find coverage that fits your budget. Each insurer has a different formula for establishing rates, so let’s examine the most affordable auto insurance companies in New York.
It’s important to understand that Buffalo, NY auto insurance rates are impacted by many factors which can substantially change the price of coverage. Simply turning a year older, marrying your spouse, or getting caught speeding can trigger changes in premium that can make some companies cheaper than others.
Best Cheap Insurance Rates for Teens
Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
---|---|---|
1 | USAA | $1,163 |
2 | Erie | $1,242 |
3 | Utica National | $1,489 |
4 | Progressive | $1,542 |
5 | Travelers | $1,559 |
6 | MetLife | $1,572 |
7 | Amica | $1,596 |
8 | Allstate | $1,603 |
9 | Preferred Mutual | $1,703 |
10 | New York Central Mutual | $1,818 |
11 | GEICO | $1,869 |
12 | State Farm | $1,924 |
13 | Safeco | $1,946 |
14 | Central Mutual | $1,948 |
15 | Liberty Mutual | $2,087 |
16 | Hanover | $2,299 |
17 | Encompass | $2,689 |
18 | Nationwide | $3,147 |
19 | Mercury | $3,965 |
20 | 21st Century | $4,412 |
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USAA has some of the cheapest car insurance rates in Buffalo at around $1,163 per year. Erie, Utica National, Progressive, and Travelers would also make the list of some of the best Buffalo, NY auto insurance companies.
In the above example, if you are a policyholder with Progressive and switched to Erie, you might realize an annual premium reduction of around $300. Drivers with Travelers could save as much as $317 a year, and MetLife customers might cut rates by $330 a year.
To see if your current coverage is too expensive, click here or visit any of the low-priced companies below.
Understand that those premium estimates are averages across all ages of drivers and types of vehicles and and are not calculated with an exact zip code location for 16 year olds. So the auto insurance company that is best suited for you may not even be in the top 20 companies shown above. That underscores the importance of why you need to get rate quotes using your own specific driver and vehicle information.
For new drivers, one of the largest factors that are looked at to determine car insurance rates is where you call home in Buffalo. Regions with more people or even just more weather-related claims tend to have higher rates, whereas more rural areas have the luxury of cheap car insurance rates.
The illustration below rates the priciest cities in New York for 16 year olds in which to purchase auto insurance. Buffalo makes the list at #13 having an annual price of $1,503 on average, which is approximately $125 per month.
Rank | City | Average Per Year |
---|---|---|
1 | New York | $2,708 |
2 | Hempstead | $2,301 |
3 | Freeport | $2,235 |
4 | Levittown | $1,981 |
5 | Mount Vernon | $1,938 |
6 | West Babylon | $1,913 |
7 | Yonkers | $1,900 |
8 | Brentwood | $1,872 |
9 | Hicksville | $1,843 |
10 | Coram | $1,766 |
11 | White Plains | $1,678 |
12 | New Rochelle | $1,627 |
13 | Buffalo | $1,503 |
14 | West Seneca | $1,237 |
15 | Cheektowaga | $1,216 |
16 | Niagara Falls | $1,201 |
17 | Tonawanda | $1,201 |
18 | Syracuse | $1,130 |
19 | Utica | $1,092 |
20 | Troy | $1,063 |
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Rate quotes are comparative as the specific garaging location can lower or raise premiums substantially.
Cost of full coverage
Reducing the cost of auto insurance is the goal of the majority of drivers, and one common way to save on the cost of insurance for 16 year olds is to not buy full coverage. The information below illustrates the comparison of insurance costs with full coverage compared to only the New York minimum liability coverage. The premium estimates are based on no violations or accidents, $500 deductibles, single status, and no policy discounts are applied.
If averaged for all ages, physical damage coverage costs an extra $1,253 per year more than just insuring for liability. That is a significant amount which raises the question if physical damage coverage is worth the money. There isn’t a steadfast formula for eliminating physical damage coverage, but there is a general guideline you can use. If the annual cost of comprehensive and collision coverage is 10% or more of replacement cost minus your deductible, then you may want to consider only buying liability coverage.
There are a few cases where buying only liability insurance is not in your best interest. If you still owe money on your vehicle, you are required to maintain full coverage to protect the lienholder’s interest in the vehicle. Also, if you don’t have enough money to buy a different vehicle if your current one is in an accident, you should maintain full coverage.
Safe drivers pay less for auto insurance
The ideal way to score cheap auto insurance rates in New York for new drivers is to be a safe driver and not get tickets or have accidents. The information below highlights how traffic violations and fender-benders can raise insurance premiums for different age groups of insureds. The price estimates are based on a married female driver, full coverage, $100 deductibles, and no other discounts are factored in.
The data charted above shows the average cost of auto insurance in New York per year with no violations or accidents is $1,178. Get written up for one speeding ticket and the average cost hikes up to $1,367, an increase of $189 each year. Now add in one accident along with the one speeding ticket and the annual cost of auto insurance for 16 year olds goes up to an average of $1,907. That’s an increase of $729, or $61 per month, just for a couple of infractions!
Picking the top auto insurance company is hard considering how many companies there are in Buffalo. The information below can help you analyze which car insurance companies you want to consider comparing rate quotes with.
These ratings are only made up of companies that insure vehicles across America, so companies without a large exposure are not taken into consideration for these rankings. If you’d like to compare prices from these top insurers and more, simply click here.
Company | Value | Customer Service | Claims | Customer Satisfaction | A.M Best Rating | Overall Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The General | 96 | 100 | 92 | 91% | A- | 95 |
Mercury Insurance | 87 | 96 | 100 | 87% | A+ | 93.4 |
The Hartford | 88 | 96 | 91 | 93% | A+ | 92.6 |
Progressive | 84 | 94 | 99 | 90% | A+ | 92.4 |
Travelers | 84 | 93 | 100 | 87% | A++ | 92.3 |
State Farm | 84 | 93 | 95 | 87% | A++ | 91 |
Farmers Insurance | 87 | 92 | 90 | 85% | A | 90.6 |
Erie Insurance | 92 | 90 | 82 | 88% | A+ | 88.5 |
Safeco Insurance | 85 | 91 | 87 | 86% | A | 88.4 |
USAA | 71 | 93 | 98 | 87% | A++ | 88 |
GEICO | 73 | 93 | 95 | 85% | A++ | 87.1 |
21st Century | 85 | 85 | 91 | 89% | A | 86.9 |
Liberty Mutual | 72 | 91 | 97 | 83% | A | 86.4 |
AAA Insurance | 85 | 85 | 88 | 86% | A | 85.8 |
Nationwide | 71 | 90 | 93 | 83% | A+ | 84.9 |
Allstate | 69 | 92 | 92 | 83% | A+ | 84.4 |
American Family | 77 | 96 | 80 | 85% | A | 83.8 |
Esurance | 70 | 80 | 89 | 77% | A+ | 79.2 |
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Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies