How Much is Car Insurance for 16 Year Olds in Buffalo?

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.

Cheapest Vehicles to Insure in Buffalo, NY
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
Start Your Quote Go

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

Click to Compare Rates Now

New York auto insurance company rankings
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
Find Your Rate Go

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.

How much does car insurance cost in Buffalo, NY?
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
Compare Rates Now Go

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.

Buffalo, NY Auto Insurance Company Rankings
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
Compare Rates Now Go

Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies