You have surely seen all the catchy commercials from auto insurance companies like Progressive and GEICO that make claims of dirt cheap rates. So you just need to choose any of them, right?
It’s not that simple, unfortunately, as there are a whole slew of unknown factors like if you are currently insured, the number of miles you drive in a year, and citations or tickets. In this article, we will cover the best ways to compare rates and also should give you a solid foundation to find cheaper car insurance in Riverside.
Establishing which insurers offer the cheapest car insurance rates for young drivers will take a little more sweat than just getting one or two price quotes. Each insurance company used slightly different criteria for determining prices, so we’ll go over the car insurance companies with the overall cheapest rates in Riverside, CA.
We do need to point out that Riverside, CA car insurance rates are impacted by many factors that control the price you have to pay. Simply having a birthday, marrying your spouse, or getting a reckless driving citation can produce rate changes that may make certain companies more affordable than before.
Find Cheaper Auto Insurance for Teens
Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
---|---|---|
1 | USAA | $1,155 |
2 | Century National | $1,178 |
3 | Wawanesa | $1,181 |
4 | CSAA | $1,198 |
5 | Nationwide | $1,263 |
6 | 21st Century | $1,379 |
7 | Grange | $1,477 |
8 | Mercury | $1,503 |
9 | Allstate | $1,543 |
10 | Progressive | $1,558 |
11 | GEICO | $1,559 |
12 | Allied | $1,588 |
13 | The Hartford | $1,591 |
14 | MetLife | $1,638 |
15 | State Farm | $1,682 |
16 | Esurance | $1,705 |
17 | Unitrin | $1,733 |
18 | Bristol West | $1,831 |
19 | Travelers | $1,860 |
20 | Farmers | $1,966 |
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USAA has some of the cheapest car insurance rates in Riverside at around $1,155 each year. Century National, Wawanesa, CSAA, and Nationwide would also be considered some of the cheaper Riverside, CA car insurance companies.
As the example above demonstrates, if you currently buy coverage from Wawanesa and switched to USAA, you could realize savings of approximately $26. California drivers with CSAA could save as much as $43 a year, and Nationwide insureds might realize rate reductions of up to $108 a year.
Bear in mind that those rates are averages across all drivers and vehicles in California and are not factoring in an exact vehicle garaging location for young drivers. So the auto insurance company that can offer you the lowest price may not even be in the top 24 companies shown above. That illustrates why you need to compare prices as often as possible using your own individual information.
For youthful drivers, one of the largest considerations that help determine the cost of insurance is where your car is garaged in Riverside. Areas with more people or higher crime rates tend to pay more, whereas less populated areas benefit from having to pay less for coverage.
The information below shows the highest-priced places in California for young drivers to purchase a policy in. Riverside comes in at #15 with a yearly premium of $1,497 for car insurance, which is around $125 monthly.
Rank | City | Premium Per Year |
---|---|---|
1 | Los Angeles | $2,083 |
2 | Glendale | $2,079 |
3 | Oakland | $1,738 |
4 | Sacramento | $1,720 |
5 | San Francisco | $1,693 |
6 | San Bernardino | $1,628 |
7 | Long Beach | $1,562 |
8 | Santa Clarita | $1,548 |
9 | Modesto | $1,547 |
10 | Stockton | $1,541 |
11 | Moreno Valley | $1,536 |
12 | Fontana | $1,535 |
13 | Garden Grove | $1,524 |
14 | Fresno | $1,502 |
15 | Riverside | $1,497 |
16 | Anaheim | $1,444 |
17 | Santa Ana | $1,439 |
18 | San Jose | $1,437 |
19 | Huntington Beach | $1,416 |
20 | Bakersfield | $1,394 |
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Premium amounts are comparative as the specific Riverside residence address can alter auto insurance rates greatly.
The make and model of vehicle needing coverage is probably the most important factor that determines the availability of economical car insurance for young drivers. Vehicles with reasonable performance levels, a great safety record, or low incidents of liability claims will cost substantially less to insure than adrenaline junky models. The next table showcases insurance premiums for a handful of the most economical automobiles to insure in California.
Insured Vehicle | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
---|---|
Honda Accord LX-P 4-Dr Sedan | $4,226 |
Honda CR-V LX 4WD | $4,234 |
Ford Escape Limited 2WD | $4,270 |
Toyota Prius | $4,590 |
Jeep Wrangler Sport Islander Package 4WD 2-Dr | $4,694 |
Ford Explorer XLT 4WD | $4,738 |
Ford Edge SEL 2WD | $4,971 |
Volkswagen Jetta LE 4-Dr Sedan | $5,015 |
Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid | $5,023 |
Toyota RAV4 2WD | $5,015 |
Chevrolet Impala LT | $5,021 |
Toyota Tacoma Double Cab TRD Off-Road Package 4WD | $5,058 |
Ford F-150 FX4 4WD | $5,065 |
Dodge Grand Caravan Crew | $5,058 |
Dodge Ram Quad Cab ST 2WD | $5,144 |
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Prices above based on single male driver age 17, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include claim-free, and safe-driver. Table data does not factor in vehicle location which can increase or decrease insurance rates significantly.
Looking at the numbers, we can infer that models like the Honda Accord, Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Toyota Prius, and Jeep Wrangler are most likely going to be a few of the less-costly vehicles to insure for youthful drivers. The price for car insurance will tend to be more expensive anyway just because there is more claim risk for young drivers, but overall those particular vehicles will probably have the cheapest auto insurance rates compared to other types of vehicles.
The example below shows how different deductible levels can impact annual premium costs when trying to find cheap insurance for young drivers. The price estimates are based on a single male driver, full coverage, and no discounts are factored in.
The data above shows that a 50-year-old driver could save $492 a year by switching from a $100 deductible up to a $500 deductible, or save $738 by switching to a $1,000 deductible. Youthful drivers, like the 20-year-old, could save $1,640 every year just by choosing higher deductibles.
When insureds make the decision to increase the deductibles on their policy, it is important to have spare funds to cover the extra out-of-pocket expense, which is the one disadvantage of using larger deductibles.
Get discount Riverside car insurance
Auto insurance companies that sell policies for young drivers may also give you price discounts that can reduce rates by as much as 30% if you are eligible. A list of companies and their offered discounts are outlined below.
- State Farm offers discounts including accident-free, Drive Safe & Save, student away at school, anti-theft, and defensive driving training.
- GEICO has savings for military active duty, federal employee, multi-policy, anti-theft, membership and employees, and good student.
- Liberty Mutual may have discounts that include good student, multi-policy, preferred payment discount, new vehicle discount, and exclusive group savings.
- The Hartford may offer discounts for good student, driver training, defensive driver, vehicle fuel type, bundle, air bag, and anti-theft.
- MetLife offers premium reductions for accident-free, good student, good driver, defensive driver, claim-free, and multi-policy.
- Progressive discounts include multi-policy, continuous coverage, homeowner, multi-vehicle, online signing, good student, and online quote discount.
The chart below compares insurance prices with and without some available policy discounts. The costs are based on a male driver, no claims or driving citations, California state minimum liability limits, full physical damage coverage, and $1,000 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows the average annual price with no discounts. The lower bar shows the rates with continuous coverage, paperless filing, good student, passive restraint, vehicle safety, and paid-in-full discounts applied. When these discounts are applied to the policy premium, theamount saved on car insurance for young drivers is 28% or $905.
Are you paying too much for car insurance in Riverside?
California car insurance rates are impacted by many factors that will increase or decrease the policy premium. Turning one year older, increasing deductibles, or having an at-fault accident may generate price changes that can now make some companies cheaper than competitors.
Not only may your risk profile change, but companies change premium rates every year or even multiple times each year in order to maintain liquidity for claims. A period of increased losses may result in more expensive premiums, while profitable underwriting may produce lower-priced Riverside car insurance rates.
To illustrate this example, the bar chart below shows a variety of companies that have the cheapest car insurance in Riverside, CA for a 30-year-old male driver with a clean driving record, no accidents, and solid credit. When quoting prices based on his current risk profile, USAA may have the most affordable car insurance rates in Riverside at $1,293 annually. This is $358 less than the average rate paid by California drivers of $1,651. Century National, Wawanesa, CSAA, and Nationwide are also included in the cheapest Riverside, CA auto insurance companies.
Now let’s give the driver from above a chargeable claim, a lower credit rating, and an imperfect driving record. Since each insurance company uses their own formula for setting prices, getting updated rate quotes will most likely result in a different set of the cheapest Riverside car insurance companies as shown below.
Grange now has the cheapest car insurance in Riverside with Progressive, Allstate, Mercury, and GEICO also having competitive pricing. This illustrates why drivers need to perform an extensive rate comparison to get affordable auto insurance rates for young drivers.
Insurance rates are impacted by many factors and change substantially, so the lowest-price company six months ago may now be an over-priced policy.