How Much are Car Insurance Rates for Drivers with a Bad Driving Record in Mesa?

For bad drivers, one of the more important components that are looked at to help calculate the annual cost of car insurance is where you normally keep your vehicle in Mesa. Cities with more crime and/or more people tend to have more expensive car insurance rates, whereas areas with less crime or weather claims have the gratification of cheaper auto insurance rates.

The information below ranks the most costly cities in Arizona for drivers with a bad driving record to purchase auto insurance in. Mesa is listed at #9 with a yearly cost of $1,125 for car insurance, which is about $94 each month.

Rate quotes are comparative as zip code location can modify rates greatly.

The type of vehicle driven is probably the largest consideration when shopping for low-priced auto insurance for drivers with a bad driving record. Vehicles with lower acceleration and performance, a great safety record, or a track record of few liability claims will cost less to insure than higher performance models.

The next list showcases car insurance costs for a selection of the more affordable vehicles to buy coverage for.

Prices based on single male driver age 40, two speeding tickets, two at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and Arizona minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, homeowner, and multi-policy. Rates do not factor in zip code location which can raise or lower coverage prices noticeably.

Based upon the table data, you can infer that models like the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Hyundai Elantra, Honda Accord, and Volkswagen Jetta will be some of the less-costly vehicles to insure for bad drivers. Auto insurance rates will trend higher just due to the fact that there is more liability risk for drivers with a bad driving record, but overall those particular vehicles will most likely have the cheapest rates compared to all other vehicles.

Get discount Mesa insurance rates

Car insurance companies that offer coverage for drivers with a bad driving record may provide price discounts that can lower rates by 35% or more if you meet specific criteria. Large insurance companies and a selection of discounts are:

• Progressive discounts include online quote discount, multi-policy, continuous coverage, good student, homeowner, and multi-vehicle.
• GEICO has discounts for seat belt use, emergency military deployment, multi-vehicle, membership and employees, daytime running lights, and five-year accident-free.
• State Farm may include discounts for student away at school, Drive Safe & Save, anti-theft, driver’s education, accident-free, and multiple policy.
• Esurance policyholders can earn discounts including Pac-12 alumni, defensive driver, Switch & Save, multi-car, anti-lock brakes, and safety device.
• The Hartford offers discounts including good student, vehicle fuel type, bundle, driver training, air bag, anti-theft, and defensive driver.

The example below illustrates the comparison of insurance prices with and without discounts. The premium estimates are based on a male driver, one accident and one citation, Arizona state minimum liability limits, full physical damage coverage, and $250 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The second shows the rates with anti-theft, paperless filing, multiple policy, homeowner, continuous coverage, and multiple vehicle discounts applied. In this example, theaverage yearly reduction on insurance for drivers with a bad driving record is 28% or $880.

Rate comparison of full coverage and liability-only

Buying cheaper insurance is probably important to most vehicle owners, and one great way to reduce the cost of insurance for drivers with a bad driving record is to not pay for full coverage. The chart below compares car insurance rates with full coverage and liability only. The information is based on no violations or accidents, $1,000 deductibles, drivers are not married, and no additional discounts are factored in.

On average, physical damage coverage on your policy costs $1,263 per year over liability only. At some point, almost every driver questions if it’s a good idea to buy full coverage. There isn’t a written rule that is best for determining when to drop full coverage on your policy, but there is a guideline you can use. If the yearly cost of full coverage is more than 10% of the settlement you would receive from your company, then it could be time to drop full coverage.

For example, let’s say your vehicle’s replacement value is $10,000 and you have $1,000 deductibles. If your vehicle is totaled in an accident, the most your company will settle for is $9,000 after you pay the deductible. If you are paying more than $900 a year to have full coverage, then it may be the right time to buy liability only.

There are some conditions where eliminating full coverage is not a good plan. If you still have a lienholder on your title, you have to carry full coverage in order to prevent the bank from purchasing higher-priced coverage. Also, if you can’t afford to buy a different vehicle in the event your current vehicle is totaled, you should not consider dropping full coverage.

Here’s why you should compare rates often

Mesa, AZ insurance rates are impacted by many things that control the policy price. Simply improving your credit, increasing deductibles, or getting a couple of tickets may prompt premium changes that can cause some rates to be more affordable than before. Not only that, but car insurance companies change prices every year in order to offset underwriting gains or losses. A period of increased losses can cause rate increases, while a lower level of claims may cause lower-priced Mesa car insurance rates.

The bar chart below shows rates for the cheapest car insurance in Mesa, AZ for a 40-year-old male driver with a clean driving record, no accidents, and great credit. If we estimate prices based on his personal profile, The Hartford may offer the cheapest car insurance rates in Mesa at $1,082 each year. This is $346 less than the average premium paid by Arizona drivers of $1,428. Safeco, Auto-Owners, Travelers, and USAA are the remainder of the best Mesa, AZ auto insurance companies.

Now we will give the driver from the first set of rates a chargeable accident, bad credit, and a stop sign violation. Since every car insurance company uses their own calculation for determining rates in each state, comparing quotes may now result in a slightly different list of the cheapest Mesa car insurance companies as shown below.

Progressive now has the cheapest price in Mesa with Ameriprise Group, CSAA, Allied, and Farm Bureau Mutual also having competitive pricing. This example proves why drivers need to perform a complete rate comparison to find the most affordable auto insurance rates for drivers with a bad driving record. Insurance prices are impacted by many risk factors and change substantially, so the cheapest option the last time you shopped your coverage around may now be quite expensive.