For teen drivers, one of the more important criteria that are looked at to determine the price you pay for insurance is where you call home. Areas with more people or even just a higher incidence of claims are more likely to pay higher prices, whereas areas with fewer weather claims and lower vehicle theft rates can boast about having cheaper rates.
The illustration below ranks the priciest cities in California for 18 year olds to buy an auto insurance policy in. Fresno ranks #17 with an annual cost of $1,472 for the average insured, which is approximately $123 per month.
| Rank | City | Average Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Angeles | $2,083 |
| 2 | Glendale | $2,058 |
| 3 | Oakland | $1,704 |
| 4 | San Francisco | $1,693 |
| 5 | Sacramento | $1,669 |
| 6 | Stockton | $1,603 |
| 7 | San Bernardino | $1,596 |
| 8 | Long Beach | $1,562 |
| 9 | Santa Clarita | $1,548 |
| 10 | Riverside | $1,542 |
| 11 | Moreno Valley | $1,536 |
| 12 | Fontana | $1,535 |
| 13 | Garden Grove | $1,508 |
| 14 | Anaheim | $1,488 |
| 15 | Modesto | $1,487 |
| 16 | Santa Ana | $1,483 |
| 17 | Fresno | $1,472 |
| 18 | San Jose | $1,437 |
| 19 | Huntington Beach | $1,402 |
| 20 | Fremont | $1,389 |
| 21 | San Diego | $1,381 |
| 22 | Irvine | $1,371 |
| 23 | Bakersfield | $1,353 |
| 24 | Oxnard | $1,344 |
| 25 | Chula Vista | $1,311 |
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Rate quotes are approximated as vehicle location can impact price quotes greatly.
The make and model of vehicle needing coverage is a large consideration when shopping around for the cheapest coverage for 18 year olds. Vehicles with high performance, poor safety ratings, or a track record of large liability claims will cost much more to insure than safer models. The table below estimates auto insurance costs for a number of the more affordable automobiles to insure.
| Make, Model, and Trim Level | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Ford Escape XLS 4WD | $3,400 |
| Honda CR-V EX 2WD | $3,408 |
| Honda Accord EX-L 4-Dr Sedan | $3,668 |
| Toyota Prius | $3,705 |
| Ford F-150 FX2 Super Cab 2WD | $3,807 |
| Toyota Tacoma 4WD | $3,813 |
| Ford Edge SEL AWD | $3,997 |
| Toyota RAV4 Limited 4WD | $4,036 |
| Chevrolet Impala LT | $4,046 |
| Toyota Camry LE | $4,036 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan Hero | $4,045 |
| Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer 4WD | $4,073 |
| Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sport 2WD 4-Dr | $4,152 |
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Table data assumes single female driver age 18, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include claim-free, and safe-driver. Rates do not factor in vehicle location which can influence premium rates substantially.
Looking at the rates, models like the Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, and Honda Accord are most likely going to be a few of the most economical vehicles to insure for teen drivers. Prices will be more costly just because there is more claim risk for 18 year olds, but generally speaking those particular models will probably have the least expensive rates compared to other vehicles.
Discounts on Fresno auto insurance rates
Insurers that sell policies for 18 year olds may also provide special discounts that could potentially reduce rates by 30% or more if you meet specific eligibility requirements. Popular car insurance companies and a partial list of their discounts are:
- Farm Bureau offers discounts including multi-vehicle, safe driver, youthful driver, multi-policy, and good student.
- State Farm policyholders can earn discounts including defensive driving training, safe vehicle, student away at school, accident-free, and multiple autos.
- Progressive offers discounts for multi-policy, online quote discount, online signing, continuous coverage, good student, and homeowner.
- Allstate has discounts for farm vehicle, teenSMART discount, anti-theft, senior citizen, multi-policy, 55 and retired, and new car.
- Nationwide may include discounts for family plan, accident-free, good student, defensive driving, Farm Bureau membership, and business or organization.
- MetLife has savings for claim-free, good driver, accident-free, good student, and multi-policy.
The information below illustrates the comparison of insurance costs with and without discounts applied to the policy premium. The premiums are based on a female driver, no accidents or driving violations, California state minimum liability limits, comp and collision included, and $500 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows the average annual price with no discounts. The second bar shows the rates with passive restraint, good student, paperless filing, paid-in-full, vehicle safety, and continuous coverage discounts applied. When discounts are factored in, the amount saved on car insurance for 18 year olds is 28% or $899.
The chart below demonstrates how deductibles can affect insurance rates when researching cheap insurance for 18 year olds. The price estimates are based on a single female driver, full coverage, and no policy discounts are applied.
The data above shows that a 30-year-old driver could lower their car insurance rates by $560 a year by increasing from a $100 deductible up to a $500 deductible, or save $842 by selecting a $1,000 deductible. Younger drivers, like the 20-year-old example, could possibly save $1,246 or even more just by choosing higher deductibles when buying full coverage.
When insureds make the decision to increase the deductibles on their policy, it is important to have plenty of discretionary funds to enable you to pay the extra out-of-pocket expense, which is the one disadvantage of using larger deductibles.
Here’s why you should compare rates often
Fresno car insurance rates are impacted by many things that can increase the cost of a policy. Improving your credit rating, having a teenage driver, or getting a driving violation may prompt premium changes resulting in some rates now being affordable when they were higher priced. Not only may your risk profile change, but insurers modify rates multiple times each year in order to maintain liquidity for claims. A period of higher than normal claims may result in higher priced premiums, while better underwriting can produce lower-priced Fresno car insurance rates.
To illustrate this example, the bar chart below shows the company with the cheapest car insurance in Fresno, CA for a 35-year-old male driver with no violations or accidents, and great credit. When comparing rates based on his current rating profile, USAA offers the cheapest car insurance rates in Fresno at $1,284 per year. This is $367 less than the average rate paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, CSAA, Century National, and Nationwide are the remainder of the cheapest Fresno, CA auto insurance companies.
The next chart shows rates after we give the driver from the above example a couple of claims, poor credit, and a few traffic violations. Because every insurance company has a different formula to determining premium rates, analyzing rates will most likely result in a different set of affordable Fresno car insurance companies as shown below.
Grange now has the best price in Fresno, CA with Allstate, GEICO, Mercury, and Allied now rounding out the top five. This example proves why consumers need to take the time to shop around with many companies when trying to find the cheapest insurance rates for 18 year olds.
Prices can be altered by many risk factors and can decrease or increase without notice, so the most economical company when you bought your policy may now not even be in the top five.
If you aren’t sure which coverage to buy and prefer to have a professional recommendation when buying car insurance for 18 year olds, the professional agents shown below can most likely answer your questions and help you decide which policy is best.
To locate a Fresno car insurance agency nearest to you, click the button following the list.
- Allstate Insurance: Frank Salvio
745 E Locust Ave Ste 109 – Fresno, CA 93720 – (559) 449-1603 - New Horizon Insurance Services- Fresno
7543 N Ingram Ave #105 – Fresno, CA 93711 – (559) 244-6644 - Reza Sarkhosh Insurance Agency, Inc.
2491 W Shaw Ave #124 – Fresno, CA 93711 – (559) 243-9000