Who Has Cheap Auto Insurance for Drivers with a Bad Driving Record in Virginia?

Trying to find cheap auto insurance is not the easiest thing to accomplish, and determining which company quotes the cheapest car insurance rates for drivers with a bad driving record calls for even more diligence. Policy prices may be quite a bit greater than the average rate in Virginia, with the extra cost attributed to the potential for more claims that goes along with selling insurance for bad drivers, but competitively-priced insurance should be achievable if you thoroughly shop around. Every insurance provider has a different formula for determining rates in each state, so let’s begin by taking a look at the most affordable car insurance companies in Virginia.

It’s important that readers know that Virginia car insurance rates are impacted by many things that will increase or decrease the price you pay. Simply having a birthday, adding a teenager to your policy, or getting a ticket for careless driving may cause policy rate changes resulting in some rates now being more affordable than others.

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Travelers has some of the cheapest car insurance rates in Virginia at around $659 a year. USAA, Penn National, Utica National, and Cincinnati Insurance are also some of the most economical Virginia insurance companies.

As shown above, if you are a policyholder with Utica National and switched to USAA, you could realize a yearly price reduction of roughly $49. Virginia drivers with Cincinnati Insurance could save as much as $54 a year, and Auto-Owners policyholders might reduce prices by as much as $72 a year.

Bear in mind that those policy prices are averages across all insureds and vehicles and are not factoring in a rate increase for drivers with a bad driving record. So the insurer that has the cheapest rates for you may not even be included in the list of companies above. That illustrates why you need to compare as many prices as possible using your own personalized driver profile and vehicle information.

When shopping for cheaper auto insurance for bad drivers, one of the many factors that help determine the price you pay for insurance is where you live in Virginia. Densely populated urban areas like Centreville, Burke, and Lake Ridge tend to have more expensive auto insurance rates, whereas areas with less congestion tend to receive cheaper rates.

The information below illustrates the more expensive cities in Virginia for drivers with a bad driving record to purchase a policy in.

Table data uses estimated as the specific area where the vehicle is garaged can revise prices considerably.

Everyone has different tastes in autos, and the style of vehicle requiring insurance is one of the largest considerations when looking for economical insurance for drivers with a bad driving record. Vehicles with lower acceleration and performance, excellent safety ratings, or a positive history of liability claims will cost substantially less to insure than adrenaline junky models. The tables below shows insurance prices for some of the most affordable vehicles to buy insurance for.

Data based on married male driver age 40, two speeding tickets, two at-fault accidents, $1000 deductibles, and Virginia minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-policy, homeowner, and multi-vehicle. Rate information does not factor in garaging location in Virginia which can affect coverage rates significantly.

Table data assumes married male driver age 40, two speeding tickets, two at-fault accidents, $1000 deductibles, and Virginia minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, multi-policy, and homeowner. Price estimates do not factor in your specific Virginia location which can revise coverage prices considerably.

Data based on married male driver age 40, two speeding tickets, two at-fault accidents, $1000 deductibles, and Virginia minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include homeowner, multi-policy, and multi-vehicle. Premium costs do not factor in Virginia location which can change coverage rates substantially.

Illustration showing the impact of accidents and violations

One of the best ways to receive cheap car insurance premiums in Virginia for bad drivers is to be a careful driver and not have accidents or get tickets. The chart below shows how speeding tickets and accidents can raise insurance premiums for different insured age categories. The information is based on a married male driver, full coverage, $250 deductibles, and no discounts are applied.

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The data above shows the average cost of auto insurance in Virginia per year with no accidents or violations is $1,573. Get one speeding ticket and the average cost surges to $1,806, an increase of $233 each year. Now throw in two accidents along with the one speeding ticket and the 12-month cost of car insurance for drivers with a bad driving record increases to an average of $3,810. That’s an increase of $2,236, or $186 per month, just for being a little careless behind the wheel!

The chart below demonstrates how deductibles can affect insurance costs when trying to find cheap insurance for drivers with a bad driving record. The costs are based on a married male driver, comp and collision included, and no discounts are applied.

google.charts.setOnLoadCallback(drawDfdqcibChart);function drawDfdqcibChart() {var data = google.visualization.arrayToDataTable([[‘Age of Insured’, ‘$100 Deductible’,’$250 Deductible’,’$500 Deductible’,’$1,000 Deductible’],[‘Age 20’, 2989,2723,2431,2153],[‘Age 30’, 1565,1425,1263,1109],[‘Age 40’, 1503,1375,1227,1085],[‘Age 50’, 1375,1259,1127,999],[‘Age 60’, 1353,1237,1107,981],[‘Age 70’, 1547,1421,1281,1151]]);var options = {title: ‘Impact of Deductibles on Auto Insurance Prices in Virginia’,titleTextStyle: {color: ‘#333’,fontSize: 17,bold: true},width: ‘100%’,height: 700,’chartArea’: {left:100,top:50,’width’: ‘100%’,’height’: ‘80%’},legend: {position: ‘bottom’,textStyle: {fontSize: 12}},bar: {groupWidth: ‘80%’},colors: [‘#6791b9′,’#75a8d8′,’#98bee2′,’#bad4ec’],hAxis: {title: ‘Annual Auto Insurance Cost for Average Vehicle’,minValue: 0,format: ‘$###,###’},vAxis: {title: ‘Age of Insured’}};var formatter = new google.visualization.NumberFormat({fractionDigits: 0,prefix: ‘$’});formatter.format(data,1);formatter.format(data,2);formatter.format(data,3);formatter.format(data,4);var chart = new google.visualization.BarChart(document.getElementById(‘qcibdfd’));chart.draw(data, options);}

A 50-year-old driver could lower their policy premium by $248 a year by changing their physical damage coverage from a $100 deductible to a $500 deductible, or save $376 by selecting a $1,000 deductible. Even younger insureds, such as the 20-year-old example, could lower their rates as much as $836 each year just by using higher deductibles.

When insureds make the decision to increase the deductibles on their policy, it is a good idea to have spare funds to pay the extra out-of-pocket expense. This is the primary disadvantage of choosing high deductibles.

Who has the cheapest insurance quotes for bad drivers?

Consumers have many ways to get affordable car insurance quotes in Virginia, but the most common are through an exclusive insurance agency like Allstate or State Farm, a non-exclusive or independent agent, or from a direct company like Geico or Progressive. They all follow the same basic process, but each is slightly different in how they provide price quotes.

Independent insurance agencies write for multiple companies and can get policy pricing from all of them. Independent agents are usually affiliated with several companies and can quote rates with many companies, which may give you a better chance of finding cheaper coverage. If your agent finds better pricing, they simply move your policy to a different company and you stay with the same agent.

An agent who is captive is only able to write business for a single insurance company, two popular examples being Allstate and Liberty Mutual agents. They usually cannot give you multiple price quotes, so unless you get quotes from other companies, you cannot determine which is cheapest.

Buying direct means you bypass local agents and buy direct either online or via phone. This option may be good for consumers who have little risk and understand what is covered and what is not.

So which method is best for finding cheap auto insurance for drivers with a bad driving record in Virginia? It would be obvious to point out shopping direct results in the cheapest price since that eliminates agent commissions, but unfortunately, that is not always true. It could also be said an independent agent guarantees the best prices since they have more companies to choose from, but that is not necessarily true either. And often times, exclusive agents may have prices that are well below what direct and independents offer.

Due to the fact that car insurance rates vary so much, the guaranteed way to ensure you are not overpaying is to get as many comparison quotes as possible. It’s a good idea to get rate quotes from all three to have the best rate selection. For a list of companies offering online discounts, click here to view.

How to find cheap auto insurance for drivers with a bad driving record in Virginia

It is possible to find better rates, and here are some of the recommended penny-pinching suggestions that can help Virginia drivers get cheaper coverage.

• Better credit scores save money
• The safer your car, the less it costs to insure
• Speeding tickets and other violations increase rates
• Increase your physical damage deductibles
• Do not insure for full coverage
• Avoid having at-fault accidents
• Shop around for cheaper prices often

The last tip is highly valuable, as was noted in this article. Car insurance prices can be adjusted at any time, so drivers shouldn’t be resistant to buy a different policy if a cheaper rate is available. Sticking with a specific company is fine, but it isn’t a good idea if that inflexibility results in costing you money that could be used for better things. It takes less than five minutes to shop around to find cheaper car insurance for drivers with a bad driving record.