How Much are Car Insurance Rates for Good Drivers in Santa Ana?

Buying low-priced auto insurance is not the easiest thing to accomplish, and figuring out which insurers offer the best auto insurance rates for good drivers involves a bit more work.

Each company has their own guidelines to determine premium rates, so we need to take a look at the auto insurance companies with the overall cheapest rates in California. It's important to understand that Santa Ana auto insurance rates are impacted by many factors which can substantially change the price you have to pay. This price fluctuation is why consumers need to compare rates when trying to find cheap auto insurance quotes for good drivers. Car insurance prices are determined by many risk factors and change substantially, so the best price two years ago may now be priced much higher than other options.

Best Cheap Insurance Rates for Good Drivers

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USAA may offer some of the cheapest car insurance rates in Santa Ana at around $1,109 a year. Wawanesa, CSAA, Century National, and Nationwide also make the cut as some of the lowest-priced Santa Ana, CA car insurance companies.

In this example, if you currently have a policy with Century National and switched to USAA, you may see savings of about $117. Insureds with Nationwide might save as much as $154 a year, and 21st Century customers might lower prices by $257 a year.

Remember that these estimates are averaged across all types of drivers and the different vehicles they drive and do not factor in an exact zip code location for good drivers. So the auto insurance company that can offer you the best price may not even be in the top 24 companies in the list above. That affirms the importance of why you need to compare as many prices as possible using your own driver and vehicle profiles.

One of the more important considerations that are looked at to help calculate the cost of insurance is where you choose to live. Areas with more people or even just a higher incidence of claims are more likely to have higher rates, whereas less populated areas benefit from lower prices.

The table below shows the highest-priced places in California for good drivers to buy car insurance in. Santa Ana makes the list at #17 with a yearly cost of $1,453 for coverage, which is approximately $121 per month.

Rate information is comparative as the specific area where the vehicle is garaged can influence prices substantially.

The type of vehicle on the policy is one of the primary factors when comparing the most economical insurance for good drivers. Vehicles with higher performance, a lack of modern safety features, or an increased likelihood of liability claims will cost quite a bit more to insure than safer models.

The table below outlines coverage costs for a number of the cheaper automobiles to buy insurance for.

Table data represents single female driver age 50, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include homeowner, claim-free, safe-driver, multi-vehicle, and multi-policy. Prices do not factor in Santa Ana, CA location which can raise or lower premiums greatly.

Based upon these rates, we can expect makes and models like the Volkswagen Jetta, Ford Escape, and Honda CR-V are going to be a few of the less-costly vehicles to insure for safe drivers.

Poor driving habits will raise your auto insurance rates

The common sense way to maintain cheap auto insurance prices for safe drivers is to be a cautious driver and avoid at-fault accidents and violations. The diagram below illustrates how violations and at-fault claims raise car insurance costs for different age groups. The premiums assume a single female driver, comp and collision included, $100 deductibles, and no discounts are factored in.

In the prior example, the average cost of car insurance in Santa Ana per year with no violations or accidents is $2,661. Receive two speeding tickets and the average cost rises to $3,591, an increase of $930 each year. Then include two accidents along with the two speeding tickets and the yearly cost of auto insurance for good drivers jumps again to an average of $6,749. That's an increase of $4,088, or $341 per month, just for being a careless driver!

Types of discounts on Santa Ana auto insurance

Insurance companies that offer quotes for good drivers could also offer price discounts that can reduce rates by 35% or more if you meet specific eligibility requirements. A few of the larger companies and some of the premium reductions they offer are included below.

• Progressive policyholders can earn discounts including continuous coverage, multi-vehicle, multi-policy, good student, online quote discount, and homeowner.
• SAFECO may offer discounts for anti-theft, bundle discounts, safe driver, multi-car, accident prevention training, homeowner, and teen safe driver.
• American Family has discounts for air bags, bundled insurance, mySafetyValet, good driver, defensive driver, multi-vehicle, and Steer into Savings.
• MetLife may have discounts that include good driver, accident-free, defensive driver, good student, multi-policy, and claim-free.
• GEICO offers premium reductions for five-year accident-free, membership and employees, anti-lock brakes, good student, air bags, and emergency military deployment.
• The Hartford discounts include driver training, good student, defensive driver, bundle, and anti-theft.

The illustration below shows the comparison of car insurance costs with and without discounts applied to the premium. The price estimates are based on a female driver, a clean driving record, no claims, California state minimum liability limits, comp and collision included, and $1,000 deductibles.

The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The lower bar shows the rates with multiple vehicle, claim-free, passive restraint, anti-theft, marriage, and vehicle safety discounts applied. When discounts are applied, the average savings per year on auto insurance for good drivers is 28% or $493.

Full coverage rates vs. liability-only

Saving money when shopping for auto insurance is probably important to the majority of vehicle owners, and one easy way to buy cheap insurance for good drivers is to only buy liability coverage. The example below illustrates the comparison of premium costs with and without full coverage. The prices are based on a clean driving record, no claims, $250 deductibles, single marital status, and no discounts are applied.

If the expense is averaged for all age categories, comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy costs $3,093 per year over having just liability coverage. Many of you may wonder when is it a good idea to stop buying full coverage. There is no clear-cut formula to exclude comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy, but there is a general guideline you can use. If the annual cost of coverage is more than about 10% of replacement cost minus your deductible, then it's probably a good time to buy liability coverage only.

For example, let's pretend your vehicle's replacement value is $7,500 and you have $1,000 physical damage deductibles. If your vehicle is totaled, the most your company would pay you is $6,500 after you pay the deductible. If premiums are more than $650 annually to have full coverage, then you might want to consider buying only liability coverage.

There are some situations where buying only liability insurance is not recommended. If you still have a loan on your vehicle, you are required to maintain full coverage as part of the loan requirements. Also, if your emergency fund is not enough to purchase a different vehicle if your current one is damaged, you should not eliminate full coverage.

How to find the cheapest car insurance for good drivers

Here are some penny-pinching ideas that can help California drivers quote more affordable coverage.

• Clean up your credit
• Be a safe driver
• Do not pay for full coverage on older vehicles
• Prevent rate increases by staying accident-free
• Drive vehicles with five-star safety ratings
• Raise physical damage deductibles
• Shop your coverage around for the best deal

That last idea is remarkably vital, as was emphasized in this write-up. Prices charged by auto insurers can change considerably in a year, so drivers shouldn't be resistant to change to a new company if a cheaper price is available.

Having brand loyalty is commendable, but it's not recommended if that stubbornness costs you a small fortune year after year. It only take a few minutes to compare prices to find cheaper auto insurance for good drivers in Santa Ana.

The agencies below can probably provide answers to your questions and help you determine which coverages and limits you need, since many consumers aren't sure which coverage to buy and prefer to have some professional guidance when trying to find lower insurance rates for good drivers. It can be difficult to find the best rates on your own, so insurance agents licensed in the state of California can provide you peace of mind knowing your policy gives you enough coverage when you need it.

To locate a Santa Ana insurance agent closest to you, click the button link following the list or click here to compare prices now.

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