Why Your Auto Insurance Premiums are Going Up

[frank]

I must be living in an alternate universe. Or, more likely already paying top dollar here in Massachusetts because none of my insurance premiums--car, homeowners, umbrella have gone up more than a few bucks...and I mean like under $200 a year for the year ahead.

DW just got a 2024 BMW lat month and our premium went up just a smidge from her previous car.

I live in iowa and my home and auto went from 2500 in 2021 to 3500 in 2023, and I just talked to my agent yesterday and she said the premium coming due next month is 4600. anyone else seeing these kind of increases?

 

[marinauser]

Auto theft is a big reason in Chicago. 2019 auto thefts were about 8,500. Then recreational marijuana is legalized and in 2020 Chicago institutes a no chase policy. Gangs lose marijuana sales and resort to thefts, robbery and burglary. So far this year, almost 26,000 auto thefts so Chicago should crack 30,000 this year.

 

[wrigley]

Auto theft is a big reason in Chicago. 2019 auto thefts were about 8,500. Then recreational marijuana is legalized and in 2020 Chicago institutes a no chase policy. Gangs lose marijuana sales and resort to thefts, robbery and burglary. So far this year, almost 26,000 auto thefts so Chicago should crack 30,000 this year.

I was born and raised in Chicago. We all know what Chicago's problems stem from!

Mike

 

[TrvlBug]

Just received the 6 month renewal for my car. The premium increased 25% from $669 to $832. And this premium is based on low mileage use. Ouch!

 

[48Fire]

My annual premium dropped $1,000. We switched coverage from Florida to Tennessee. We're not driving any safer in Tennessee, but apparently others are.

 

[teej1985]

My annual premium dropped $1,000. We switched coverage from Florida to Tennessee. We're not driving any safer in Tennessee, but apparently others are.

Florida has some of the highest rates in the country, so it's not a shocker.

 

[48Fire]

Florida has some of the highest rates in the country, so it's not a shocker.

Yeah, for sure. We knew insurance would be cheaper, but seeing the equivalent of $1,000 per year check handed to us is very nice. Even better, our property insurance is dropping $4,000 per year We have lived in Florida off and on for 40 years, and it's getting a little crazy to live here on a fixed income.

 

[Andre1969]

I just got my auto insurance bill. $2,241 for the year. That's for a 2023 Charger RT, a 2012 Ram Hemi, and a 1979 New Yorker. Full coverage on the first two, and liability only, and limited use, on the '79. I would put it on my antique car policy with my other cars, but I think they have a $4-5K minimum value, and I know it's not worth that.

Last year, it was $1,576 for the year. However, this time last year, I didn't have the Charger, but instead had a 2003 Regal LS. when I bought the Charger, back in September of last year, they said it would make the annual premium go up by $372, although since we were already about half way through the year (mine renews around March 21), it only boosted it by $194.

But, if you add $372 and $1576 together, that comes out to $1,948. So, $2,241 is a 15% rise. And they say inflation is getting under control!

 

[Andre1969]

As for car insurance in Florida, is it high because of the higher frequency of storms and hurricanes, higher theft rates, higher accident rates, or some combination of all of them?

I have a friend who moved to the outskirts of Fort Lauderdale back in 2022, from Maryland, and his car insurance went through the roof. And don't get him started on homeowner's. I figured the homeowner's was high because he's pretty close to the beach, but maybe that's true for the car, as well?

**Edit: I googled it. Looks like Florida has an awful lot of uninsured drivers. So when they crash, everyone else pays. Apparently Florida ranks high with vehicle theft as well. And supposedly, there's some kind of windshield replacement scam that's all the rage, although that might be a nationwide thing.

 

[sturge]

I spent many years using same ins company for my vehicles because it was at a discount through large corporation I worked at (out of sight/out of mind). Retired a couple of years ago and decided to 'shop around' a bit. I found out that there were better deals out there.

Since then, I have changed companies 3 times due to rate increases. I just did it a month ago because 6M premium went up 27% (no accidents/tickets...just me and wife on policy). Dumped it for a different policy...same coverage, virtually no increase from previous 6M. Easy, on line, print out new ins cards, cancel old policy...done.

Shop around...It's not hard and you WILL likely find a policy at a much cheaper price.

I'm in CT (the insurance capital LOL!)

 

[MichaelB]

As for car insurance in Florida, is it high because of the higher frequency of storms and hurricanes, higher theft rates, higher accident rates, or some combination of all of them?

Florida has a unique combination of too many bad drivers, accidents, uninsured drivers, criminals, very old drivers and undercapitalized insurers. They are all in excess supply and their toxic combination lead to very high insurance rates. Uninsured motorists coverage adds a lot to the average premium.

 

[teej1985]

I was in Jacksonville last week for work and just from a week I could tell that the drivers were crazy. My friend who lives there has a dash cam for this reason.

 

[scrabbler1]

Florida also includes PIP (No-Fault) which is generally a broader and more expensive coverage than simple Medical Payments (which is also sold in Florida).

Florida, from what I remember about my auto insurance working days, has several different options for buying Uninsured and Underinsured Motorists coverage is you are insuring more than one car, with at least one of them a lot more expensive than others. This doesn't take into account there are more uninsured drivers in Florida than Tennessee.

48Fire, if you were moving from a more urban part of Florida to a more rural part of Tennessee, that would also put extra downward pressure on your new rates compared to the old ones. However, I agree with the sentiment that an apples-to-apples comparison of locations would still put some downward pressure on your rates.

 

[Ian S]

Legally, every vehicle in California is required to carry insurance but of course our liberal politicians refuse to require proof of insurance when registering a vehicle.

According to the California DMV, https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/vehicle-registration/insurance-requirements/ :

You must carry evidence of insurance in your vehicle at all times and it must be provided when:

• Requested by law enforcement.
• You are renewing the vehicle registration.
• The vehicle is involved in a traffic collision.

My bolded text.

 

[jazz4cash]

I must’ve had this thread in mind when I received my renewal notice today. My premium went down a few dollars for my hobby car but the value has gone way up so I’ll need to increase coverage by 50%.

 

[livingalmostlarge]

In six months we went from $912 for 2 cars and 2 drivers in August 2023 to Feb 2024 for 6 months to $1200 for feb 2024 to aug 2024. I am calling to lower my deductible. And our cars are 2015 and 2016. When throw out the full coverage? I'm thinking next year

 

[Al18]

If you have a personal umbrella policy, you should review the policy before dropping full coverage on your car. Most PUP require full coverage on all vehicles.

 

[Pointby2]

https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-uninsured-motorists

I am not sure the overall data are supporting the narrative you are espousing, but I’ll leave it at that.

Maybe California is rated lower because that study relies on reported insurance claims where the driver has no insurance. Since so many of crashes result in a hit and run, the guilty driver is never identified. California leads the nation in fatal hit and runs, over 10%.

 

[Stormy Kromer]

If you have a personal umbrella policy, you should review the policy before dropping full coverage on your car. Most PUP require full coverage on all vehicles.

Just liability coverages are required, at or above a certain limit.

 

[braumeister]

Just liability coverages are required, at or above a certain limit.

And the limit depends on the company.
My minimum liability limits for the umbrella policy are quite high.

 

[Stormy Kromer]

I help out a friend at his body shop doing his billing and book work.

Paint went up 15% in January.

 

[Teacher Terry]

I have geigo and it’s gone up 20/month every 6 months for the past 18 months. I now pay 97/month and my car is 16 years old. If I drop collision I only save 5/month. I called around and no one is cheaper. I only drive 2700 miles per year.

 

[48Fire]

Florida also includes PIP (No-Fault) which is generally a broader and more expensive coverage than simple Medical Payments (which is also sold in Florida).

Florida, from what I remember about my auto insurance working days, has several different options for buying Uninsured and Underinsured Motorists coverage is you are insuring more than one car, with at least one of them a lot more expensive than others. This doesn't take into account there are more uninsured drivers in Florida than Tennessee.

48Fire, if you were moving from a more urban part of Florida to a more rural part of Tennessee, that would also put extra downward pressure on your new rates compared to the old ones. However, I agree with the sentiment that an apples-to-apples comparison of locations would still put some downward pressure on your rates.

Nope, actually moving to a less rural part of Tennessee from more rural Florida. Most of the time in Florida, we just tool around on our golf cart, very near the coast. We're just a few miles outside of Nashville, so I-40 will be common, unless we avoid it completely.

 

[livingalmostlarge]

In six months we went from $912 for 2 cars and 2 drivers in August 2023 to Feb 2024 for 6 months to $1200 for feb 2024 to aug 2024. I am calling to lower my deductible. And our cars are 2015 and 2016. When throw out the full coverage? I'm thinking next year

So the day i wrote that DH had a car accident. Then three days later I had someone hit me and leave. Sigh. Guess we are going to have higher premiums in 6 months.