What Car Insurance is Cheapest for High School Students in Stockton?

The type of vehicle requiring insurance is probably the most important factor when shopping around for affordable car insurance for high school students. Vehicles with average performance, a great safety record, or a track record of few liability claims will cost significantly less to insure than adrenaline junky models.

The list below ranks auto insurance rates for a selection of the most cost-effective automobiles to insure.

Table data represents single male driver age 18, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Rate quotes do not factor in vehicle garaging location which can lower or raise price quotes considerably.

Based upon the rates shown, you can conclude that vehicles like the Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, Toyota Prius, Dodge Grand Caravan, and Toyota Tacoma will definitely be a few of the most economical vehicles to insure for teenagers. Prices will tend to be more expensive just due to the fact that there is more claim risk for high school students, but overall those specific models will tend to have the lowest prices available.

Trying to buy budget car insurance is confusing at best, and determining which company quotes the lowest-priced auto insurance rates for high school students takes even more work. Each insurer has their own guidelines for determining rates in each state, so first we will examine the most competitive auto insurance companies in Stockton, CA.

It’s important that you understand Stockton, CA auto insurance rates are based on many factors that will increase or decrease the policy price. This is why Stockton drivers need to perform a complete rate comparison to get the most affordable insurance rates for high school students. Car insurance prices are calculated by many things and can change substantially, so the most economical option the last time you compared rates may now be one of the more expensive options.

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USAA normally has some of the cheapest car insurance rates in Stockton at around $1,143 per year. Wawanesa, CSAA, Century National, and Nationwide would also make the list of some of the best Stockton, CA auto insurance companies.

As shown in the rates above, if you currently buy coverage from Century National and switched to Wawanesa, you might see annual savings of roughly $45. Customers with Nationwide might save as much as $69 a year, and 21st Century insureds might reduce prices by as much as $185 a year.

It’s important to note that these estimates are averaged for all types of insureds and vehicles and do not factor in a specific zip code for high school students. So the auto insurance company that can offer the best rates for your situation may not even be in the list above. That illustrates why you need to quote rates from many companies using your own personalized driver profile and vehicle information.

Full coverage versus liability-only

Paying less for auto insurance should be important to most drivers, and an easy way to lower the cost of insurance for high school students is to only buy liability coverage. The information below illustrates the comparison of yearly insurance costs with full physical damage coverage compared to only buying the minimum liability limits required in California. The rate quotes are based on no driving violations, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, drivers are single, and no policy discounts are applied.

As an average for all age groups, physical damage coverage costs an additional $1,849 per year more than just buying liability insurance. That touches on the question if you should buy full coverage at all. There is no clear-cut formula to delete physical damage insurance, but there is a general guideline. If the yearly cost for physical damage coverage is about 10% or more of the settlement you would receive from your company, then it’s probably a good time to buy liability coverage only.

For example, let’s assume your vehicle’s book value is $6,000 and you have $1,000 deductibles. If your vehicle is damaged in an accident, the most your company will settle for is $5,000 after paying the physical damage deductible. If you are paying over $500 a year for your policy with full coverage, then it might be time to buy liability only.

There are some cases where dropping physical damage coverage is not in your best interest. If you haven’t satisfied your loan, you are required to maintain full coverage in order to satisfy the requirements of the loan. Also, if you can’t afford to buy a different vehicle if your current one is totaled, you should keep full coverage in place.

The information below demonstrates how deductibles can change insurance costs when researching cheap insurance for high school students. The premiums assume a married female driver, full physical damage coverage, and no discounts are applied to the premium.

A 40-year-old driver could save $408 a year by changing their physical damage coverage from a $100 deductible up to a $500 deductible, or save $614 by switching to a $1,000 deductible. Younger drivers, such as the 20-year-old chart data, can cut $1,008 every year by choosing larger deductibles on their policy. If you do make the decision to raise your deductibles, it will be required to have enough savings set aside to satisfy the extra out-of-pocket expense. That is the one disadvantage of using higher deductibles.

Here’s why you should compare rates often

Stockton auto insurance rates are impacted by many things which can substantially change the price you pay. Improving your credit rating, buying a new vehicle, or getting a reckless driving citation may prompt premium changes that may make certain companies much cheaper than others. Not only may your risk profile change, but car insurance companies amend pricing every year or even multiple times each year in order to protect their financial rating. A period of increased losses can result in higher priced premiums, while a better claims history may cause lower-cost Stockton car insurance rates.

To illustrate this point, the graph below shows the company with the cheapest car insurance in Stockton, CA for a 30-year-old female driver with no violations or accidents, and solid credit. When comparing rates based on her personal profile, USAA has the lowest car insurance rates in Stockton at $1,304 each year. This is $347 less than the average price paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, Century National, Nationwide, and CSAA are also included in the cheapest Stockton, CA auto insurance companies.

Let’s now give the driver from the first example an accident surcharge, a lower credit rating, and a couple of points charged on her driving record. Since each auto insurer uses a different method for setting prices, analyzing rates most likely will result in a different set of affordable companies as shown below.

Grange now has the cheapest price in Stockton, CA with Progressive, GEICO, Mercury, and Allstate now rounding out the top five. This example demonstrates why it is critical to compare many different companies when trying to get the most economical insurance rates for high school students. Rates are determined by many risk factors and change substantially, so the best price the last time you shopped your coverage around may now be quite expensive.