You have most likely watched the commercials from car insurance companies like The General and Nationwide that make claims of big savings, so you just need to pick the company with the catchiest ad, right?
It’s not quite that easy, unfortunately, as there are many unknowns like if you have a lapse in coverage, whether you are female or male, the crash test ratings of your vehicle, and if you are married, that all influence how much you pay for auto insurance. We are going to cover the best ways to save on auto insurance and will give you a jump start in finding the best auto insurance.
The vehicle requiring insurance is probably the most important factor when comparison shopping for the best cheap auto insurance for drivers with a DUI. Vehicles with high performance, a lack of advanced safety features, or high incidents of liability claims will cost substantially more to insure than safer models. The next table estimates insurance premiums for a handful of the more affordable vehicles to insure.
| Vehicle Insured | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Ford Escape XLS 4WD | $1,927 |
| Honda Accord LX 4-Dr Sedan | $2,044 |
| Honda CR-V EX-L 2WD | $2,094 |
| Ford Edge SE 2WD | $2,110 |
| Volkswagen Jetta 2.0T Station Wagon | $2,268 |
| Toyota Prius | $2,274 |
| Chevrolet Malibu LS | $2,282 |
| Chevrolet Equinox LT 2WD | $2,292 |
| Ford Explorer Limited AWD | $2,327 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan SXT | $2,335 |
| Ford Focus S 4-Dr Sedan | $2,371 |
| Hyundai Elantra SE 4-Dr Sedan | $2,407 |
| Nissan Rogue SL 2WD | $2,443 |
| Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD LT Crew Cab 4WD | $2,451 |
| Ford F-150 Lariat King Ranch 2WD | $2,456 |
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Cost estimates assume married male driver age 40, two speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and Washington minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, claim-free, homeowner, and multi-policy. Table data does not factor in specific location information which can change insurance rates greatly.
By looking at the data, we can infer that vehicles like the Ford Escape, Honda Accord, Honda CR-V, Ford Edge, and Volkswagen Jetta will be a few of the cheapest vehicles to insure after getting a DUI. The price for an auto insurance policy will be more expensive because there is more inherent risk for drivers with a DUI, but in general those models will have the cheapest auto insurance rates compared to all other vehicles.
Trying to find low-cost insurance is hard enough, and deciding which companies offer the cheapest auto insurance rates for drivers with a DUI requires additional perseverance. Every car insurance company uses slightly different criteria for setting prices, so let’s begin by examining the auto insurance companies that tend to have lower prices in Seattle, WA.
It’s a good idea to know that Seattle auto insurance rates are impacted by many things that can increase the policy premium. Improving your credit rating, buying a higher-value vehicle, or getting a ticket for careless driving may cause policy rate changes that may make certain companies higher-priced than before.
Find the Best Cheap Insurance after a DUI
| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Capital | $761 |
| 2 | Grange | $813 |
| 3 | Nationwide | $952 |
| 4 | PEMCO | $974 |
| 5 | Travelers | $998 |
| 6 | USAA | $1,050 |
| 7 | Mutual Enumclaw | $1,054 |
| 8 | The Hartford | $1,058 |
| 9 | California Casualty | $1,105 |
| 10 | Chubb | $1,116 |
| 11 | State Farm | $1,141 |
| 12 | Allied | $1,142 |
| 13 | Safeco | $1,180 |
| 14 | American Family | $1,208 |
| 15 | Amica | $1,219 |
| 16 | Liberty Mutual | $1,309 |
| 17 | Farmers | $1,355 |
| 18 | National General | $1,480 |
| 19 | Progressive | $1,510 |
| 20 | MetLife | $1,647 |
| Find Your Rate Go | ||
Capital quotes some of the cheapest car insurance rates in Seattle at around $761 annually. Grange, Nationwide, PEMCO, and Travelers are also some of the lowest-priced Seattle, WA insurance companies.
As shown in the table above, if you currently buy coverage from Travelers and switched to Grange, you may see yearly savings of upwards of $185. Customers with USAA might save as much as $237 a year, and Mutual Enumclaw insureds might lower prices by $241 a year.
To find the cheapest coverage for you, click here or click through to the companies below.
These rates are averaged across all types of drivers and the different vehicles they drive and and are not figured with a vehicle location for drivers with a DUI. So the auto insurance company that is best suited for you may not even be in the top 25 companies in the list above. That affirms the importance of why you need to compare rates from multiple companies using your own personal information and vehicle type.
After getting a DUI, one of the big components that are looked at to help calculate car insurance rates is where you choose to live. Regions with more people or even just more weather-related claims likely pay more, whereas more rural areas can boast about having cheaper rates.
The information below ranks the priciest cities in Washington for drivers with a DUI to purchase auto insurance in. Seattle makes the list at #6 with the yearly price of $1,363 for the average policy, which is approximately $114 per month.
| Rank | City | Average Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Federal Way | $1,421 |
| 2 | Lakewood | $1,420 |
| 3 | Auburn | $1,408 |
| 4 | Renton | $1,389 |
| 5 | Tacoma | $1,385 |
| 6 | Seattle | $1,363 |
| 7 | Kent | $1,350 |
| 8 | Shoreline | $1,326 |
| 9 | South Hill | $1,314 |
| 10 | Redmond | $1,251 |
| 11 | Bellevue | $1,243 |
| 12 | Kirkland | $1,243 |
| 13 | Everett | $1,238 |
| 14 | Marysville | $1,221 |
| 15 | Sammamish | $1,220 |
| 16 | Vancouver | $1,192 |
| 17 | Spokane | $1,093 |
| 18 | Lacey | $1,089 |
| 19 | Olympia | $1,072 |
| 20 | Yakima | $1,068 |
| Get a Custom Quote Go | ||
Rate quotes are approximated as zip code location can increase or decrease premiums substantially.
The diagram below shows how choosing a deductible can change insurance rates when researching cheap insurance for drivers with a DUI. The rate quotes are based on a married female driver, comprehensive and collision coverage, and no additional discounts are factored in.
In the chart above, a 50-year-old driver could pocket $272 a year by switching from a $100 deductible up to a $500 deductible, or save $410 by changing to a $1,000 deductible. Even younger drivers, like the 20-year-old, could roll back prices $672 or even more by using higher deductibles when buying full coverage.
When raising deductibles, it will be necessary to have additional savings on hand to allow you to pay the extra out-of-pocket expense, which is the one disadvantage of using larger deductibles.
Best auto insurance in Washington
Selecting a highly-rated insurer is hard considering how many companies there are to choose from in Seattle. The information in the next section may help you decide which auto insurers to look at when comparing rate quotes.
These ratings only include companies who write in the majority of U.S. states, so companies without a large exposure will not be included in these rankings. To compare price quotes from these and other competitive companies, click here.
| Company | Value | Customer Service | Claims | Customer Satisfaction | A.M Best Rating | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USAA | 98 | 100 | 100 | 94% | A++ | 98.6 |
| American Family | 98 | 89 | 100 | 86% | A | 95.4 |
| State Farm | 88 | 93 | 96 | 90% | A++ | 92.4 |
| The Hartford | 94 | 92 | 90 | 89% | A+ | 91.7 |
| AAA Insurance | 88 | 89 | 95 | 91% | A | 91.2 |
| GEICO | 84 | 93 | 93 | 89% | A++ | 90.3 |
| The General | 89 | 91 | 89 | 88% | A- | 90 |
| Titan Insurance | 90 | 87 | 91 | 95% | A+ | 89.6 |
| Progressive | 84 | 91 | 93 | 87% | A+ | 89.5 |
| Allstate | 85 | 90 | 92 | 88% | A+ | 89.3 |
| Nationwide | 87 | 88 | 84 | 90% | A+ | 88.7 |
| Liberty Mutual | 84 | 87 | 93 | 88% | A | 88.5 |
| 21st Century | 85 | 86 | 87 | 88% | A | 86.7 |
| Esurance | 85 | 80 | 95 | 87% | A+ | 85.9 |
| Safeco | 85 | 85 | 85 | 86% | A | 85.8 |
| Travelers | 80 | 87 | 87 | 83% | A++ | 85.2 |
| Compare Rates Now Go | ||||||
Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies
Should you buy full coverage?
Saving money on auto insurance should be important to most drivers, and one of the best ways to save on the cost of insurance for drivers with a DUI is to not buy comprehensive and collision coverage. The example below illustrates the comparison of yearly insurance costs when comparing full coverage to liability only. The costs are based on no accidents, no driving violations, $500 deductibles, drivers are single, and no discounts are applied.
If the expense is averaged for all age categories, physical damage insurance costs $1,858 per year more than just insuring for liability. Many people question if buying full coverage is a good investment. There is no clear-cut formula of when to drop physical damage coverage, but there is a general guideline. If the annual cost of comprehensive and collision coverage is more than around 10% of replacement cost minus your deductible, then you may want to consider only buying liability coverage.
There are some situations where removing full coverage is not advised. If you haven’t satisfied your loan, you are required to maintain full coverage to satisfy the loan requirements. Also, if your savings is not enough to buy a different vehicle in the event your current vehicle is totaled, you should not drop full coverage.
How to find economical car insurance for drivers with a DUI
The list below details a few penny-pinching suggestions that can help you quote cheap auto insurance.
- Do not pay for full coverage on older vehicles
- Good credit can mean cheaper rates
- Avoid at-fault accidents and claims
- You will pay more if you get tickets or have at-fault accidents
- Lower rates by purchasing a safer vehicle
- Increase your policy deductibles
- Comparison shop frequently
The last tip is very necessary, as was noted in the article above. Insurance rates in Seattle can change considerably in a year, so don’t be tentative to change to a new company if you can find a cheaper rate.
Many consumers stick with the same company and that’s fine, but it’s not a good idea if that inflexibility results in costing you a lot of money. It only takes a couple minutes to shop around and find cheaper car insurance for drivers with a DUI.
The agents below are a good start to answer your questions and help you decide which coverage fits your budget, since some drivers aren’t sure which coverage they need and prefer to have some professional guidance when shopping for the best coverage after getting a DUI. It’s not always easy to find the cheapest rate yourself, and a licensed agent can give you peace of mind knowing your policy gives you sufficient protection if you have a claim. To find a Seattle insurance agent close to where you live, click the link after the list or click here to compare rates now.
- Kent Christianson – State Farm Insurance Agent
1705 N 45th, Ste A – Seattle, WA 98103 – (206) 632-8000 - Seattle Insurance
2414 SW Andover St – Seattle, WA 98106 – (206) 937-4613 - Christopher Togawa Insurance Agency
222 Etruria St # 110 – Seattle, WA 98109 – (206) 838-9450