The words “affordable” and “insurance” really should not be used together, in particular when you are searching for the best coverage prices for safe drivers. In an attempt to save some money, let’s get started by showing you a few of the factors that impact car insurance premiums, and come up with some ideas to reduce the cost of the next policy you buy.
For good drivers, one of the largest components that help determine car insurance rates is where you normally keep your vehicle in Houston. Regions with more people or even just more weather-related claims tend to have higher rates, whereas areas with less people or fewer weather incidents have the benefit of cheaper car insurance.
The table below lists the priciest cities in Texas for safe drivers to buy auto insurance in. Houston makes the list at #5 with a yearly premium of $1,853 for the average insured, which is around $154 per month.
| Rank | City | Average Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | McAllen | $1,996 |
| 2 | Dallas | $1,911 |
| 3 | Brownsville | $1,908 |
| 4 | Amarillo | $1,858 |
| 5 | Houston | $1,853 |
| 6 | Laredo | $1,851 |
| 7 | Garland | $1,850 |
| 8 | Mesquite | $1,807 |
| 9 | Grand Prairie | $1,793 |
| 10 | Pasadena | $1,758 |
| 11 | Lubbock | $1,733 |
| 12 | San Antonio | $1,722 |
| 13 | Irving | $1,719 |
| 14 | Beaumont | $1,702 |
| 15 | Fort Worth | $1,670 |
| 16 | Arlington | $1,658 |
| 17 | Austin | $1,627 |
| 18 | McKinney | $1,625 |
| 19 | Carrollton | $1,615 |
| 20 | Plano | $1,608 |
| 21 | Corpus Christi | $1,588 |
| 22 | Waco | $1,584 |
| 23 | El Paso | $1,568 |
| 24 | Killeen | $1,533 |
| 25 | Abilene | $1,499 |
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Rate quotes are comparative as the specific garaging location can influence insurance rates greatly.
Shopping around for reasonably-priced insurance is not the easiest thing to accomplish, and finding out which companies have the cheapest insurance rates for safe drivers involves a bit more work. Each company uses their own calculation to set their prices, so we’ll go over the overall cheapest insurance companies in Texas.
It’s important to know that Texas insurance rates are influenced by many factors that control your annual premium. Events such as a birthday, buying a new vehicle, or having an accident can trigger rate changes that can cause some rates to be much higher than others.
Compare Cheap Insurance Quotes for Safe Drivers
| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Travelers | $1,021 |
| 2 | USAA | $1,095 |
| 3 | Texas Farm Bureau | $1,247 |
| 4 | Germania Mutual | $1,294 |
| 5 | Esurance | $1,365 |
| 6 | California Casualty | $1,438 |
| 7 | Mercury | $1,506 |
| 8 | State Farm | $1,510 |
| 9 | Nationwide | $1,538 |
| 10 | Safe Auto | $1,613 |
| 11 | Allstate | $1,650 |
| 12 | Progressive | $1,664 |
| 13 | Amica | $1,775 |
| 14 | Home State | $2,071 |
| 15 | GEICO | $2,072 |
| 16 | MetLife | $2,227 |
| 17 | Unitrin | $2,241 |
| 18 | Encompass | $2,255 |
| 19 | 21st Century | $2,494 |
| 20 | Titan | $2,672 |
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Travelers normally has some of the best car insurance rates in Houston at around $1,021 each year. USAA, Texas Farm Bureau, Germania Mutual, and Esurance are also some of the cheaper Houston, TX car insurance companies.
As illustrated above, if you currently buy coverage from USAA and switched to Travelers, you may realize annual savings of upwards of $74. Customers with Texas Farm Bureau may save as much as $226 a year, and Germania Mutual customers might realize rate reductions of up to $273 a year.
To find the cheapest rates for your vehicle, click here to start a quote or feel free to get quotes from the companies below.
These policy prices are averages for all drivers and vehicles in Texas and do not take into consideration an exact vehicle garaging location for safe drivers. So the company that is best for you may not even be in the list above. That is why you need to compare rates from as many companies as possible using your own specific driver and vehicle information.
Discount Houston car insurance
Car insurance companies that provide coverage for safe drivers may provide premium discounts that may potentially lower prices by 40% or more if you meet the requirements. A list of companies and the discounts they provide include:
- The Hartford offers premium reductions for anti-theft, vehicle fuel type, driver training, good student, bundle, and air bag.
- American Family offers discounts for early bird, bundled insurance, good student, TimeAway discount, good driver, and defensive driver.
- Progressive includes discounts for multi-policy, homeowner, good student, continuous coverage, online signing, online quote discount, and multi-vehicle.
- Travelers may include discounts for multi-policy, save driver, home ownership, continuous insurance, payment discounts, and early quote.
- Farmers Insurance has discounts for distant student, business and professional, alternative fuel, homeowner, youthful driver, good student, and teen driver.
- USAA has savings for safe driver, good student, defensive driver, family discount, military installation, and vehicle storage.
- Liberty Mutual discounts include newly married, multi-car, preferred payment discount, newly retired, new move discount, and new vehicle discount.
The illustration below illustrates the difference between yearly insurance costs with and without some available policy discounts. The price estimates are based on a male driver, no violations or accidents, Texas state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $1,000 deductibles.
The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The lower bar shows the rates with homeowner, marriage, multiple policy, claim-free, anti-theft, and multiple vehicle discounts applied. When drivers qualify for the discounts, theaverage amount saved on insurance for safe drivers is 28% or $445.
Does full coverage make sense?
Paying a lower price for insurance should be important to the majority of people, and one good way to pay less for insurance for safe drivers is to not buy comprehensive and collision coverage. The illustration below shows the comparison of yearly insurance costs with liability coverage only compared to full coverage. The premium estimates are based on no violations or claims, $100 deductibles, single status, and no policy discounts are applied.
If the expense is averaged for all age categories, comp and collision coverage costs an extra $2,922 per year over and above liability only. That proposes the question when is the right time to remove full coverage. There isn’t a steadfast formula that works best for making the decision to drop physical damage insurance, but there is a general convention. If the annual cost of comprehensive and collision coverage is more than around 10% of the replacement cost minus the deductible, then you might want to think about dropping full coverage.
Here’s why you should shop around
Texas insurance rates are influenced by many factors that control the cost of a policy. Simply turning a year older, buying another vehicle, or getting a few speeding tickets can cause premium changes resulting in some companies being more affordable than competitors.
Not only may things change on your end, but insurers change rates as often as every three months to adjust for heavy claims or excess profits. Significantly higher claims can result in rate increases, while lower claim levels may cause cheaper Houston car insurance rates.
The graph below shows the companies that have the cheapest car insurance in Houston, TX for a 30-year-old male driver with a clean driving record, no accidents, and great credit. If we compare prices based on his personal profile, Travelers offers the cheapest car insurance rates in Houston at $1,259 each year. This is $645 less than the average rate paid by Texas drivers of $1,904. USAA, Texas Farm Bureau, Germania Mutual, and Esurance are also on the list of the cheapest Houston, TX auto insurance companies.
In this next rate comparison, we will give the driver from the first rate comparison an accident surcharge, a little lower credit rating, and a few blemishes on his driving record. Due to the fact that every insurance company has a unique approach for setting prices, comparing rates will most likely result in a different ranking of affordable Houston car insurance companies as shown below.
State Farm now has the cheapest car insurance in Houston, TX with Mercury, Nationwide, Safe Auto, and USAA now being in the top five. This demonstrates why it is crucial to perform a complete rate comparison when trying to find affordable auto insurance rates for safe drivers.
Rates are made up of many risk factors and change substantially, so the best option the last time you compared rates may now cost much more than other companies.
How to find cheaper insurance for safe drivers
The list below summarizes a few money-saving ideas that can help you find low-cost car insurance.
- On older vehicles, drop full coverage
- Having too many claims will increase rates substantially
- Speeding tickets and other violations increase rates
- At-fault accidents will increase rates
- Increase physical damage deductibles
- Check for cheaper rates once a year
The last idea is extraordinarily vital, as was affirmed in this piece. Prices charged by car insurance companies go up and down frequently, so don’t be unwilling to buy a policy from a new company if a more affordable price is available. Being loyal to a particular company is commendable, but it’s not a great idea if that stubbornness costs you a small fortune. In just a couple of minutes you could compare rates to find cheaper auto insurance for safe drivers in Houston.
The auto insurance agents in Houston shown below can most likely answer your questions and help you decide which coverages and limits you need, since some drivers wish to have a little guidance when comparing insurance rates for good drivers. It can be challenging to find the best policy on your own, and getting professional guidance from a licensed agent can provide comfort knowing your policy gives you enough coverage if you have a claim. To locate a Houston insurance agent close to you, click the button at the bottom of the list.
- Anna Santa Ana – State Farm Insurance Agent
7710 Cherry Park Dr d – Houston, TX 77095 – (281) 550-0333 - Linda Tuck – State Farm Insurance Agent
2402 Bay Area Blvd g – Houston, TX 77058 – (281) 488-9050 - Craig Insurance Agency
1020 Bay Area Blvd # 100 – Houston, TX 77058 – (281) 488-2733 - Oscar’s Insurance Agency
5921 S Gessner Rd – Houston, TX 77036 – (713) 271-8889