The words “bargain” and “auto insurance” really don’t belong together, in particular when you are shopping around for the best price on coverage for low income drivers. In an attempt to save some money, let’s open your eyes to a few of the things that significantly impact insurance rates, and see if we can help you take the bite out of the next policy you buy.
The car, truck, or SUV driven is a large factor when shopping around for the most affordable coverage for low income drivers. Vehicles with average performance, excellent safety ratings, or a low likelihood of having liability claims will cost less to insure than higher performance models. The information below ranks car insurance prices for some of the cheaper automobiles to insure in Tennessee.
| Make and Model | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Ford Escape XLS 2WD | $813 |
| Honda CR-V LX 2WD | $888 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan CV | $913 |
| Hyundai Elantra GLS Touring Station Wagon | $923 |
| Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 2WD | $963 |
| Chevrolet Malibu LS | $971 |
| Ford F-150 Lariat Super Cab 2WD | $981 |
| Honda Civic LX-S 4-Dr Sedan | $994 |
| Toyota Prius | $1,021 |
| Toyota Tacoma 2WD | $1,029 |
| Chevrolet Impala LS | $1,034 |
| Volkswagen Jetta 2.0T 4-Dr Sedan | $1,032 |
| Nissan Rogue S AWD | $1,034 |
| Toyota RAV4 Sport 4WD | $1,051 |
| Nissan Altima 2.5 4-Dr Sedan | $1,057 |
| Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara 2WD 4-Dr | $1,082 |
| GMC Sierra 2500HD SLE Regular Cab 2WD | $1,102 |
| Ford Explorer Limited 2WD | $1,107 |
| Honda Odyssey EX-L W/Navigation | $1,107 |
| Toyota Camry SE | $1,137 |
| Toyota Corolla LE | $1,146 |
| Ford Edge Limited AWD | $1,137 |
| Dodge Ram Crew Cab ST 4WD | $1,146 |
| Start Your Quote Go | |
Premium data assumes married male driver age 40, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and Tennessee minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, multi-vehicle, homeowner, multi-policy, and claim-free. Premium amounts do not factor in vehicle garaging location which can decrease or increase coverage prices greatly.
Looking at the rates, you can conclude that cars like the Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, Dodge Grand Caravan, and Hyundai Elantra will be a few of the cheaper vehicles to insure for poor drivers.
One of the more important criteria that are looked at to help calculate the cost of insurance is where you keep your car. Cities with more crime and/or more people likely pay more, whereas areas with less congestion have the luxury of cheap car insurance rates.
The table below sorts the highest-priced areas in Tennessee for low income drivers to purchase car insurance in. Nashville comes in at #7 costing $1,213 for the average policy, which is approximately $101 monthly.
| Rank | City | Average Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Memphis | $1,446 |
| 2 | Germantown | $1,374 |
| 3 | Bartlett | $1,363 |
| 4 | Collierville | $1,349 |
| 5 | Jackson | $1,305 |
| 6 | Oak Ridge | $1,223 |
| 7 | Nashville | $1,213 |
| 8 | La Vergne | $1,197 |
| 9 | Knoxville | $1,194 |
| 10 | Columbia | $1,178 |
| 11 | Maryville | $1,172 |
| 12 | Hendersonville | $1,170 |
| 13 | Clarksville | $1,170 |
| 14 | Spring Hill | $1,169 |
| 15 | Murfreesboro | $1,159 |
| 16 | Smyrna | $1,148 |
| 17 | Cookeville | $1,147 |
| 18 | Brentwood | $1,133 |
| 19 | Gallatin | $1,133 |
| 20 | Franklin | $1,129 |
| 21 | Chattanooga | $1,127 |
| 22 | Morristown | $1,125 |
| 23 | Cleveland | $1,124 |
| 24 | Johnson City | $1,041 |
| 25 | Kingsport | $1,026 |
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Information shown are approximated as the vehicle garaging location can lower or raise insurance rates significantly.
Types of discounts on Nashville insurance rates
Insurance companies that offer quotes for low income drivers may provide premium discounts that could lower prices by as much as 25% or more if you can meet the requirements. A list of auto insurance companies and a summarized list of policyholder discounts are shown below.
- State Farm has discounts for anti-theft, driver’s education, good student, safe vehicle, Drive Safe & Save, and good driver.
- Liberty Mutual may offer discounts for new graduate, exclusive group savings, good student, preferred payment discount, multi-car, and teen driver discount.
- American Family discounts include TimeAway discount, good driver, accident-free, mySafetyValet, defensive driver, and air bags.
- Progressive has savings for continuous coverage, homeowner, multi-policy, online quote discount, online signing, good student, and multi-vehicle.
- Farmers Insurance offers discounts for good student, teen driver, pay in full, distant student, multi-car, mature driver, and alternative fuel.
- Auto-Owners Insurance may include discounts for good student, multi-policy, paid in full, paperless, and multiple vehicles.
- SAFECO includes discounts for safe driver, anti-lock brakes, bundle discounts, teen safety rewards, teen safe driver, accident prevention training, and homeowner.
The illustration below visualizes the comparison of insurance costs with and without policy discounts. The costs are based on a female driver, no accidents, no driving violations, Tennessee state minimum liability limits, full physical damage coverage, and $1,000 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows the average annual price with no discounts. The second bar shows the rates with marriage, accident-free, multiple vehicle, passive restraint, homeowner, and safe-driver discounts applied. When drivers qualify for the discounts, the average amount saved each year on auto insurance for low income drivers is 28% or $348.
Which auto insurance company is best in Nashville?
Finding a highly-rated car insurance provider is difficult considering how many choices drivers have in Tennessee. The company information shown below may help you choose which insurers to look at shopping prices with. The ratings below are for companies with a nationwide focus, so companies that only write business in Tennessee or surrounding areas are not included in the list.
| Company | Value | Customer Service | Claims | Customer Satisfaction | A.M Best Rating | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travelers | 93 | 98 | 99 | 88% | A++ | 95.1 |
| USAA | 83 | 99 | 100 | 91% | A++ | 94.1 |
| AAA Insurance | 91 | 95 | 92 | 90% | A | 93.3 |
| Nationwide | 85 | 95 | 97 | 89% | A+ | 92.4 |
| Allstate | 77 | 100 | 97 | 88% | A+ | 90.7 |
| State Farm | 80 | 94 | 96 | 88% | A++ | 90.6 |
| The Hartford | 88 | 93 | 91 | 87% | A+ | 90.4 |
| Safeco Insurance | 91 | 95 | 85 | 88% | A | 90.2 |
| Progressive | 88 | 94 | 83 | 88% | A+ | 90.1 |
| American Family | 91 | 86 | 95 | 83% | A | 89.7 |
| Esurance | 86 | 90 | 94 | 90% | A+ | 89.5 |
| The General | 86 | 93 | 89 | 84% | A- | 88.2 |
| GEICO | 79 | 89 | 95 | 87% | A++ | 87.8 |
| Titan Insurance | 86 | 82 | 92 | 86% | A+ | 86.5 |
| 21st Century | 86 | 82 | 90 | 84% | A | 86.4 |
| Compare Rates Now Go | ||||||
Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies
Comparison of full coverage and liability-only policies
Paying less for auto insurance is important to most vehicle owners, and one way to lower the cost of insurance for low income drivers is to not buy comprehensive and collision coverage. The diagram below shows the difference between car insurance costs with full physical damage coverage compared to only buying the minimum liability limits required in Tennessee. The price estimates are based on no claims or driving violations, $500 deductibles, drivers are not married, and no additional discounts are factored in.
If averaged out across all ages, full coverage on your policy costs $1,494 per year more than buying just liability insurance. Many of you may wonder if you should buy full coverage at all. There is no set guideline to delete full coverage on your policy, but there is a broad guideline. If the yearly cost of full coverage is more than 10% of the replacement cost of your vehicle minus the policy deductible, then it might be time to buy liability only.
What aren’t you shopping around?
Nashville, TN auto insurance rates are calculated based on many things that will increase or decrease the price of coverage. Turning one year older, buying higher coverage limits, or getting a ticket for careless driving can trigger changes in premium that may make certain companies cheaper than before. Not only that, but car insurance companies change prices as needed in order to protect their financial rating. Unexpectedly high claims can result in a rate increase, while profitable underwriting can cause cheaper Nashville car insurance rates.
To illustrate this example, the bar chart below shows the company with the cheapest car insurance in Nashville, TN for a 40-year-old female driver with no violations or accidents, and a good credit history. If we look at prices based on her current rating profile, Utica National has the lowest car insurance rates in Nashville at $821 annually. This is $507 less than the average price paid by Tennessee drivers of $1,328. Auto-Owners, Cincinnati Insurance, Penn National, and USAA are the remaining top five cheapest Nashville, TN auto insurance companies.
In this next rate comparison, we will give the driver from the first example an accident claim, a little lower credit rating, and a few traffic violations. Since each auto insurance company has their own process for filing rates in each state, analyzing rates may now result in a substantially altered list of companies as shown below.
Erie now has the lowest price in Nashville, TN with Nationwide, Allied, Westfield, and GEICO also having competitive pricing. This example shows why Tennessee drivers need to compare as many rates as possible to get affordable car insurance quotes for low income drivers. Insurance rates can be altered by many risk factors and change substantially, so the best option three years ago may now not even be in the top five.
The insurance agencies listed below can help you decide which policy is best, as some people have coverage questions and would like to have a consultation when shopping for cheaper insurance for poor drivers. It can be hard to find the best rates on your own, and insurance agents licensed in the state of Tennessee can give comfort knowing your coverage gives you adequate coverage if you have an accident or claim.
To find a Nashville insurance agent near you, click the link after the list.
- Hale Insurance, LLC
301 29th Ave N – Nashville, TN 37203 – (615) 321-4150 - Michael Davis – State Farm Insurance Agent
2817 West End Ave #209 – Nashville, TN 37203 – (615) 321-3388 - Nationwide Insurance: Eric Pirtle Insurance Agency
2630 Old Lebanon Rd – Nashville, TN 37214 – (615) 889-3640