How Much are Auto Insurance Quotes for First-time Drivers in Santa Ana?

In a perfect world, we could just tell you the company that has the lowest rates in California. It's not that easy, however, as there are many unknown elements like the crash test ratings of your vehicle, if you have ever had a gap in coverage, and if you own or rent your home. We will touch on the best ways to avoid paying too much and will give you some help in finding cheaper rates.

For new drivers, one of the more important considerations that are looked at to help calculate insurance cost is where you choose to live. Areas with increased crime or more people will most likely pay more, whereas areas that tend to be more rural have the luxury of lower rates.

The table below sorts the priciest cities in California for first-time drivers to purchase auto insurance in. Santa Ana ranks #14 with a yearly cost of $1,497 for car insurance, which is approximately $125 monthly.

Premium amounts are approximated as zip code location can alter premiums greatly.

The type of vehicle requiring coverage is one of the biggest factors that determines the availability of low-cost insurance for first-time drivers. Vehicles with lots of horsepower, poor safety features, or an increased likelihood of liability claims will cost quite a bit more to insure than safer, lower-performance models. The information below showcases car insurance premiums for a number of the cheapest vehicles to insure.

Data based on single male driver age 17, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Prices do not factor in specific location which can revise premiums greatly.

Based on these rates, you can infer that makes and models like the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, and Toyota Prius are likely to be the less-costly vehicles to insure for new drivers. Auto insurance rates will be more costly because there is more inherent risk for first-time drivers, but generally speaking those models will tend to have the best rates available.

Finding out which insurers offer the most affordable car insurance rates for first-time drivers will require a little more work than just picking a company at random. Each auto insurance company has their own guidelines to set policy rates, so we will examine the car insurance companies that tend to be cheaper in California.

We do need to point out that Santa Ana car insurance rates are influenced by many factors that control the policy price. Improving your credit score, having a teen driver, or getting a speeding ticket may cause policy rate changes that can make some companies more affordable than before.

Cheap Insurance Rates for Inexperienced Drivers

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USAA may have some of the best car insurance rates in Santa Ana at around $1,143 per year. This is $508 less than the average price paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, Nationwide, CSAA, and Century National would also be considered some of the best Santa Ana, CA car insurance companies.

In the above example, if you buy coverage from Nationwide and switched to USAA, you could earn savings of roughly $70. Policyholders with CSAA could save as much as $79 a year, and Century National insureds might reduce prices by as much as $83 a year.

To find the cheapest rates for your vehicle, click here to start a quote or click several companies below for low rates.

These policy rates are averaged across all ages of drivers and types of vehicles and and are not figured with a specific vehicle garaging location for first-time drivers. So the insurer that fits your needs best may not even be in the top 24 companies shown above. That underscores the importance of why you need to compare prices as often as possible using your own driver data and vehicle information.

Get discounts on Santa Ana auto insurance

Auto insurance companies that provide coverage for first-time drivers may additionally offer policy discounts that can lower rates by as much as 25% or more if you are eligible to receive them. A few popular companies and a partial list of their discounts are:

• GEICO offers discounts including air bags, anti-lock brakes, daytime running lights, good student, and military active duty.
• Travelers discounts include payment discounts, save driver, home ownership, multi-policy, hybrid/electric vehicle, and good student.
• Farm Bureau policyholders can earn discounts including good student, renewal discount, driver training, 55 and retired, multi-vehicle, safe driver, and multi-policy.
• Liberty Mutual has discounts for good student, newly retired, teen driver discount, multi-car, multi-policy, new graduate, and preferred payment discount.
• American Family may have discounts that include good student, TimeAway discount, mySafetyValet, good driver, defensive driver, and bundled insurance.
• Progressive offers discounts for online signing, good student, homeowner, multi-vehicle, online quote discount, and continuous coverage.

The example below illustrates the difference between annual premium costs with and without discounts applied to the premium. The prices are based on a male driver, no driving violations, no at-fault accidents, California state minimum liability limits, comp and collision included, and $1,000 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows the price with no discounts. The second bar shows the rates with paid-in-full, good student, passive restraint, paperless filing, continuous coverage, and anti-theft discounts applied. When taking advantage of discounts, theaverage yearly reduction on car insurance for first-time drivers is 28% or $666.

Poor driving habits will raise your car insurance rates

One of the best ways to snag the best car insurance prices for new drivers is to drive cautiously and have a clean driving record. The example below demonstrates how citations and at-fault collisions can raise insurance prices for different age groups of insureds. The data is based on a single female driver, full physical damage coverage, $250 deductibles, and no discounts are taken into consideration.

In the previous chart, the average cost of car insurance in California per year with no accidents and a clean driving record is $2,199. Factor in one speeding ticket and the average cost surges to $2,493, an increase of $294 each year. Now add in two accidents along with the one speeding ticket and the yearly cost of car insurance for first-time drivers goes up to an average of $5,028. That's an increase of $2,829, or $236 per month, just for not driving safely!

Full coverage or liability only

Finding cheaper car insurance is probably important to the majority of drivers, and a good way to pay lower rates for insurance for first-time drivers is to only buy liability insurance. The chart below visualizes the comparison of premium costs with and without physical damage coverage, medical payments, and uninsured/under-insured motorist coverage. The premiums assume a clean driving record, no at-fault accidents, $500 deductibles, drivers are single, and no discounts are taken into consideration.

If we average the cost for ages 20 through 70, full coverage costs $2,075 per year over having just liability coverage. That is a big expense that brings up the question if it's worth it to buy full coverage. There is no clear-cut rule for eliminating comp and collision coverage, but there is a general guideline you can use. If the annual cost of your full coverage insurance is more than around 10% of replacement cost minus your deductible, then it could be time to drop full coverage.

For example, let's pretend your vehicle's replacement value is $4,000 and you have $1,000 full coverage deductibles. If your vehicle is damaged in an accident, the most you would get paid by your company is $3,000 after you pay the deductible. If you are paying in excess of $300 a year for comprehensive and collision coverage, then you might want to think about dropping full coverage.

The importance of comparing Santa Ana car insurance rates

Santa Ana car insurance rates are influenced by many factors that control the price you pay. Getting older, marrying your spouse, or getting a reckless driving citation can trigger price changes resulting in some companies being more affordable than competitors. Not only may your risk profile change, but car insurance companies change prices as needed in order to maintain liquidity for claims. Significantly higher losses can cause additional premium costs, while profitable underwriting may cause lower-priced Santa Ana car insurance rates.

To illustrate this example, the data below shows which company has the cheapest car insurance in Santa Ana, CA for a 30-year-old female driver with a clear driving record, no claims, and a good credit rating. If we estimate rates based on her current risk profile, USAA may have the cheapest car insurance rates in Santa Ana at $1,306 each year. This is $345 less than the average policy premium paid by California drivers of $1,651. Century National, CSAA, Wawanesa, and Nationwide are also included in the top five cheapest Santa Ana, CA auto insurance companies.

Now let's give the driver in the first example a claim, a little lower credit rating, and a speeding ticket. Due to the fact that each insurance company uses their own formula for determining rates, analyzing rate quotes may now present a different ranking of the cheapest car insurance companies in Santa Ana as shown below.

Grange now has the best car insurance rate in Santa Ana with Allstate, GEICO, Mercury, and Allied also having competitive pricing. This example illustrates why California drivers need to perform a complete rate comparison when trying to find the most economical car insurance quotes for first-time drivers.

Prices consist of many different factors and can change substantially, so the cheapest rate when you bought your policy may now be one of the more expensive options.

The auto insurance agents in Santa Ana shown below can probably help you determine which auto insurance policy would work best for you, as many consumers aren't sure which coverage to buy and prefer to have a professional recommendation when comparing insurance rates for first-time drivers. It's not always simple to find the best coverage yourself, and getting advice from a licensed agent can give comfort knowing your coverage gives you adequate protection in case of an accident or claim. To locate a Santa Ana car insurance agency using an interactive map, click the button after the list.

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