Who Has the Cheapest Car Insurance Rates in Boston?

The Boston metro area is expensive. This extends to vehicle maintenance and insurance as well. If you live in the Boston metro area, you’ll pay more for insurance than if you were to live in Nantucket or Siasconset.

The average mileage those in your area put on their vehicles annually also affects the annual premium you pay. Another factor is auto theft. In Boston, more cars are stolen than they would be in a small village, such as Shirley. In 2018, 4,546 vehicles were stolen in Boston. The per capita rate for that year was 93.24 per 100k residents and city ranked #312 in the US.

People 16 and older who drive to work have an average travel time of 30.4 minutes. Roads in the city and outside the city are congested—which makes this number quite high. This number means that those in a 1-vehicle house are driving around 300 minutes every week, and those with 2-vehicles drive around 600 minutes, or 10 hours, each week. This doesn’t even account for trips for school activities, grocery runs, or entertainment.

The average annual insurance premium for a vehicle owner living in Boston is $1,655. If you need a lower premium because the cost is more than your budget allows, you’ll need to forgo more expensive full coverage insurance and opt for liability only instead.

What are the Insurance Requirements in Boston?

Within the Boston-Cambridge metro area, your annual insurance premium may range from $1,474 to $1,655. This is less expensive than Springfield, Lowell, or Worcester.

Remember that, when you buy a minimum liability insurance plan, you’re buying a policy that is meant to cover damage to someone else’s vehicle and bodily injury to passengers in the other vehicle if you are found to be at fault in an accident. Nearly every state requires drivers to hold minimum liability coverage, which in Massachusetts includes $20,000 for injuries to a single passenger, $40,000 for injuries to multiple passengers, and $5,000 for property damage. This is one of the lower state requirements in the US.

Only by buying a more comprehensive plan can you make sure your car is covered from other types of damage. If you have comprehensive coverage and a bad hailstorm hits your area, then your insurance may cover repairs for hail damage. If you have a minimum liability plan, it will not. A comprehensive plan may also cover vandalism, falling objects, and hitting an animal, such as a deer or a dog. If you are still making loan payments, you may be required by your lender to purchase a comprehensive plan.

A full coverage premium simply rolls several types of coverage: uninsured coverage, liability, collision, comprehensive, and medical coverage. Depending on the insurance provider, the annual premium for a full coverage plan varies from below $1,000 to slightly more than $1,700.

Most Expensive and Least Expensive Insurance Rates by Zip Code

Cheap Car Insurance in Boston by Insurer

If you can’t afford a high-cost annual premium, you’ll need to do some research to find a less expensive option that still provides you with decent coverage and, hopefully, some customer assistance if you run into problems. In Massachusetts, you can find plenty of companies from which you can buy an insurance plan covering just the minimum needed on your vehicle.

How are insurance rates determined and getting cheap insurance close by.

Low Cost Auto Insurance for Bad Credit in Boston

Having bad credit makes it harder for you to buy the things you need, let alone those you may want. Even though you may not have good credit, you are still required to buy auto insurance. Unfortunately, Massachusetts car insurance companies are legally allowed to use your credit score to decide your premiums. Here are some companies that are still affordable despite this.

Find out the which auto insurance company has the lowest rates for poor credit drivers.

Differences Between the Two Main Coverages

Liability Only Insurance Coverage

Liability insurance will pay for the injuries and/or damages that you cause to others in the case of a collision where you were at fault. In most cases, liability insurance will cost less than full-coverage insurance, but then again, they are both very different in what they cover. Liability is mandatory in all U.S. states, although how much liability you are required to have differs between states. Even if it wasn’t mandatory to have liability insurance, accidents can happen anytime and, if they do, you will need to be able to pay for the damages that you cause if you were the one to blame.

What is Full Coverage Car Insurance?

Full coverage auto insurance in Arizona pays for your injuries and the damages made to your car as well as for others and isn’t just a specific type of a policy but it is instead liability, comprehensive insurance, and collision all combined. Full coverage insurance is not mandatory, but is good to have since it will help pay for your car to be fixed in the event of an accident that causes you injury or damage to your car, even if you were at fault. If the other person that collided with you was at fault, then their insurance will cover the damages to your car and your injuries. This is why there are laws requiring everyone to have insurance to cover the damages they cause.

What You Need to Know About the Differences Between the Car Insurance Types

The difference between full and liability coverage is quite dramatic. With liability, insurers gamble that they will only have to pay for one car in an accident. With a comprehensive or full coverage policy, insurance companies know that they are taking on more liability exposure and so their rates reflect the increased risk. In the case of a comprehensive policy, they might even have to cover claims for damages that don’t arise from a traffic incident.

Average Annual Car Insurance Rates in Massachusetts by City

Additional cities in Massachusetts you can check out.

Worcester

Springfield

Cambridge

Helpful Advice to Get Lower Car Insurance Rates

Find additional ways to save on your Boston car insurance premiums with these insurance discounts:

  • Avoid Accidents:

    When your record is clear of at-fault accidents, insurers see you as a better financial risk. Thus, your premiums will be lower.

  • Don’t Speed:

    If you have one or more speeding tickets, your insurance rates will be higher. This is because high speeds are associated with accidents, and if you speed you are more likely to be deemed at-fault in an accident.

  • Shop Around:

    There are at least twenty auto insurance companies currently active in Boston. Their premium rates are spread over a wide range, so be sure to compare prices and make sure you get the best, and most affordable, policy for you.

  • Comprehensive Insurance Packages:

    Insurance companies like when you use them for more than simple auto insurance. Thus, they frequently offer packages that include homeowner’s insurance, or other policies, on the same account. When you opt for one of these comprehensive policies, the company is often able to lower your automobile premium as part of the deal.

  • Multiple Vehicles:

    Similar to purchasing a comprehensive insurance package, combining multiple vehicles on the same policy results in lower premiums. Consider this a bulk purchase for your auto insurance.

  • Military and Student Discounts:

    Sometimes insurance companies have special discounts for certain demographics, like active military or students.

Use our guide to find discounts and lower your insurance premium costs.

Common Factors that Affect Your Boston MA Vehicle Insurance Rates

There are many factors that affect your insurance rates, number one being your driving record and whether or not you have had previous accidents where you were at fault. Other things that can affect the amount you will have to pay for auto insurance are:

  • The company that ensures you
  • Not only the city and state you live in but the area (zip code) you reside in as well
  • Your age
  • Whether you are male or female
  • Your earnings
  • Marital status
  • Your credit score
  • Speeding tickets or other tickets you have incurred
  • How many years of driving experience you have
  • How many miles you drive regularly, including your commute to work
  • The year, make, and model of your vehicle
  • Where you park your car when not in use

Do you have a bad driving record and need cheap insurance? Check out this guide.

Helpful Boston, Massachusetts Vehicle Resources:

Live Traffic Accidents by City
https://www.mass.gov/info-details/massachusetts-traffic-map

DMV (Find Locations, Vehicle Registration, Titles and Insurance Info)
https://www.mass.gov/orgs/massachusetts-registry-of-motor-vehicles

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