Which Company Has the Lowest Cost of Car Insurance in Albuquerque?
Approximately 560,000 people call Albuquerque, New Mexico home. It’s the state’s largest city, located in the high desert. The mean travel time to work for these residents is 21.2 minutes, five minutes less than the national average of 26.6 minutes. This means that a single-car household would spend at least 216 minutes in the car just for their commute to work and a 2-vehicle household will spend more like 430 minutes in the car on their way to work. When you add in grocery trips and driving for school activities and entertainment, the total comes out to more than 500 minutes spent driving, often in busy traffic.
Unfortunately, in 2018 Albuquerque ranked number one for the number of vehicle thefts in the US, based on the number of vehicles stolen per capita, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau. There were 7,146 vehicle thefts in this year. The per capita was 780.19, meaning that there were that many thefts for each 100k residents.
Each of these factors, and many more, affect how much you will pay for your insurance premiums. It could even be affected by your zip code or exact address within the city, based on the number of accidents nearby or thefts within a particular neighborhood.
What is Required for Albuquerque Drivers?
New Mexico requires drivers to carry at least $25,000 worth of insurance per person for bodily injury liability insurance, and $50,000 in insurance to cover all bodily injury liability insurance in a single accident. Drivers must also buy a minimum of $10,000 in property damage insurance to pay for damage done to another vehicle or other property if they are at fault.
While these are the minimum requirements, it may be wise to purchase additional insurance coverage. This is especially true if you own your home or have other personal assets. If you get into an accident and do not have sufficient insurance, you place your personal assets at risk in the event of a lawsuit.
While New Mexico does not require motorists to purchase collision and comprehensive coverage, if you lease your vehicle or still owe payments on it, the lessor or lender will mandate such insurance to protect their investment.
Most Expensive and Least Expensive Insurance Rates by Zip Code
Cheap Car Insurance in Albuquerque by Insurer
Before searching for a cheap car insurance quote, you’ll need to collect certain documentation. While you only need your age and zip code for a basic quote, once you decide to purchase a policy, the insurance company will need more information. That information can change the amount of the premium. For example, if your driving history includes recent violations, you can expect to pay more for car insurance. The same holds true if your car insurance has lapsed.
How are insurance rates determined and getting cheap insurance close by.
Low Cost Auto Insurance for Bad Credit in Albuquerque
Drivers with bad credit will pay more for car insurance than those with good credit scores. Insurance companies view motorists with bad credit as higher risk customers. There are some auto insurance companies who specialize in providing drivers with less than stellar credit with affordable car insurance.
Do you have bad credit and need car insurance? Check out this guide to help you in your search.
Full Coverage Vs. Liability Coverage
What is Liability Only Coverage?
Liability-only coverage is the cheapest option for automobile insurance. This coverage level only covers vehicles that are not at fault in an accident. Thus, if you carry liability-only coverage and cause an accident, the other driver will be covered by your policy. Any damage done to your car must be covered out of pocket, if at all.
What is Full Coverage?
Liability-only insurance is the least amount of insurance that one can purchase. This satisfies your legal requirement to drive and register your vehicle in New Mexico. For many people, this is not sufficient coverage because it does not cover their losses if they are at fault and do damage to their own vehicle or if they sustain damages in a hit-and-run or from an uninsured driver.
Collision covers when one is at fault and their own vehicle is damaged. If you have a car that is worth more than a few thousand dollars, it is often a wise investment to buy collision insurance each year. However, collision insurance coverage is pricey and will increase your insurance cost per year quite drastically.
Comprehensive covers those oddball things that happen that you cannot control, like damaged windshields and collision with animals on the road. It also covers your loss when someone purposely damages your vehicle in an act of vandalism. In addition, comprehensive covers theft of your vehicle, fire and weather, or acts of nature. An example of the latter would be if your car was crushed under a tree that fell in a wind storm.
What You Need to Know About the Differences Between the Car Insurance Types
The chief distinction between full and liability coverage is that full coverage ensures that any damage done to your car can be covered by insurance. Liability insurance only protects you from claims when you are at-fault in an accident. You will still need to pay for any damage to your own car, you just won’t have to pay for damage you caused to another person’s car. Full coverage can cover damage to your car even if the other driver is not insured and cannot compensate you for damages.
Finally, all states require that you carry at least a liability insurance policy so that collision victims receive compensation in the event of an accident. At-fault drivers are likewise protected from claims resulting from an automobile accident.
Average Annual Car Insurance Rates in New Mexico by City
Additional cities in New Mexico you can check out.
Las Cruces
Rio Rancho
Car Insurance Discounts to Lower Your Policy Rates
Find additional ways to save on your Albuquerque car insurance premiums with these insurance discounts:
-
Shop around –
As you can see from these few examples, the rates insurers charge for the very same driver demographics can vary incredibly. The television commercials by the insurers tell us we can save hundreds of dollars on automobile insurance. Actually, you could save a thousand or more dollars on your insurance each year.
-
Drive defensively –
If you can stay out of accidents and don’t accrue moving violations, you can save a lot of money on your automobile insurance. People with too many accidents and moving violations have trouble getting insured at any rate.
-
Drive an older car –
If you have a car that is too old and not worth enough to carry collision insurance, you can save quite a bit of money. This especially applies to younger drivers whose insurance costs are much higher. If they can drive an older vehicle that would just require liability insurance and maybe some inexpensive comprehensive insurance, they can save at least a thousand dollars or more on insurance.
-
Buy collision insurance with a high deductible rate –
The higher deductible rate you can tolerate in the event of a collision and the need to repair your vehicle, the lower your collision insurance cost will be. Your collision insurance rate will be really high if your deductible is only around $500. If you can tolerate $1,500 or so, you can save quite a bit of money on this portion of your annual insurance rate.
-
Bundle your home and automobile insurance policies –
If you can buy your automobile and home insurance from the same company, you will likely save money. Most insurers offer a substantial discount for having your home and auto policy with them.
Learn more about driver discounts for car insurance rates here.
Reasons that Affect Your Automobile Insurance Rates in Albuquerque NM
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
How to tickets and accidents affect your driving record and insurance?
Check Out Car Insurance Companies in Albuquerque and Reviews
Helpful Albuquerque, New Mexico Vehicle Resources:
Live Traffic Accidents by City
https://www.nmroads.com/mapIndex.html?
DMV in New Mexico (Find Locations, Vehicle Registration, Titles and Insurance Info)
http://www.mvd.newmexico.gov/
Rideshare
https://www.lyft.com/rider/cities/albuquerque-nm
https://www.uber.com/global/en/cities/albuquerque/