The words “economical” and “insurance” really don’t belong together, in particular when you are looking for the cheapest auto insurance for good students. In an attempt to save some money, let’s start off by going over some of the things that impact auto insurance premiums, and see if you can take the bite out of the next policy you buy.
One of the more important criteria that determine the price you pay for insurance is where your residence is in Virginia Beach. Cities with larger populations tend to pay more, whereas areas with lower crime rates and fewer weather claims benefit from lower coverage costs.
The information below shows the priciest cities in Virginia for good students to purchase a policy in. Virginia Beach is ranked #14 having an annual price of $938 for the average insured, which is about $78 per month.
| Rank | City | Average Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Burke | $1,057 |
| 2 | Dale City | $1,038 |
| 3 | Alexandria | $1,036 |
| 4 | Centreville | $1,027 |
| 5 | McLean | $1,025 |
| 6 | Richmond | $1,015 |
| 7 | Arlington | $1,003 |
| 8 | Lake Ridge | $1,002 |
| 9 | Norfolk | $1,000 |
| 10 | Hampton | $972 |
| 11 | Reston | $963 |
| 12 | Newport News | $948 |
| 13 | Portsmouth | $943 |
| 14 | Virginia Beach | $938 |
| 15 | Tuckahoe | $929 |
| 16 | Suffolk | $928 |
| 17 | Chesapeake | $926 |
| 18 | Charlottesville | $922 |
| 19 | Danville | $912 |
| 20 | Leesburg | $904 |
| 21 | Ashburn | $902 |
| 22 | Lynchburg | $877 |
| 23 | Harrisonburg | $800 |
| 24 | Blacksburg | $799 |
| 25 | Roanoke | $799 |
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Rate information is approximated as the vehicle garaging location can influence insurance rates considerably.
The vehicle model you are trying to insure is a large consideration that determines if you can find low-priced coverage for good students. Vehicles with reasonable performance levels, an excellent safety record, or low incidents of liability claims will cost substantially less to insure than fast, unsafe models.
The information below presents car insurance premiums for some of the most cost-effective automobiles to insure.
| Make and Model | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Ford Escape XLS 2WD | $4,438 |
| Honda CR-V EX 4WD | $4,479 |
| Toyota Prius | $4,791 |
| Honda Odyssey LX | $4,956 |
| Volkswagen Jetta SE 2.5 Station Wagon | $5,059 |
| Ford Edge SEL 2WD | $5,227 |
| Ford Focus S 4-Dr Sedan | $5,236 |
| Toyota Tacoma 2WD | $5,227 |
| Nissan Altima 2.5 4-Dr Sedan | $5,268 |
| Ford Fusion S 4-Dr Sedan | $5,274 |
| Toyota RAV4 Sport 2WD | $5,268 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan Hero | $5,277 |
| Chevrolet Impala LT | $5,268 |
| Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer 4WD | $5,309 |
| Ford F-150 Lariat Super Cab 2WD | $5,315 |
| Honda Civic EX 4-Dr Sedan | $5,496 |
| Hyundai Elantra SE 4-Dr Sedan | $5,537 |
| Toyota Corolla S | $5,547 |
| Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sport 2WD 4-Dr | $5,546 |
| Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8 4WD | $5,578 |
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Data assumes single female driver age 16, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and Virginia minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Premium amounts do not factor in vehicle garaging location which can decrease or increase auto insurance rates noticeably.
Looking at the numbers, we can tell that vehicles like the Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, Toyota Prius, and Honda Odyssey are most likely to be a few of the most economical vehicles to insure for student drivers.
Comparing rates for low-priced auto insurance is not the easiest thing to do, and finding out which company has the cheapest car insurance rates for good students requires even more perseverance. Each insurance company has a unique approach to determine premium rates, so we’ll go over the car insurance companies that tend to be cheaper in Virginia.
Lowest Insurance Price Quotes for Students
| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Travelers | $659 |
| 2 | USAA | $695 |
| 3 | Penn National | $718 |
| 4 | Cincinnati Insurance | $755 |
| 5 | The Hartford | $785 |
| 6 | Auto-Owners | $788 |
| 7 | Erie | $788 |
| 8 | Utica National | $788 |
| 9 | Virginia Farm Bureau | $826 |
| 10 | Donegal Mutual | $886 |
| 11 | Nationwide | $963 |
| 12 | ALFA | $1,018 |
| 13 | Allied | $1,022 |
| 14 | GEICO | $1,026 |
| 15 | Chubb | $1,101 |
| 16 | National Grange Mutual | $1,104 |
| 17 | State Farm | $1,143 |
| 18 | Electric | $1,192 |
| 19 | Progressive | $1,259 |
| 20 | Amica | $1,267 |
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Travelers quotes some of the best car insurance rates in Virginia Beach at around $659 per year. USAA, Penn National, Cincinnati Insurance, and The Hartford are also some of the lowest-priced Virginia Beach, VA car insurance companies.
As illustrated above, if you are a customer of Cincinnati Insurance and switched to USAA, you could earn yearly savings of upwards of $60. Customers with The Hartford might save as much as $90 a year, and Auto-Owners customers might reduce prices by as much as $93 a year.
These prices are averaged for all types of drivers and the different vehicles they drive and and are not calculated with an exact zip code location for good students. So the car insurance company that fits your situation best may not even be in the list above. That is why you need to compare prices as often as possible using your own driver information and specific vehicle type.
How to get discounts on Virginia Beach car insurance rates
Auto insurance companies that sell policies for good students may additionally offer policy discounts that could reduce prices by as much as 40% or more if you meet specific criteria. Large car insurance companies and some of the discounts include:
- Farm Bureau offers discounts for multi-policy, youthful driver, multi-vehicle, renewal discount, driver training, safe driver, and good student.
- MetLife has savings for claim-free, defensive driver, good driver, good student, accident-free, multi-policy
- Progressive has discounts for online signing, continuous coverage, homeowner, online quote discount, multi-policy, good student, and multi-vehicle.
- AAA may include discounts for good student, multi-car, anti-theft, pay-in-full, good driver, education and occupation, and AAA membership discount.
- American Family offers discounts including multi-vehicle, air bags, early bird, mySafetyValet, Steer into Savings, accident-free, and bundled insurance.
- GEICO discounts include membership and employees, emergency military deployment, air bags, military active duty, five-year accident-free, and anti-lock brakes.
- State Farm policyholders can earn discounts including good driver, accident-free, defensive driving training, passive restraint, anti-theft, multiple autos, and Drive Safe & Save.
The example below illustrates the difference between insurance premiums with and without discounts applied to the rates. The information is based on a female driver, no violations or accidents, Virginia state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $1,000 deductibles.
The first bar for each age group shows the price with no discounts. The second bar shows the rates with anti-theft, paperless filing, continuous coverage, good student, paid-in-full, and passive restraint discounts applied. With discounts applied, theaverage yearly reduction on car insurance for good students is 28% or $375.
Careless drivers pay higher rates
The best way to find good car insurance premiums in Virginia for student drivers is to be an attentive driver and avoid accidents and traffic violations. The example below shows how traffic citations and fender-benders impact insurance premiums for different age groups of insureds. The information is based on a single female driver, full coverage, $500 deductibles, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
In the previous example, the average cost of car insurance per year with a clean driving record and no accidents is $1,546. Get two speeding tickets and the average cost surges to $2,066, an increase of $520 each year. Then add two accidents along with the two speeding tickets and the yearly cost of car insurance for good students goes up to an average of $4,116. That’s an increase of $2,570, or $214 per month, just for being a less-than-perfect driver!
Why you should be shopping around
Virginia Beach car insurance rates are impacted by many factors that will increase or decrease the price you pay for coverage. Simply improving your credit, moving across town, or getting a driving violation can trigger price changes that can now make some companies cheaper than others.
Not only may your situation change, but insurance companies change rates as often as every three months in order to protect their financial rating. Unexpectedly high claims can cause more expensive prices, while lower claim expenses can cause lower-priced Virginia Beach car insurance rates.
To illustrate this example, the bar chart below shows which companies have the cheapest car insurance in Virginia Beach, VA for a 35-year-old female driver with no prior accidents, a clean driving record, and excellent credit. When comparing rates based on her current risk profile, Travelers might quote the best car insurance rates in Virginia Beach at $783 a year. This is $375 less than the average policy premium paid by Virginia drivers of $1,158. USAA, Penn National, Cincinnati Insurance, and Utica National are also on the list of the cheapest Virginia Beach, VA auto insurance companies.
Now we will pretend the driver from the first set of rates a chargeable accident, a lower credit rating, and a few blemishes on her driving record. Since every insurance provider uses their own method to set policy rates, comparing prices could now result in a substantially altered list of companies as shown below.
Auto-Owners now has the cheapest price in Virginia Beach with Virginia Farm Bureau, The Hartford, Donegal Mutual, and Nationwide now being in the top five. This example shows why consumers need to perform a complete rate comparison to find the most affordable auto insurance quotes for good students.
Insurance rates consist of many risk factors and change frequently, so the best price six months ago may now be one of the more expensive options.