How Does Your Car or Truck Affect Your Insurance Rates?

The Corona Virus pandemic has reduced car and truck traffic to a trickle across the world. It’s nice that our air is so clean lately, but it’s a shame drivers are overpaying for car and truck insurance they’re not even using.

Before you buy your next car or truck you may want to check out what the insurance cost will be.  Your insurance provider may tack on a huge amount to your premium when you ask for an insurance quote.  Why would the type of vehicle have an impact on your rates? That vehicle can’t be anymore difficult or risky to drive could it?

Insurance underwriters examine quite a few factors in making their assessment of driver risk and each insurance company is free to charge what they believe is reasonable for specific factors such as the make and model of your vehicle. If you don’t like the rates they charge then you should switch your insurance company now.

Does your vehicle say something about how you typically drive? Is a Jeep Wrangler driver any less likely to have an accident or make a claim on car insurance than a Ford F-250 Super Duty?

One of the reasons for that disparity might have to do with the cost of the vehicle itself. A Jeep Wrangler might sell for $24,000 while the Ford-250 might sell for a hefty $50,000 with all the bells and whistles.

When that Ford F-250 is stolen and chopped for parts, it’s a big, unrecoverable loss for the insurance company. When in an accident, the repair costs will be big just like the truck. The big trucks are more difficult to drive and they’re often used to haul boats and trailers. These and more factors point to more expensive insurance rates.

Here are the 5 most costly pickup trucks to Insure according to our friends at insure.com.

  1. Ford F-250 Super Duty Lariat 4WD Crew Cab V-8 Turbo Diesel (with long bed): Yearly average insurance premiums annually: $1600
  2. GMC Sierra 3500HD Denali 4WD Four-Door Crew Cab V-8 Diesel: Yearly average insurance rate: $1,677.13
  3. Ford F-350 Super Duty Lariat 4WD Crew Cab V-8 Turbo Diesel (with long bed): Yearly average insurance rate: $1,703.43
  4. Dodge Ram 3500 Laramie Longhorn 4WD Four-Door Crew Cab V-8: Yearly average insurance rate: $1,761.24
  5. Dodge Ram 2500 Laramie Longhorn 4WD Four-Door Crew Cab V-8: Yearly average insurance rate: $1,775.44

The 5 Least Costly Cars to Insure

Now to provide contrast to the insurance picture, let’s see what the NerdWallet people found to be the 5 least expensive cars to insure:

  1. Honda Odyssey $1,015 per annum
  2. Honda CR-V $1,041  per annum
  3. Ford Escape $1,044 per annum
  4. Jeep Cherokee $1,045  per annum
  5. Jeep Wrangler $1,086  per annum

In the above auto and truck insurance examples, the calculations are based on a typical driver, with a fairly good credit and driving record. The situation for a high risk driver commuting in highly congested traffic to work every day is likely to spread those number even wider. Choice of vehicle can have a big impact on auto insurance rates or truck insurance rates.

How To Save on Auto Insurance

The number 1 way to save on auto insurance in 2020 is to shop around for the best automobile insurance rates. Each insurance company views your circumstances and worthiness differently so you need to find the one that likes you. Sign on with the best insurance companies which actually want your business, and they’re going to raise your rates as time passes, not lower them.

  1. buy an older inexpensive vehicle to work
  2. don’t carry collision on that old car or truck
  3. sign up for usage-based auto insurance
  4. buy a good anti-theft device
  5. choose a vehicle that typically isn’t stolen if you live in bad neighbourhood

 

Check out insurance liability coverage on your policy. Infographic courtesy of
Check out insurance liability coverage on your policy. Infographic courtesy of liabilityinsurance.org