For poor drivers, one of the largest criteria that determine car insurance rates is your zip code. Cities with more crime and/or more people tend to pay slightly more, whereas areas with lower crime rates and fewer weather claims have the benefit of cheaper auto insurance prices.
The table below shows the priciest cities in Arizona for low income drivers to purchase car insurance in. Scottsdale is listed at #9 with the annual price of $1,117 for coverage, which is approximately $93 monthly.
| Rank | City | Annual Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Phoenix | $1,231 |
| 2 | Glendale | $1,226 |
| 3 | San Tan Valley | $1,196 |
| 4 | Avondale | $1,186 |
| 5 | Mesa | $1,159 |
| 6 | Buckeye | $1,156 |
| 7 | Peoria | $1,137 |
| 8 | Tempe | $1,118 |
| 9 | Scottsdale | $1,117 |
| 10 | Gilbert | $1,108 |
| 11 | Goodyear | $1,098 |
| 12 | Tucson | $1,094 |
| 13 | Casa Grande | $1,089 |
| 14 | Chandler | $1,082 |
| 15 | Maricopa | $1,074 |
| 16 | Catalina Foothills | $1,072 |
| 17 | Casas Adobes | $1,072 |
| 18 | Oro Valley | $1,062 |
| 19 | Surprise | $1,048 |
| 20 | Flagstaff | $969 |
| 21 | Yuma | $954 |
| 22 | Prescott | $914 |
| 23 | Bullhead City | $905 |
| 24 | Lake Havasu City | $878 |
| 25 | Sierra Vista | $863 |
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Annual rates are approximated as the vehicle garaging location can affect price quotes considerably.
Finding good, cheap insurance is not the easiest thing to do, and determining which insurers offer the most affordable auto insurance rates for low income drivers calls for even more rate comparisons. Every car insurance company has their own process for establishing rates, so we’ll go over the lowest cost auto insurance companies in Scottsdale.
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| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Hartford | $820 |
| 2 | Auto-Owners | $897 |
| 3 | Safeco | $932 |
| 4 | Travelers | $1,108 |
| 5 | USAA | $1,113 |
| 6 | GEICO | $1,131 |
| 7 | Progressive | $1,152 |
| 8 | Ameriprise Group | $1,172 |
| 9 | CSAA | $1,189 |
| 10 | Allied | $1,209 |
| 11 | Farm Bureau Mutual | $1,285 |
| 12 | Unitrin | $1,303 |
| 13 | Safe Auto | $1,323 |
| 14 | Farmers | $1,350 |
| 15 | State Farm | $1,364 |
| 16 | Titan | $1,418 |
| 17 | American Family | $1,420 |
| 18 | Amica | $1,443 |
| 19 | MetLife | $1,521 |
| 20 | California Casualty | $1,552 |
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The Hartford has some of the lowest car insurance rates in Scottsdale at around $820 a year. Auto-Owners, Safeco, Travelers, and USAA also are some of the most economical Scottsdale, AZ auto insurance companies.
As the example above demonstrates, if you are a customer of Travelers and switched to The Hartford, you might achieve a yearly savings of around $288. Arizona drivers with USAA could save as much as $293 a year, and GEICO policyholders might lower prices by $311 a year.
To find the cheapest rates for your vehicle, click here to begin a quote or visit any of the low-priced companies below.
Understand that those estimates are averaged for all drivers and vehicles and and are not figured with an exact vehicle garaging location for low income drivers. So the car insurance company that fits your situation best may not even be in the list above. That underscores the importance of why you need to get auto insurance quotes using your own personalized driver profile and vehicle information.
How careless driving impacts auto insurance rates
The obvious way to find the best auto insurance premiums for poor drivers is to drive safe and avoid getting tickets or having accidents. The chart below shows how traffic citations and at-fault collisions can raise auto insurance rates for different age groups of insureds. The premiums assume a married male driver, full coverage, $250 deductibles, and no other discounts are factored in.
In the previous chart, the average cost of car insurance in Scottsdale per year with no violations or accidents is $1,349. Get two speeding tickets and the average cost jumps to $1,860, an increase of $511 each year. Then include one accident along with the two speeding tickets and the 12-month cost of auto insurance for low income drivers goes up to an average of $2,368. That’s an increase of $1,019, or $85 per month, just for a couple of infractions!
Discounts on Scottsdale car insurance
Insurers that offer cheap quotes for low income drivers could also offer discounts that may potentially lower prices by as much as 40% or more if you meet specific criteria. Popular auto insurance companies and a summarized list of policyholder discounts are:
- The Hartford policyholders can earn discounts including driver training, bundle, good student, defensive driver, and vehicle fuel type.
- American Family offers discounts for defensive driver, multi-vehicle, TimeAway discount, accident-free, mySafetyValet, good student, and Steer into Savings.
- Progressive may offer discounts for multi-vehicle, online quote discount, multi-policy, good student, homeowner, continuous coverage, and online signing.
- Travelers offers premium reductions for early quote, good student, continuous insurance, student away at school, multi-policy, new car, and payment discounts.
- Farmers Insurance may have discounts that include electronic funds transfer, pay in full, early shopping, business and professional, mature driver, bundle discounts, and switch companies.
- USAA offers discounts including multi-policy, new vehicle, driver training, loyalty savings, multi-vehicle, and safe driver.
- Liberty Mutual has discounts for new move discount, teen driver discount, multi-car, good student, and new graduate.
The chart below compares insurance rates with and without discounts applied to the premium. The premium estimates are based on a female driver, a clean driving record, no claims, Arizona state minimum liability limits, comp and collision included, and $500 deductibles.
The first bar for each age group shows insurance cost with no discounts. The lower bar shows the rates with homeowner, multiple vehicle, multiple policy, marriage, safe-driver, and passive restraint discounts applied. When these discounts are applied to the policy premium, the average amount saved each year on auto insurance for low income drivers is 28% or $406.
Should you buy full coverage?
Saving money on auto insurance is important to the majority of drivers, and one of the fastest ways to lower the cost of insurance for low income drivers is to buy only liability coverage. The diagram below illustrates the difference between car insurance rates with and without physical damage coverage. The rate quotes are based on no violations or claims, $1,000 deductibles, drivers are single, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
If averaged out across all ages, comp and collision coverage costs an extra $1,681 per year over and above liability coverage. At some point, every insured wonders if paying for full coverage is a waste of money. There is no exact formula for excluding comp and collision coverage, but there is a general guideline you can use. If the annual cost of coverage is about 10% or more of the replacement cost minus the deductible, then you may need to consider dropping full coverage.
Why you should be shopping around
Scottsdale, AZ auto insurance rates are determined by lots of factors that may substantially change the cost of coverage. Improving your credit score, increasing deductibles, or getting a ticket for running a stop sign can produce rate changes resulting in some rates now being cheaper than before. Not only may your situation change, but companies file new rates as needed to adjust for heavy claims or excess profits. Higher than normal claims can result in high rates, while a better loss history can produce more affordable Scottsdale car insurance rates.
To illustrate this example, the bar chart below shows the cheapest car insurance in Scottsdale, AZ for a 35-year-old male driver with a clear driving record, no claims, and great credit. When comparing rates based on his current situation, The Hartford might offer the cheapest car insurance rates in Scottsdale at $1,140 each year. This is $288 less than the average premium paid by Arizona drivers of $1,428. Auto-Owners, Safeco, USAA, and Progressive are the rest of the most affordable Scottsdale, AZ auto insurance companies.
In this next rate comparison, we will give the driver from above an at-fault accident, a lower credit rating, and a few blemishes on his driving record. Since each insurance company uses their own method to determining premium rates, getting updated rate quotes may now result in a different set of cheap Scottsdale auto insurance companies as shown below.
GEICO now has the best auto insurance rate in Scottsdale, AZ with Ameriprise Group, CSAA, Auto-Owners, and Safeco also being competitive. This example shows why Scottsdale drivers need to compare lots of rates when trying to find the most economical car insurance rates for low income drivers. Rates are made up of many risk factors and change frequently, so the best option the last time you checked may now cost much more than other companies.