The words “cheap” and “insurance” really should not be used together, in particular when you are shopping around for the best price on coverage for drivers with a bad driving record. Because it’s so expensive, let’s get started by showing you a few of the things that impact car insurance prices, and come up with some ways to lower the price of the next policy you buy.
One of the more important factors that aid in calculating the cost of insurance is where you keep your vehicle. Areas with increased crime or more people tend to have more expensive car insurance rates, whereas areas with fewer weather claims and lower vehicle theft rates get the luxury of paying less.
The illustration below sorts the highest-priced areas in Kentucky for drivers with a bad driving record to buy auto insurance in. Lexington ranks #21 with an annual cost of $1,454 for the average insurance policy, which is around $121 per month.
| Rank | City | Annual Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Louisville | $2,176 |
| 2 | Frankfort | $1,778 |
| 3 | Jeffersontown | $1,719 |
| 4 | Ashland | $1,707 |
| 5 | Saint Matthews | $1,694 |
| 6 | Paducah | $1,647 |
| 7 | Murray | $1,613 |
| 8 | Madisonville | $1,600 |
| 9 | Radcliff | $1,590 |
| 10 | Georgetown | $1,551 |
| 11 | Danville | $1,549 |
| 12 | Elizabethtown | $1,547 |
| 13 | Henderson | $1,541 |
| 14 | Richmond | $1,535 |
| 15 | Covington | $1,532 |
| 16 | Nicholasville | $1,504 |
| 17 | Winchester | $1,501 |
| 18 | Hopkinsville | $1,478 |
| 19 | Independence | $1,466 |
| 20 | Fort Thomas | $1,455 |
| Compare Prices Now Go | ||
Information shown are comparative as the specific area where the vehicle is garaged can raise or lower premium rates greatly.
The make and model of vehicle to be insured is a significant factor when trying to find low-priced auto insurance for drivers with a bad driving record. Vehicles with limited speed and performance, good safety features, or a track record of few liability claims will cost significantly less to insure than fast, unsafe models. The table below shows car insurance premiums for a handful of the most economical automobiles to insure.
| Vehicle | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Honda CR-V LX 2WD | $3,163 |
| Ford Escape Limited 2WD | $3,239 |
| Toyota Prius | $3,303 |
| Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer 2WD | $3,471 |
| Toyota Tacoma 4WD | $3,575 |
| Ford F-150 STX Regular Cab 4WD | $3,581 |
| Volkswagen Jetta SE 2.5 Station Wagon | $3,607 |
| Chevrolet Impala LT | $3,636 |
| Ford Edge SEL 2WD | $3,711 |
| Honda Civic LX 4-Dr Sedan | $3,766 |
| Chevrolet Equinox LS 2WD | $3,782 |
| GMC Sierra SLE Regular Cab 2WD | $3,791 |
| Nissan Altima 2.5 4-Dr Sedan | $3,782 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan Hero | $3,787 |
| Toyota RAV4 Sport 4WD | $3,782 |
| Chevrolet Malibu LT | $3,787 |
| Ford Focus SES 4-Dr Sedan | $3,883 |
| Hyundai Elantra GLS 4-Dr Sedan | $3,921 |
| Honda Odyssey EX-L W/Rear Entertainment | $3,946 |
| Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited 2WD | $3,958 |
| Dodge Ram Quad Cab SLT 4WD | $3,985 |
| Chevrolet Silverado LTZ Crew Cab 4WD | $3,988 |
| Toyota Corolla XRS | $3,995 |
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Data based on single male driver age 40, two speeding tickets, two at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and Kentucky minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, multi-policy, and homeowner. Price estimates do not factor in specific garaging location which can increase or decrease coverage rates significantly.
By looking at the data, models like the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Toyota Prius, and Ford Explorer are likely to be a few of the cheapest vehicles to insure for bad drivers. Rates will tend to be more expensive anyway because of the fact that there is more claim exposure for drivers with a bad driving record, but in general those vehicles will have the lowest insurance rates available.
Get discounts on Lexington auto insurance rates
Car insurance companies that provide policies for drivers with a bad driving record may provide rate discounts that can reduce rates by 25% or more if you meet the requirements. Larger car insurance companies and a partial list of their discounts are:
- GEICO may include discounts for multi-policy, emergency military deployment, multi-vehicle, air bags, and anti-theft.
- MetLife may offer discounts for multi-policy, accident-free, good driver, good student, claim-free, and defensive driver.
- State Farm has discounts for multiple policy, good student, good driver, anti-theft, safe vehicle, passive restraint, and Drive Safe & Save.
- Progressive discounts include multi-policy, homeowner, multi-vehicle, online quote discount, online signing, good student, and continuous coverage.
- Mercury Insurance policyholders can earn discounts including accident-free, multi-car, good student, multi-policy, professional/association, and low natural disaster claims.
- 21st Century offers discounts including good student, teen driver, homeowners, automatic seat belts, and theft prevention.
- Allstate may have discounts that include senior citizen, auto/life discount, economy car, good payer, passive restraint, and safe driver.
The illustration below illustrates the difference between insurance prices with and without discounts applied to the premium. The rate quotes are based on a male driver, one speeding ticket and two accidents, Kentucky state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $1,000 deductibles.
The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The lower bar shows the rates with multiple policy, homeowner, multiple vehicle, anti-theft, marriage, and paid-in-full discounts applied. When taking advantage of discounts, theaverage amount saved on car insurance for drivers with a bad driving record is 29% or $922.
Picking the right insurance provider is difficult considering how many companies there are in Lexington. The rank data displayed below can help you select which auto insurers you want to consider shopping prices with. The rankings below are only comprised of insurance companies that insure vehicles in the majority of U.S. states, so smaller regional companies will not be included in the list.
| Company | Value | Customer Service | Claims | Customer Satisfaction | A.M Best Rating | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travelers | 93 | 98 | 99 | 88% | A++ | 95.1 |
| USAA | 83 | 99 | 100 | 91% | A++ | 94.1 |
| AAA Insurance | 91 | 95 | 92 | 90% | A | 93.3 |
| Nationwide | 85 | 95 | 97 | 89% | A+ | 92.4 |
| Allstate | 77 | 100 | 97 | 88% | A+ | 90.7 |
| State Farm | 80 | 94 | 96 | 88% | A++ | 90.6 |
| The Hartford | 88 | 93 | 91 | 87% | A+ | 90.4 |
| Safeco Insurance | 91 | 95 | 85 | 88% | A | 90.2 |
| Progressive | 88 | 94 | 83 | 88% | A+ | 90.1 |
| American Family | 91 | 86 | 95 | 83% | A | 89.7 |
| Esurance | 86 | 90 | 94 | 90% | A+ | 89.5 |
| The General | 86 | 93 | 89 | 84% | A- | 88.2 |
| GEICO | 79 | 89 | 95 | 87% | A++ | 87.8 |
| 21st Century | 86 | 82 | 90 | 84% | A | 86.4 |
| Liberty Mutual | 79 | 87 | 95 | 78% | A | 85.3 |
| Erie Insurance | 87 | 84 | 85 | 85% | A+ | 85.3 |
| Farmers Insurance | 77 | 80 | 80 | 84% | A | 80.3 |
| Compare Rates Now Go | ||||||
Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies
Full coverage or liability only
Saving money on car insurance should be important to the majority of vehicle owners, and a good way to save on the cost of insurance for drivers with a bad driving record is to only buy liability insurance. The chart below shows the comparison of insurance costs with and without physical damage coverage. Data assumes no claims, a clean driving record, $1,000 deductibles, single marital status, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
Averaged for all ages 20 through 70, comp and collision coverage costs an additional $1,486 per year more than just buying liability only. That is a large expense which might make you wonder when is it a good idea to stop buying full coverage. There is no set guideline for eliminating physical damage coverage, but there is a guideline you can consider. If the yearly cost of comp and collision coverage is more than 10% of any settlement you would receive from your insurance company, then it might be time to buy liability only.
Don’t stick with an overpriced policy
Kentucky car insurance rates are calculated based on many things which can significantly increase or decrease the cost of a policy. Simply getting older, moving to a different location, or having a fender bender can cause premium changes resulting in some companies being cheaper than before.
Not only may your risk profile change, but companies file new rates without warning to adjust for unexpected claims or profits. A period of higher than normal claims can result in increased policy costs, while a better loss history can result in more affordable Lexington car insurance rates.
To illustrate this example, the bar chart below shows the cheapest car insurance in Lexington, KY for a 35-year-old male driver with a good driving record, no prior claims, and good financial standing. If we look at prices based on his current situation, Cincinnati Insurance offers the cheapest car insurance rates in Lexington at $1,132 a year. This is $1,011 less than the average rate paid by Kentucky drivers of $2,143. Kentucky Farm Bureau, USAA, Auto-Owners, and Motorists Mutual are the remaining cheapest Lexington, KY auto insurance companies.
In the next rate comparison, we’ll give the driver in the first example a claim, poor credit, and a couple of points charged on his driving record. Due to the fact that each insurance company uses a different method to establish rates, analyzing rate quotes could now result in a new list of the cheapest car insurance companies in Lexington as shown below.
USAA now has the best auto insurance rate in Lexington with Travelers, Kentucky Farm Bureau, State Farm, and Westfield also being competitive. This example demonstrates why it is critical to compare rates to find the most affordable car insurance rates for drivers with a bad driving record. Car insurance prices are impacted by many risk factors and change dramatically, so the best option six months ago may now be wasting a lot of money.