Prius insurance costs - your experiences ??

[curtissac]

I am in northern CA - Sacramento. I have 500/300/100, UI motorists, med payments, etc. $500 deductables on comp and collision. The Prius is what I used for work travel at about 30,000 miles a year - something my insurer, Liberty Mutual is aware of. I also have chargeable accident but no cites (the accident totalled the car that the Prius replaced). My wife has a clean driving record but one comprehensive claim on a previous car.

We pay $1090 annually for the Prius. (Liberty writes annual policies)

Our 2005 Chrysler Pacifica costs $1029 per year for the same coverage (15K miles/yr.)

Our 2001 Hyundai Sonata, the totalled car, was about $800 a year if I remember correctly.

My 1995 Explorer, which I got rid of last summer, was about $500 a year, but I had dropped the collision and comp on it.

Keep in mind that premiums can vary by quite a bit even within a state. When I moved to Concord from Pleasanton, CA several years ago my premiums went up by 20%. That was a 25 mile move. When we first moved to Sacramento, our rates went down a bit. Rates can vary measurably from one side of Sacramento county to another. Just something to think about when you take an informal survey of premiums from around the country that it may not reflect what you would pay.

I remember comparing boat policies on another forum a few years ago. Folks in Florida with the same boat I had on the Delta in California were paying 4 times as much as me for the same coverage.





<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(piseas @ Sep 12 2006, 11:26 PM) [snapback]318781[/snapback]</div>

I am an insurance agent in CA. I sell a lot of Mercury Insurance. They are the lowest, PERIOD! Check them out.
[/b]

How are they with claims service (since your an agent)?

It was very coincidental that a colleague of mine brought up Mercury today when his cell phone rang but he couldn't take the call. He saw the number and said he thought it was his insurance company - Mercury. He said that they sent him a very formal note and left him a message because the address on the check he paid his premium with didn't match where is policy said he lived. They warned him that if he had moved, all of his coverage would be cancelled and could be driving without coverage right now... blah blah blah...

They were also the first company that demanded to inspect and photgraph his car before they would write a policy on it.

Wonder how they treat you when you have a claim.

[andreaswin]

[

hmm i tought it would be cheaper in the US...

i pay ca 390dollar for 6months full insurance. and the value for my prius in norway ca 50 000 dollars...


cheers
Ola Andreas


quote name='wtfjr' date='Sep 13 2006, 03:47 AM' post='318713']
Hi All
When we received the auto insurance for our new '06 Prius, we were surprised that it cost more to insure than the 2005 Denali & the 2005 PT convertible.
It costs here in FL, $453 for six months with full coverage with $500,000 & $500,000 & $300,000 with a $500. deductible. The PT runs $441 & the Denali was $421.
This was a real shock to us.
Your comments ?

PS: the Denali has been sold !!
[/quote]

[kDB]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mywhitenoise @ Sep 13 2006, 01:00 AM) [snapback]318811[/snapback]</div>

It will cost me $1,200 for 6 months through 21st.com. That was the lowest price I could find through 10 different sources.

How do you guys get rates so low!? Or is it just because i'm 21 years old, male, and in CA?
[/b]

initially i was paying ~$800 for 6 months through progressive. i had some stuff show up on my driving record due to an identity theft problem that should not have been there. when they finally were removed progressive would only lower $25. so i went to state farm. $560 for six months, that was about what i was paying for my firebird with only liability.

i can see that being correct if you haven't had insurance on a car in a year, plus have some stuff on your record.

btw. i'm a 26 year old single male. $2000/$2000 deductable (i know, i know...) and remember, most of the people on here with great rates are over 30, married, and have homeowners discounts.

[galaxee]

i'm the primary driver of the prius- we've got liability (obviously) collision and comprehensive 100/300/100 with 500 deductible. actually considering dropping that to 250 since we have less spare cash now than we did then.

anyway i'm a 23 year old female, married and have no accidents or speeding tickets in the past 6 years. rate in NC is $108/mo for the prius and liability on DH's 89 camry.

[iaowings]

I was living in NC (Jacksonville a military town) paying 936 for 6 months. I moved 4 hours north and am paying 254 for 6 months. Same coverage same driver.

[Visith]

$780/yr for 300/100 with a $500 deductable. I think I get a slight discount for being a several year "safe driver". The insurance ended up being a little cheaper than the 2002 Dodge Ram the Prius replaced. 30yo male, in a fairly low crime area. I am a homeowner but I don't think that factors into my policy at all.

[kDB]

the homeowners discount is when you have your homeowners insurance through the same company, they discount both your homeowners rates, and your auto rates a small amount. same goes for renters insurance, by having both my renters and auto through state farm, i save $12 a year on renters ($133 instead of $145), and some more on my auto. but i don't see the paper that says how much i saved on auto right now.

[Soylent]

Miami, Florida. Costs me $100 a month.

[jburns]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(galaxee @ Sep 13 2006, 09:29 AM) [snapback]318876[/snapback]</div>

i'm the primary driver of the prius- we've got liability (obviously) collision and comprehensive 100/300/100 with 500 deductible. actually considering dropping that to 250 since we have less spare cash now than we did then.

[/b]

Dropping the deductible is a bad idea. It would be foolish to use your insurance for a small damage claim because they would raise your rates for the next three years. For example, lets say you have a 250 deductible and have a fender bender that will cost 750 to repair. If you turn it in to your insurance company you will pay the first 250 and they will pay the 500. BUT....for the next three years your insurance rates will jump around 20 percent. Worse, if you own more than one car the rate will jump on all of them. You might as well get a 500 dollar loan from a loan shark.

Here's what I do and have done for years. Take one of those no annual fee credit card offers you get and get the card. I have a credit limit set to the total of all my deductibles, cars and homowners. Raise your deductible for your cars to 1000. Your premium will be significantly lower. Just don't forget to get the card out every 6 months or so and buy something to keep it active. In effect you are insuring yourself free for the amount of your deductibles and also lowering your costs without increasing your risk.

[haye]

All State, Bay Area. The rate for my 06 Prius is cheaper than both my previous cars (a 97 Prizm and a 02 Outback) for the same coverage. I was surprised that it is even cheaper than my 9 year old econobox.

EDIT: I'm with All State, not state farm as I mentioned.