One of the many things that are looked at to determine the annual cost of car insurance is where you keep your vehicle in Los Angeles. Areas with more people or even just a higher incidence of claims tend to have higher auto insurance costs, whereas areas with lower vehicle theft rates and fewer weather claims benefit from lower rates.
The illustration below lists the priciest cities in California for first-time drivers to buy car insurance in. Los Angeles ranks #2 with a yearly cost of $2,104 for the average policy, which is around $175 monthly.
| Rank | City | Average Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glendale | $2,142 |
| 2 | Los Angeles | $2,104 |
| 3 | San Francisco | $1,763 |
| 4 | Oakland | $1,738 |
| 5 | Sacramento | $1,703 |
| 6 | San Bernardino | $1,644 |
| 7 | Long Beach | $1,626 |
| 8 | Stockton | $1,603 |
| 9 | Garden Grove | $1,570 |
| 10 | Riverside | $1,542 |
| 11 | Santa Clarita | $1,533 |
| 12 | Modesto | $1,532 |
| 13 | Fontana | $1,519 |
| 14 | Moreno Valley | $1,506 |
| 15 | Fresno | $1,502 |
| 16 | Santa Ana | $1,439 |
| 17 | Anaheim | $1,430 |
| 18 | San Jose | $1,423 |
| 19 | Huntington Beach | $1,416 |
| 20 | San Diego | $1,381 |
| 21 | Irvine | $1,371 |
| 22 | Bakersfield | $1,353 |
| 23 | Fremont | $1,348 |
| 24 | Chula Vista | $1,337 |
| 25 | Oxnard | $1,304 |
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Rate information is comparative as the specific garaging location can decrease or increase coverage prices noticeably.
The vehicle requiring insurance is a large factor when consumers are trying to find the best insurance for first-time drivers. Vehicles with higher performance, a lack of advanced safety features, or a track record of large liability claims will cost quite a bit more to insure than more economical and safe models. The information below estimates coverage rates for the cheaper automobiles to insure.
| Make and Model | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Honda CR-V LX 2WD | $8,360 |
| Ford Escape XLS 2WD | $8,368 |
| Volkswagen Jetta S 2.5 Station Wagon | $8,946 |
| Toyota Prius | $9,022 |
| Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 4WD 2-Dr | $9,404 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan SE | $9,413 |
| Ford Edge Limited 2WD | $9,838 |
| Honda Odyssey EX | $9,847 |
| Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 4WD | $9,914 |
| Chevrolet Impala LT | $9,919 |
| Toyota RAV4 4WD | $9,914 |
| Ford F-150 Lariat Super Cab 2WD | $9,989 |
| Chevrolet Malibu LT | $9,994 |
| Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer AWD | $9,989 |
| Ford Focus SEL 4-Dr Sedan | $10,345 |
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Above prices assume single female driver age 16, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include claim-free, and safe-driver. Price estimates do not factor in specific location information which can change coverage rates noticeably.
Looking at the data, you can expect models like the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Volkswagen Jetta, Toyota Prius, and Jeep Wrangler will be some of the more affordable vehicles to insure for new drivers. Car insurance rates will be more costly just because there is more claim risk for first-time drivers, but generally speaking those models will probably have the best rates that you’ll find.
Get discounts on Los Angeles car insurance
Insurers that provide policies for first-time drivers may also offer special discounts that may potentially lower prices by 25% or more if you are eligible. A list of companies and some of their more popular discounts are outlined below.
- State Farm may offer discounts for anti-theft, driver’s education, accident-free, Drive Safe & Save, defensive driving training, and multiple policy.
- Liberty Mutual has savings for safety features, multi-policy, new move discount, hybrid vehicle, new vehicle discount, and multi-car.
- American Family may include discounts for good driver, mySafetyValet, TimeAway discount, Steer into Savings, defensive driver, and good student.
- Progressive policyholders can earn discounts including good student, homeowner, continuous coverage, online quote discount, multi-policy, and multi-vehicle.
- Farmers Insurance offers discounts including youthful driver, teen driver, early shopping, good student, alternative fuel, electronic funds transfer, and multi-car.
- Auto-Owners Insurance may have discounts that include paperless, paid in full, safe driver, multi-policy, teen driver, multiple vehicles, and student away at school.
- SAFECO offers premium reductions for safe driver, homeowner, anti-theft, multi-car, and teen safe driver.
The information below visualizes the comparison of insurance prices with and without discounts. The premiums are based on a male driver, no claims or driving violations, California state minimum liability limits, full physical damage coverage, and $250 deductibles.
The first bar for each age group shows the average annual price with no discounts. The second bar shows the rates with continuous coverage, passive restraint, paperless filing, paid-in-full, good student, and vehicle safety discounts applied. When discounts are factored in, the average savings per year on car insurance for first-time drivers is 28% or $844.
The illustration below illustrates how your choice of deductibles can raise or lower premium costs when researching cheap insurance for first-time drivers. The rate quotes are based on a single male driver, comp and collision included, and no discounts are factored in.
A 50-year-old driver could save $362 a year by increasing from a $100 deductible to a $500 deductible, or save $546 by selecting a $1,000 deductible. Even younger drivers, such as the Age 20 example, could lower their rates $1,190 or more just by choosing larger deductibles. If you make the decision to raise deductibles, it will be necessary to have additional funds squirreled away to enable you to pay the extra out-of-pocket expense, which is the one inconvenience of using high deductibles.
Tips for finding the cheapest insurance for first-time drivers
Lowering your rates is not difficult, and here are some of the recommended money-saving solutions that can help California drivers locate more affordable coverage.
- Having at-fault accidents will increase rates
- Increase the comprehensive and collision deductibles on your policy
- Do not pay for full coverage if not needed
- Do not get traffic tickets
- Vehicles with safetly features generally cost less to insure
- Clean up your credit rating
- Compare prices as often as possible
That last idea is especially important, as we hit on in the article above. Coverage prices fluctuate considerably, so drivers shouldn’t be resistant to buy from a different company if a more affordable price is available.
Having brand loyalty is commendable, but we do not recommend it if that faithfulness ends up costing you potentially thousands of dollars a year. It only takes a couple minutes to shop around to find cheaper insurance for first-time drivers in Los Angeles.
If you wish to get some professional advice when comparing insurance rates for first-time drivers, the insurance agencies below are a good start to help you decide which auto insurance policy would work best for you. To locate a Los Angeles insurance agent by location nearest to you, click the link after the list or click here to compare price quotes.
- Warren Bell – State Farm Insurance Agent
1111 S Grand Ave #102 – Los Angeles, CA 90015 – (213) 741-6000 - Shomer Insurance Agency
4221 Wilshire Blvd #222 – Los Angeles, CA 90010 – (323) 934-8160 - Laura Mora – State Farm Insurance Agent
5858 N Figueroa St a – Los Angeles, CA 90042 – (323) 478-9346 - Daniel Williams – State Farm Insurance Agent
7944 W 3rd St – Los Angeles, CA 90048 – (323) 852-6868