It’s impossible to miss the ads from insurers like Liberty Mutual, Farmers, and Nationwide that claim dirt cheap rates, so you should just choose the one with the most memorable commercial, right?
It’s not that simple, unfortunately, as there are a lot of unknown elements like if you have any tickets or accidents, the amount of coverage you want, and the safety ratings of your vehicle, that all influence how much you pay for auto insurance. We will try to cover the best ways to maintain low rates and hopefully give you enough understanding to have a good start in finding the cheapest car insurance.
For teen drivers, one of the big components that aid in calculating the cost of insurance is where your residence is. Regions with larger populations or more claims likely pay more, whereas areas with fewer weather claims and lower vehicle theft rates can boast about having cheaper rates.
The illustration below lists the priciest cities in North Carolina for 18 year olds to buy an auto insurance policy in. Durham ranks #4 with a yearly cost of $797 for the average policy, which is about $66 monthly.
| Rank | City | Premium Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacksonville | $900 |
| 2 | Fayetteville | $896 |
| 3 | Charlotte | $816 |
| 4 | Durham | $797 |
| 5 | Wilmington | $788 |
| 6 | Gastonia | $787 |
| 7 | Raleigh | $767 |
| 8 | Huntersville | $764 |
| 9 | Greenville | $760 |
| 10 | Greensboro | $756 |
| 11 | High Point | $753 |
| 12 | Cary | $749 |
| 13 | Hickory | $740 |
| 14 | Apex | $739 |
| 15 | Goldsboro | $735 |
| 16 | Wilson | $724 |
| 17 | Indian Trail | $723 |
| 18 | Rocky Mount | $718 |
| 19 | Chapel Hill | $717 |
| 20 | Winston Salem | $716 |
| Quote Best Rates Go | ||
Annual rates are approximated as vehicle location can lower or raise price quotes greatly.
Figuring out which company offers the cheapest car insurance rates for 18 year olds may require a bit more effort than just quoting one company’s rates. Each insurer has a different formula to set policy rates, so let’s look at the rankings for the car insurance companies that tend to have lower prices in North Carolina.
It’s important that you understand North Carolina car insurance rates are based on many factors that will increase or decrease the price you pay for coverage. Getting older, moving to a different location, or getting a couple of tickets may prompt premium changes resulting in some rates now being more affordable than before.
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| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Progressive | $639 |
| 2 | Utica National | $662 |
| 3 | NC Farm Bureau | $709 |
| 4 | Penn National | $725 |
| 5 | Liberty Mutual | $728 |
| 6 | GEICO | $750 |
| 7 | Titan | $751 |
| 8 | State Farm | $779 |
| 9 | Auto-Owners | $870 |
| 10 | National General | $881 |
| 11 | Travelers | $900 |
| 12 | Allied | $901 |
| 13 | Erie | $931 |
| 14 | Peerless | $992 |
| 15 | Unitrin | $1,002 |
| 16 | MetLife | $1,007 |
| 17 | Encompass | $1,041 |
| 18 | Nationwide | $1,041 |
| 19 | Safeco | $1,044 |
| 20 | Allstate | $1,064 |
| Quote Your Rates Go | ||
Progressive has some of the best car insurance rates in Durham at around $639 annually. This is $233 less than the average rate paid by North Carolina drivers of $872. Utica National, NC Farm Bureau, Penn National, and Liberty Mutual also qualify as some of the most economical Durham, NC car insurance companies.
As illustrated above, if you are currently insured with Liberty Mutual and switched to Utica National, you may see annual savings of about $66. Customers with GEICO might save as much as $88 a year, and Titan policyholders might realize rate reductions of up to $89 a year.
To get a quick, customized rate comparison, click here to get a free quote or quote prices from the following companies.
Remember that these premiums are averages across all insureds and vehicles and and are not calculated with an exact vehicle garaging location for 18 year olds. So the company that has the cheapest price for you may not even be in the top 20 companies shown above. That affirms the importance of why you need to compare rates from as many companies as possible using your own driver and vehicle profiles.
Types of discounts on Durham auto insurance rates
Insurers that offer quotes for 18 year olds may also give you rate discounts that can reduce rates by 25% or more if you qualify. A few popular companies and the discounts they provide include:
- Farm Bureau discounts include multi-policy, safe driver, driver training, 55 and retired, youthful driver, renewal discount, and multi-vehicle.
- Liberty Mutual offers discounts for new graduate, hybrid vehicle, newly retired, multi-car, safety features, and preferred payment discount.
- State Farm may include discounts for anti-theft, driver’s education, passive restraint, student away at school, accident-free, and multiple policy.
- Auto-Owners Insurance may offer discounts for mature driver, good student, anti-lock brakes, paid in full, student away at school, and teen driver.
- GEICO offers premium reductions for emergency military deployment, air bags, seat belt use, anti-lock brakes, good student, military active duty, and federal employee.
- SAFECO has discounts for safe driver, drive less, homeowner, accident prevention training, and teen safe driver.
The information below illustrates the difference between insurance costs with and without discounts being applied to the rates. The costs are based on a female driver, no tickets, no at-fault accidents, North Carolina state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $100 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows the average rate with no discounts. The lower bar shows the rates with anti-theft, good student, passive restraint, paid-in-full, paperless filing, and continuous coverage discounts applied. When these discounts are applied, theaverage amount saved on car insurance for 18 year olds is 28% or $452.
Which car insurance company is best in North Carolina?
Insuring your vehicle with the top insurance provider can be challenging considering how many choices drivers have in North Carolina. The company information in the next section could help you pick which car insurance providers to look at purchasing from.
These ratings are only comprised of the companies with a significant amount of written premium nationwide, so companies that only write business in North Carolina or surrounding areas are not factored into these rankings. If you wish to compare prices from these and other companies in North Carolina, click here.
| 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 |
| Titan Insurance | 86 | 82 | 92 | 86% | A+ | 86.5 |
| 21st Century | 86 | 82 | 90 | 84% | A | 86.4 |
| Liberty Mutual | 79 | 87 | 95 | 78% | A | 85.3 |
| Farmers Insurance | 77 | 80 | 80 | 84% | A | 80.3 |
| Compare Rates Now Go | ||||||
Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies
Does full coverage make sense?
Reducing the cost of car insurance is probably important to the majority of drivers, and one common way to buy cheaper insurance for 18 year olds is to buy only liability coverage. The chart below illustrates the difference between annual premium costs with liability coverage only compared to full coverage. The information is based on no claims, a clean driving record, $1,000 deductibles, single marital status, and no policy discounts are applied.
As an average for all age groups, full coverage on your policy costs $1,139 per year over having just liability coverage. Many drivers will wonder if you should buy full coverage at all. There is no exact rule for eliminating comp and collision coverage, but there is a guideline you can consider. If the yearly cost of comp and collision coverage is 10% or more of any settlement you would receive from your insurance company, the it may be a good time to stop paying for full coverage.
For example, let’s pretend your vehicle’s replacement value is $5,000 and you have $1,000 policy deductibles. If your vehicle is severely damaged, you would only receive $4,000 after paying your policy deductible. If it’s costing you more than $400 a year for comprehensive and collision coverage, then it might be time to buy liability only.
There are some scenarios where removing full coverage is not in your best interest. If you haven’t satisfied your loan, you are required to maintain full coverage as part of the loan conditions. Also, if you can’t afford to buy a different vehicle in the even your car is totaled, you should keep full coverage.
If you prefer to have a professional recommendation when buying car insurance for teen drivers, the agents listed below can most likely help you make a decision which is the best policy. To find an agent nearest to you, click the button after the list.
- Insurance Pros: Paradis James
3200 Croasdaile Dr # 603 – Durham, NC 27705 – (919) 294-6613 - Nationwide Insurance Marsh Dawson Agency
821 Hanson Rd – Durham, NC 27713 – (919) 806-5109 - Triangle Insurance Alliance
2530 Meridian Pkwy #300 – Durham, NC 27713 – (919) 322-3640 - James Zewe – State Farm Insurance Agent
3500 Westgate Dr Ste 901 – Durham, NC 27707 – (919) 489-0804
More Durham, NC insurance agents
How to find economical car insurance for 18 year olds
It is possible to find better rates, and here are a few money-saving solutions that can help Durham drivers get cheaper coverage.
- You will pay more if you get tickets or have at-fault accidents
- Buy vehicles with five-star safety ratings
- Raise your deductibles
- Higher credit scores may earn you cheaper rates
- Drive attentively and avoid accidents
- Do not insure for full coverage
- Keep rates low by comparing prices once a year
The last tip in the list is extremely necessary, as was emphasized in the prior article. Rates in Durham fluctuate constantly, so you should be ready to switch carriers if you can find a cheaper rate.
Many drivers tend to have loyalty to a certain company, but it’s not recommended if that loyalty ends up costing a small fortune year after year. In just a few minutes you could shop around and find cheaper car insurance for 18 year olds.