Wouldn’t life be so easy if we could just give you the name of the one company that has the best deal on coverage for unemployed drivers? It’s just not that easy, however, as there are a whole bunch of unknown aspects like how much you actually drive in a year, if you have any tickets or accidents, and the type of vehicle you drive. In this article, we will cover the best ways to avoid overpriced car insurance and will give you a good start to your coverage search.
Finding budget auto insurance is challenging, and figuring out which company has the cheapest insurance rates for unemployed drivers requires more quotes for comparison. Every insurance provider has their own process to determine rates, so let’s rank the insurance companies that tend to have lower prices in California.
Find the Cheapest Auto Insurance for Job Seekers
| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wawanesa | $1,146 |
| 2 | USAA | $1,155 |
| 3 | CSAA | $1,186 |
| 4 | Century National | $1,190 |
| 5 | Nationwide | $1,226 |
| 6 | 21st Century | $1,338 |
| 7 | Grange | $1,477 |
| 8 | Mercury | $1,488 |
| 9 | Progressive | $1,512 |
| 10 | GEICO | $1,529 |
| 11 | Allstate | $1,543 |
| 12 | Allied | $1,588 |
| 13 | The Hartford | $1,639 |
| 14 | MetLife | $1,654 |
| 15 | Unitrin | $1,733 |
| 16 | Esurance | $1,739 |
| 17 | State Farm | $1,750 |
| 18 | Bristol West | $1,831 |
| 19 | Travelers | $1,860 |
| 20 | Farmers | $2,026 |
| Find Cheaper Rates Go | ||
Wawanesa generally has some of the cheapest car insurance rates in San Diego at around $1,146 annually. This is $505 less than the average price paid by California drivers of $1,651. USAA, CSAA, Century National, and Nationwide would also be considered some of the cheaper San Diego, CA auto insurance companies.
As depicted above, if you buy coverage from Century National and switched to Wawanesa, you could see a yearly savings of in the vicinity of $44. California drivers with Nationwide may save as much as $80 a year, and 21st Century insureds might cut rates by $192 a year.
Bear in mind that those estimates are averages for all drivers and vehicles in California and do not factor in a specific location for unemployed drivers. So the company that fits your age and vehicle best may not even be in the top 24 companies shown above. That illustrates why you need to compare prices as often as possible using your own individual information.
The car, truck, or SUV you are seeking coverage for is one of the largest considerations when shopping around for economical coverage for unemployed drivers. Vehicles with lower performance, good crash test ratings, or a low likelihood of having liability claims will cost much less to insure than fast, unsafe models. The table below ranks auto insurance prices for a number of the cheapest automobiles to insure.
| Insured Vehicle | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Honda CR-V LX 2WD | $822 |
| Jeep Wrangler Sport Islander Package 4WD 2-Dr | $902 |
| Chevrolet Silverado LS Regular Cab 4WD | $910 |
| Toyota Tacoma 4WD | $920 |
| Ford Escape XLS 4WD | $928 |
| Chevrolet Impala LS | $955 |
| Honda Odyssey EX W/Rear Entertainment | $965 |
| Nissan Altima 2.5 4-Dr Sedan | $973 |
| Honda Accord EX-L 4-Dr Sedan | $981 |
| Dodge Ram 3500 Crew Cab Laramie 2WD | $992 |
| Toyota Prius | $1,002 |
| Ford F-150 XLT Regular Cab 4WD | $1,008 |
| Toyota Camry XLE | $1,026 |
| Toyota RAV4 4WD | $1,067 |
| Ford Edge SEL 2WD | $1,073 |
| Chevrolet Malibu LT | $1,088 |
| Ford Explorer Limited 2WD | $1,123 |
| Compare Cheap Rates Go | |
Premium data assumes single male driver age 30, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include claim-free, multi-vehicle, safe-driver, multi-policy, and homeowner. Rate information does not factor in the specific area where the vehicle is garaged which can lower or raise insurance rates greatly.
Looking at the numbers, we can presume that models like the Honda CR-V, Jeep Wrangler, Chevrolet Silverado, Toyota Tacoma, and Ford Escape are a few of the cheaper vehicles to insure for the unemployed.
Ratings for San Diego insurance companies
Buying coverage from the best insurance provider can be rather challenging considering how many choices there are in San Diego. The company information shown next may help you choose which providers to look at when insurance shopping for unemployed drivers.
The ratings below are only comprised of the largest companies in the United States, so companies that focus mainly on California business will not be included in this list. To compare prices from these top insurers and more, simply click here.
| Company | Value | Customer Service | Claims | Customer Satisfaction | A.M Best Rating | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USAA | 98 | 100 | 100 | 94% | A++ | 98.6 |
| American Family | 98 | 89 | 100 | 86% | A | 95.4 |
| AAA of Southern California | 91 | 94 | 97 | 92% | A+ | 94.1 |
| State Farm | 88 | 93 | 96 | 90% | A++ | 92.4 |
| The Hartford | 94 | 92 | 90 | 89% | A+ | 91.7 |
| AAA Insurance | 88 | 89 | 95 | 91% | A | 91.2 |
| GEICO | 84 | 93 | 93 | 89% | A++ | 90.3 |
| The General | 89 | 91 | 89 | 88% | A- | 90 |
| Titan Insurance | 90 | 87 | 91 | 95% | A+ | 89.6 |
| Progressive | 84 | 91 | 93 | 87% | A+ | 89.5 |
| Compare Rates Now Go | ||||||
Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies
Cost difference between full coverage and liability
Lowering the price of insurance should be important to most people, and one easy way to save on the cost of insurance for unemployed drivers is to not insure for full coverage. The illustration below shows the difference between premium costs with full coverage and liability only. The rate quotes are based on no claims or driving violations, $100 deductibles, drivers are single, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
Averaged for all ages 20 through 70, comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy costs an extra $3,385 per year over and above liability only. That proposes the question when is it a good idea to stop buying full coverage. There is no specific rule to delete full coverage on your policy, but there is a broad guideline. If the yearly cost of full coverage is more than around 10% of the settlement you would receive from your company, then you might want to think about dropping full coverage.
The importance of shopping around
San Diego insurance rates are calculated based on many things which can substantially change the cost of coverage. Turning one year older, getting married, or getting a reckless driving citation can produce rate changes that can now make some companies much cheaper than others.
Not only that, but insurers file new California car insurance rates at least once a year to ensure their profitability. Higher than normal claims can result in higher prices, while less frequent claims can result in cheaper San Diego car insurance rates.
The data below shows the cheapest car insurance in San Diego, CA for a 30-year-old female driver with no accidents, a clean driving record, and solid credit. If we compare prices based on her current risk profile, USAA may have the best car insurance rates in San Diego at $1,169 per year. This is $482 less than the average price paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, Century National, CSAA, and Nationwide are the rest of the best San Diego, CA auto insurance companies.
In this example, we will give the driver from the first set of rates a couple of claims, slightly worse credit, and a stop sign violation. Since every car insurance company uses a different method for setting prices, analyzing rate quotes may result in a substantially altered list of the cheapest companies as shown below.
Grange now has the cheapest insurance rate in San Diego with Mercury, Progressive, Allstate, and GEICO also being competitive. This example proves why it is so important to perform an extensive rate comparison when trying to get cheap auto insurance rates for unemployed drivers.
Insurance prices can be altered by many different factors and can increase or decrease at any time, so the most economical company two years ago may now be an over-priced policy.
If you wish to have some advice when comparing insurance rates for unemployed drivers, the agents shown below can most likely answer your questions and help you decide which coverage fits your budget.
To locate a San Diego insurance agent close to you, click the link after the list.
- ARROWHEAD General Insurance Agency, Inc.
701 B St #2100 – San Diego, CA 92101 – (619) 744-5000 - Myles Collins – State Farm Insurance Agent
9920 Mira Mesa Blvd A – San Diego, CA 92131 – (858) 271-6400 - Duane Werner – State Farm Insurance Agent
6663 El Cajon Blvd j – San Diego, CA 92115 – (619) 668-5414