Wouldn’t life be great if we could instantly tell you the best company in San Diego that has the cheapest coverage for electric cars? That is not the case, however, as there are a whole bunch of unknown factors like if you have any driving citations, the safety ratings of your vehicle, and what liability limits you need, that all influence how much you pay for auto insurance. We will try to teach you about the best ways to find cheap car insurance and also should give you a good start in finding the cheapest insurance in California.
The car, truck, or SUV requiring insurance is probably the most important factor in finding cheap auto insurance for electric cars. Vehicles with lower performance, excellent safety ratings, or a low likelihood of having liability claims will cost less to insure than high performance models.
The data below features car insurance rates for a selection of the most affordable vehicles to insure.
| Insured Vehicle | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Honda CR-V EX 2WD | $830 |
| Ford Escape XLS 4WD | $937 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan Hero | $982 |
| Honda Accord EX-L 4-Dr Sedan | $991 |
| Honda Odyssey EX-L | $1,036 |
| Toyota Prius | $1,038 |
| Ford F-150 XL Crew Cab 2WD | $1,056 |
| Volkswagen Jetta S 4-Dr Sedan | $1,077 |
| Toyota Tacoma Double Cab 4WD | $1,082 |
| Toyota RAV4 Limited 4WD | $1,077 |
| Chevrolet Impala LS | $1,083 |
| Chevrolet Malibu LT | $1,099 |
| Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sport Islander Package 4WD 4-Dr | $1,104 |
| Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 4WD | $1,108 |
| Ford Focus SES 4-Dr Sedan | $1,116 |
| Honda Civic EX 4-Dr Sedan | $1,124 |
| Kia Optima EX | $1,128 |
| Ford Explorer Limited AWD | $1,132 |
| Hyundai Elantra SE 4-Dr Sedan | $1,136 |
| Dodge Ram 3500 Crew Cab SLT 2WD | $1,147 |
| Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD LTZ Crew Cab Diesel 2WD | $1,156 |
| Dodge Ram 2500 Mega Cab SLT 4WD | $1,147 |
| Nissan Rogue S 2WD | $1,153 |
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Data based on single male driver age 40, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, safe-driver, multi-policy, claim-free, and homeowner. Estimates do not factor in vehicle location which can affect prices noticeably.
Based on these rates, you can figure that cars like the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Dodge Grand Caravan, and Honda Accord are going to be some of the most budget-friendly vehicles to insure for eco-friendly vehicles.
For eco-friendly vehicles, one of the more important considerations that are looked at to help calculate the cost of insurance is the neighborhood you call home. Cities with larger populations or higher claim trends are more likely to have higher rates, whereas areas with fewer weather claims and lower vehicle theft rates have the benefit of cheaper auto insurance prices.
The following table ranks the highest-priced areas in California for electric cars to purchase car insurance in. San Diego is ranked at #23 with a yearly premium of $1,340 for the average policyholder, which is approximately $112 monthly.
| Rank | City | Premium Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Angeles | $2,146 |
| 2 | Glendale | $2,121 |
| 3 | Sacramento | $1,720 |
| 4 | Oakland | $1,704 |
| 5 | San Francisco | $1,693 |
| 6 | Long Beach | $1,610 |
| 7 | San Bernardino | $1,596 |
| 8 | Stockton | $1,588 |
| 9 | Fontana | $1,581 |
| 10 | Moreno Valley | $1,551 |
| 11 | Santa Clarita | $1,533 |
| 12 | Modesto | $1,532 |
| 13 | Garden Grove | $1,524 |
| 14 | Anaheim | $1,488 |
| 15 | Riverside | $1,482 |
| 16 | Fresno | $1,472 |
| 17 | Santa Ana | $1,453 |
| 18 | San Jose | $1,423 |
| 19 | Huntington Beach | $1,416 |
| 20 | Fremont | $1,403 |
| 21 | Irvine | $1,384 |
| 22 | Bakersfield | $1,340 |
| 23 | San Diego | $1,340 |
| 24 | Chula Vista | $1,337 |
| 25 | Oxnard | $1,304 |
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Rate information is comparative as zip code location can increase or decrease prices significantly.
Establishing which company has the cheapest insurance rates for electric cars will require more time in order to find the lowest price.
Every insurance provider has their own process to determine rates, so let’s take a look at the most budget-friendly insurance companies in San Diego. It’s important to understand that San Diego insurance rates are impacted by many things which can substantially decrease or increase the price of your policy. Simply having another birthday, increasing liability limits, or getting caught speeding can cause premium changes resulting in some rates now being more affordable than before.
Best Car Insurance Prices for EV’s
USAA may have some of the lowest car insurance rates in San Diego at around $1,155 annually. This is $496 less than the average premium paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, CSAA, Nationwide, and Century National are also some of the cheapest San Diego, CA car insurance companies.
In this example, if you are a policyholder with CSAA and switched to USAA, you might see a yearly price reduction of in the vicinity of $43. Drivers with Nationwide might save as much as $58 a year, and Century National insureds might cut rates by $71 a year.
Be aware that those rates are averages for all insureds and vehicles and do not take into consideration an exact location for electric cars. So the insurer that can offer you the best price may not even be in the top 24 companies in the list above. That affirms the importance of why you need to get rate quotes using your own personal information and vehicle type.
The information below shows how choosing a deductible can influence insurance costs when searching for cheap insurance for electric cars. The premium estimates are based on a married male driver, full physical damage coverage, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
A 30-year-old driver could pocket $342 a year by switching their comprehensive and collision coverages from a $100 deductible up to a $500 deductible, or save $516 by using a $1,000 deductible. Young drivers, like the 20-year-old category, could drop their prices $1,026 or even more by choosing larger deductibles on their policy. If you make the decision to raise deductibles, it will be required to have emergency funds available to be able to pay the extra out-of-pocket expense. This is the primary disadvantage of choosing high deductibles.
Drive safe and save
The recommended way to snag good insurance premiums in California for eco-friendly vehicles is to drive attentively and avoid at-fault accidents and violations. The example below demonstrates how traffic citations and fender-benders can influence car insurance rates for different age groups. The data is based on a single male driver, comprehensive and collision coverage, $500 deductibles, and no additional discounts are factored in.
The data above shows the average cost of a car insurance policy per year with no violations or accidents is $2,816. Receive two speeding tickets and the average cost jumps to $3,725, an increase of $909 each year. Then throw in two accidents along with the two speeding tickets and the 12-month cost of insurance for electric cars increases to an average of $7,255. That’s an increase of $4,439, or $370 per month, just for not driving responsibly!
Low rates today, overpriced tomorrow
San Diego insurance rates are calculated based on many things that may substantially change the cost of your policy. Improving your credit score, buying another vehicle, or having an at-fault accident can cause premium changes resulting in some companies being much cheaper than others.
Not only may your situation change, but auto insurance companies modify rates at least once a year to help ensure profitability. Higher than normal claim frequency or severity may result in additional price hikes, while a lower level of claims can result in cheaper San Diego car insurance rates.
For instance, the graph below shows which companies have the cheapest car insurance in San Diego, CA for a 45-year-old male driver with no accidents or violations, and a decent credit rating. If we estimate rates based on his current rating profile, USAA might quote the cheapest car insurance rates in San Diego at $1,186 annually. This is $465 less than the average policy premium paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, Century National, CSAA, and Nationwide are the remainder of the best San Diego, CA auto insurance companies.
In the next rate comparison, we’ll give the driver from the first rate comparison an accident claim, bad credit, and a couple of points charged on his driving record. Because each insurer has their own formula for establishing rates, analyzing rate quotes may result in a significantly different list of the cheapest companies as shown below.
Grange now has the best insurance rate in San Diego with Mercury, Allied, Progressive, and Allstate completing the list. This shows why drivers need to perform a complete rate comparison to get the most economical insurance rates for electric cars.
Insurance prices are impacted by many risk factors and can decrease or increase without notice, so the most affordable company the last time you shopped around may now be costing you a lot of money.