Are the insurance companies crazy?

The premium on my'02 Tacoma SR5 4x4 is about $20 more per 6 mos. than my '07 Gmc Envoy 4x4 with the same full coverages.

 

What?

 

Assuming same driver, average miles driven, location, and same time frame.

Compare KBB values (lowest model standard equip the taco has roughly 2x the value), typical use (not just your use), repair costs (including OEM parts), vehicle popularity, vehicle design (ie engine type, ignition type etc), and cross model parts compatibility. These ALL vary from one to another and change the possible cost to repair vs replace by an insurance company.

Then you will see why 1 vehicle costs more to insure than another despite age or miles on vehicle.

Value is HUGE in determining risk. Low value means cheaper and more likely to total it and move on. Lower risk = lower rate

 

Thanks, That helps explain the cost difference

 

I'm 27, in British Columbia with a '10 Frontier Pro-4x, $1380 for 12 months. 45% discount and 10 years safe driving discount. I have "full coverage" and low deductibles ($200). Basic insurance with ICBC and extended coverage with a private company (costs a bit more but I get a lot more with them, towing/road side etc).

Now I'm worried that a new truck will drive my rate sky high, Guess I should inquire.

 

Factor in a 6% to your insurance to pay for Houston. Add 3% if you live in a state with legal dope. Also factor in that new vehicles have a lot of expensive electronics; cameras, collision avoidance that are expensive to fix/repair/replace.

 

Don't forget Irma.

 

Seeing your from Houston tx and the recent weather you guys endured. I'm sure Numerous Ins companies are taking a rate increase. Has nothing to do with your car, record, age or anything. When companies take X% rate increase ALL customers across that state pay for it..
Thank you state politicians they made it Legal for insurance companies operating within your state to allow rate increases (been working with ins for a decade and never seen a CO % rate decrease )

 

Wired but I'm actially paying $10 cheaper than my 1st gen taco. Same coverage...

 

The value of the vehicle is actually one of the least important reasons for the differences. Insurance companies have very complex formulas and the price they charge customers are based on how much they think you may cost them if you're in an at fault accident. it is the medical costs and lawsuit defense that cost insurance companies money.

Lets say you are at fault and hit another $40K vehicle with your brand new $40K vehicle totaling both, but with no injuries. The insurance company is out $80K.

But lets say you're driving a $1K clunker and hit another $1K clunker and total both vehicles, but there are serious injuries and even deaths involved. The insurance company is only out about $2K for the vehicles, but could spend several million on hospital bills and lawsuits.

Women are involved in far more accidents than men. But they charge less to insure women drivers because most accidents women are in are minor fender benders with no injuries. Men, especially young men, are the ones that hit another car at 80 mph killing 4-5.

Cars that are in the top 10 stolen cars are more expensive to insure.

Your FICO score effects your insurance rates. Studies have shown that higher credit ratings equal more responsible drivers.

Sometimes newer vehicles cost less to insure because they have more safety features such as ABS or air bags. I've traded up to a newer vehicle several times and seen my rates stay the same and in one case even drop some.

 

Also gotta ask how's his credit since that affects rates as well.

 

Beat me to it.

 

600 a yr. full coverage on my pro... progressive ins. im 60 yrs. old, own my home, married, and working. all these things, they take into consideration the policy.. crap i pay 98.00 a yr. full coverage, no deductible, on my 800 polaris, and my 1500 vulcan bike... combined. less than 50.00 buck each a yr.,, and you have to shop around,, did you call the general ?

 

The KARR security system helped reduce the cost.

 

A couple of misconceptions here that I have to point out as someone that works in the Underwriting department of a major insurance company. I'm not on a soapbox but I spend all day explaining this stuff so sometimes it's hard to turn it off.

Insurance companies don't use FICO scores. FICO scores were developed to predict the likelihood that a person will repay a debt on time and have no use to insurers. Insurers use a Risk Score that is also based on raw credit data but used to predict the likelihood that a driver will file a claim. FICO scores and Risk Scores are both based on raw credit data but a single person's FICO and Risk Score can be quite different since the statistics used to develop each model are quite different.

Second, one of the biggest factors in insurance premiums is the fixability of the vehicle. Some vehicles can be involved in relatively serious accidents and still not be expensive to fix. Think about the old chrome bumper vehicles made before air bags, some large trucks are also really cheap to fix. Those are much cheaper to insure than a vehicle with crumple zones, curtain airbags, etc. Those vehicles are expensive to fix almost to the point of being disposable since they are totalled much more easily and are therefore much more expensive to insure.

 

My Tacoma costs about $200 more a year than my 2003 Chevy Express can and is listed as DD. The van sits every day.

 

Sales calls end fairly quickly when I mention that I have USAA insurance. I've never had anyone beat their price on cars & trucks. Bikes are another story, my 3 motorcycles are insured with Allstate.

 

Mine went up, a lot with my new 18 TRD OR. I'm going to be shopping around soon. I have better than average credit, no speeding tickets, clean record, etc.

At one time, I had 3 Tacoma's, 1 full size Dodge Cummings, and 2 sports cars, all with the full coverage, and I was around $150 a month. Now I have 2 Tacoma's, and 1 car that's under a storage coverage and I'm over $200 a month.

 

Location plays a huge part. USAA full coverage for me is $629.09/ 6 months with $1000 deductibles.

 

This right here. We have USAA and rates went up a few bucks moving 8 miles closer to the city. Our rates are still pretty damn low for full coverage but the comment was we're in a "higher crime area".