I’m sure you’ve seen the captivating commercials from companies like Progressive and Allstate that make promises of dirt cheap rates. So you should just pick the company with the best ad, right?
It’s not that easy, however, as there are many unknown factors like your credit history, if you are a man or woman, what physical damage coverage deductibles you want, and where you live. We will attempt to cover the best ways to find cheap car insurance and will hopefully give the reader a solid foundation to find cheaper car insurance in Ohio.
Figuring out which company offers the lowest-priced auto insurance rates for a school permit takes a bit more effort in order to find coverage that fits your budget. Each auto insurer has their own guidelines for determining rates in each state, so let’s examine the auto insurance companies that tend to have lower prices in Ohio.
It’s important to understand that Columbus auto insurance rates are influenced by many factors that may substantially change the policy price. Simply having another birthday, buying a new vehicle, or getting a driving violation can cause premium changes resulting in some rates now being affordable when they were higher priced.
Compare Cheap Insurance Quotes for Students
| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Utica National | $654 |
| 2 | Erie | $667 |
| 3 | Frankenmuth | $687 |
| 4 | Allied | $697 |
| 5 | Travelers | $712 |
| 6 | USAA | $741 |
| 7 | Cincinnati Insurance | $749 |
| 8 | Merchants Insurance Group | $771 |
| 9 | Grange Mutual | $804 |
| 10 | Motorists Mutual | $816 |
| 11 | General Casualty | $829 |
| 12 | Hastings Mutual | $866 |
| 13 | Central Mutual | $874 |
| 14 | State Farm | $894 |
| 15 | Atlantic States | $904 |
| 16 | Westfield | $908 |
| 17 | Progressive | $953 |
| 18 | Western Reserve | $970 |
| 19 | Farmers | $995 |
| 20 | Auto-Owners | $998 |
| View More Rates Go | ||
Utica National may have some of the cheapest car insurance rates in Columbus at around $654 each year. This is $386 less than the average rate paid by Ohio drivers of $1,040. Erie, Frankenmuth, Allied, and Travelers also qualify as some of the best Columbus, OH insurance companies.
As shown in the rates above, if you are a customer of Travelers and switched to Erie, you could earn annual savings of around $45. Drivers with USAA might save as much as $74 a year, and Cincinnati Insurance insureds might cut rates by $82 a year.
To discover how much you can save, click here to get quotes or click through to the companies below.
These rates are averages across all ages of drivers and types of vehicles and are not factoring in a specific vehicle garaging location for a school permit. So the car insurance company that is best suited for you may not even be in the top 33 companies in the list above. That’s why you need to get rate quotes using your own driver and vehicle profiles.
For a learners permit, one of the more important criteria that are looked at to help calculate car insurance rates is where your residence is in Columbus. Larger areas tend to pay more, whereas areas with fewer weather claims and lower vehicle theft rates benefit from lower coverage costs.
The next table sorts the most expensive places in Ohio for a school permit to buy car insurance in. Columbus shows up at #5 having an annual price of $1,199 for the average policy, which is approximately $100 monthly.
| Rank | City | Annual Premium |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toledo | $1,279 |
| 2 | Cleveland | $1,272 |
| 3 | Youngstown | $1,247 |
| 4 | Cincinnati | $1,210 |
| 5 | Columbus | $1,199 |
| 6 | Euclid | $1,175 |
| 7 | Cleveland Heights | $1,166 |
| 8 | Dayton | $1,154 |
| 9 | Hamilton | $1,146 |
| 10 | Akron | $1,135 |
| 11 | Springfield | $1,105 |
| 12 | Canton | $1,102 |
| 13 | Newark | $1,063 |
| 14 | Middletown | $1,055 |
| 15 | Fairfield | $1,053 |
| 16 | Lakewood | $1,041 |
| 17 | Parma | $1,037 |
| 18 | Mansfield | $1,032 |
| 19 | Strongsville | $1,031 |
| 20 | Cuyahoga Falls | $1,027 |
| 21 | Beavercreek | $1,016 |
| 22 | Kettering | $1,009 |
| 23 | Lorain | $1,005 |
| 24 | Mentor | $988 |
| 25 | Elyria | $975 |
| Find Cheaper Rates Go | ||
Rates are comparative as the specific area where the vehicle is garaged can alter rates substantially.
The car, truck, or SUV you are seeking coverage for is probably the largest consideration when shopping around for cheaper insurance for a school permit. Vehicles with lower acceleration and performance, good crash test ratings, or a low likelihood of liability claims will cost quite a bit less to insure than adrenaline junky models. The information below presents auto insurance rates for a number of the most budget-friendly automobiles to buy insurance for.
| Make, Model, and Trim Level | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Honda CR-V EX-L 4WD | $5,150 |
| Ford Escape Limited 4WD | $5,485 |
| Toyota Prius | $5,538 |
| Ford Edge SEL AWD | $5,994 |
| Nissan Altima 2.5 4-Dr Sedan | $6,047 |
| Ford Fusion S 4-Dr Sedan | $6,057 |
| Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 4WD | $6,047 |
| Chevrolet Equinox LS 2WD | $6,053 |
| Toyota RAV4 Limited 2WD | $6,047 |
| Volkswagen Jetta S 4-Dr Sedan | $6,052 |
| Chevrolet Impala LT | $6,047 |
| Ford Explorer Limited 4WD | $6,100 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan SXT | $6,110 |
| Ford F-150 Lariat Super Cab 4WD | $6,100 |
| Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sport 2WD 4-Dr | $6,270 |
| Find Cheaper Rates Go | |
Table data assumes single male driver age 17, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and Ohio minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Estimates do not factor in specific location information which can modify price quotes significantly.
Based upon the table data, you can presume that models like the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Toyota Prius, Ford Edge, and Nissan Altima should be some of the cheaper vehicles to insure for a learners permit. The price for car insurance will tend to be higher because there is more exposure for a school permit, but in general those models will probably have the cheapest auto insurance rates that you’ll find.
Insurance rate increases from tickets or accidents
The easiest way to maintain the most affordable auto insurance prices in Columbus for a learners permit is to drive attentively and avoid accidents and violations. The chart below demonstrates how traffic citations and accident claims can influence car insurance rates for each age group. The costs are based on a married male driver, full coverage, $250 deductibles, and no discounts are factored in.
In the previous example, the average cost of an auto insurance policy per year with no accidents and a clean driving record is $1,390. Factor in one speeding ticket and the average cost hikes up to $1,596, an increase of $206 each year. Now add in two accidents along with the one speeding ticket and the annual cost of auto insurance for a school permit jumps again to an average of $3,363. That’s an increase of $1,973, or $164 per month, just for not driving carefully!
Discounts on Columbus auto insurance
Car insurance companies that offer coverage for a school permit may also give you discounts that could lower prices by 40% or more if you qualify. The best auto insurance companies and some of their more popular discounts are:
- Progressive discounts include online signing, multi-vehicle, homeowner, online quote discount, and multi-policy.
- SAFECO includes discounts for bundle discounts, anti-lock brakes, multi-car, homeowner, and safe driver.
- American Family may have discounts that include Steer into Savings, air bags, multi-vehicle, mySafetyValet, accident-free, and defensive driver.
- MetLife offers premium reductions for claim-free, good student, accident-free, defensive driver, multi-policy, good driver
- GEICO offers discounts including five-year accident-free, membership and employees, military active duty, emergency military deployment, and anti-theft.
- The Hartford has savings for bundle, anti-theft, vehicle fuel type, driver training, good student, air bag, and defensive driver.
The illustration below visualizes the comparison of insurance rates with and without discounts applied to the policy rates. The costs are based on a female driver, a clean driving record, no at-fault accidents, Ohio state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $500 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The second bar shows the rates with anti-theft, passive restraint, continuous coverage, paid-in-full, paperless filing, and good student discounts applied. With discounts applied, the average amount saved each year on auto insurance for a school permit is 28% or $479.
Why you should be comparing rates
Columbus auto insurance rates are based on many factors which can substantially change the price you pay. Improving your credit score, filing a claim, or having a fender bender can trigger changes in premium that can cause some rates to be cheaper than competitors.
Also, auto insurance companies change premium rates as needed to reflect underwriting profits or losses. Higher than normal claims can result in more expensive premiums, while lower claims can result in lower-priced Columbus car insurance rates.
For instance, the graph below shows the cheapest car insurance in Columbus, OH for a 30-year-old female driver with no prior accidents, a clean driving record, and solid credit. If we look at prices based on her current risk profile, Utica National quotes the most affordable car insurance rates in Columbus at $828 annually. This is $212 less than the average rate paid by Ohio drivers of $1,040. Frankenmuth, Erie, Allied, and Travelers are also on the list of the cheapest Columbus, OH auto insurance companies.
The next chart shows rates after we give the driver from the first set of rates a claim surcharge, a lower credit rating, and a few traffic violations. Since every car insurance company uses their own method for determining rates in each state, analyzing rate quotes may now result in a significantly different list of affordable Columbus car insurance companies as shown below.
Cincinnati Insurance now has the best auto insurance rate in Columbus with Merchants Insurance Group, Motorists Mutual, Grange Mutual, and General Casualty also being competitive. This example shows why it is so important to take the time to shop around to get the most economical insurance quotes for a school permit. Auto insurance prices consist of many factors and can change substantially, so the most economical option two years ago may now be quite expensive.