The Cheapest Car Insurance in New York (September 2023)

Kemper is the overall cheapest option for car insurance policies in New York. Progressive is also a great option and has the cheapest rates in New York for certain types of drivers.

MoneyGeek also has recommendations for the best car insurance in New York if you’re looking for options that balance cost and quality service.

MoneyGeek found that the cheapest car insurance for a minimum coverage policy are:

• Kemper: $592 per year
• Progressive: $688 per year

Hanover is the most expensive car insurance company for minimum coverage, at an average annual cost of $2,105, based on the companies MoneyGeek collected quotes for in New York.

The state law’s minimum insurance requirements only cover bodily injury liability, property damage liability, liability for death, uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage and personal injury protection.

A minimum coverage policy only covers the cost of injuries or damages that you cause to others, not damages to your vehicle. A full coverage policy that has comprehensive and collision insurance can give you more protection that takes care of any damages to your vehicle.

Based on MoneyGeek’s study, the cheapest full coverage car insurance providers are:

• Kemper: $1,033 per year
• Progressive: $1,079 per year

Hanover charges the most expensive rate for full coverage in the Empire State, at roughly $3,826 per year.

Adding comprehensive and collision coverage to your policy increases the cost of your annual premium. For instance, Kemper’s full coverage policy is more expensive by $441 a year than its minimum coverage policy.

Full coverage car insurance is more expensive, but it also offers better financial protection. It covers damages due to on-road accidents (hitting an object or another vehicle) and off-road incidents (storm damage, flooding, fire, theft or vandalism).

How much car insurance you need has a significant impact on your rates.

MoneyGeek’s sample full coverage policy includes the following liability limits:

• $100,000 bodily injury per person
• $300,000 bodily injury per accident
• $100,000 property damage per accident

If you’re looking to save on your policy, lowering your liability limits, dropping your comprehensive and collision coverage or raising your deductible may help you get cheaper rates. However, you’ll also face higher out-of-pocket costs if you get into an accident.

Most auto insurance companies provide quotes online, but it can take up to 15 minutes to input the personal details that are required. If you’re comparing multiple companies, this can add up over time.

MoneyGeek’s car insurance calculator makes comparing rates a breeze. You can get a quick estimate that is customized to your personal driver profile without having to provide specific personal information. Use the estimates that are generated by our free online tool to find the cheapest car insurance based on your age, gender and driving record.

Age is one of the biggest factors affecting car insurance rates in New York. MoneyGeek found that Kemper or Progressive offer the cheapest options, depending on what age group you and your family belong to.

Teen drivers on their parent’s policy will find the cheapest car insurance rates from:

• Kemper: $1,516 per year for male teens and $1,461 per year for female teens
• Progressive: $2,981 per year for male teens GEICO: $2,625 per year for female teens

Travelers is the most expensive insurer for teens, with average rates of $8,283 and $6,977 for male and female drivers, respectively.

A teen can enjoy declining car insurance rates, specifically during the teenage years, with 19-year-olds getting the cheapest premiums. New York's most affordable car insurer for 19-year-old males is Kemper ($1,311 per year).

Insurers typically charge lower premiums if a teen driver is added to a parent’s policy than if they buy a separate policy, and in most cases, it is illegal for a teen to purchase a policy on their own without a parent or guardian to co-sign. For instance, the average 16-year-old male driver in New York might have to pay roughly $7,621 per year if they buy their own policy. This rate is reduced to around $4,262 if they’re added to a parent’s policy. That’s $3,359 in savings.

Many insurance companies offer discounts for young drivers. Based on our study of the cheapest insurers, Allstate, Progressive and Travelers provide discounts to students who live away from home and those who earn a high academic standing. GEICO, Kemper and State Farm only provide discounts to students with good grades.

The cheapest car insurance providers for drivers in their 20s are:

• Progressive: $1,201 per year
• Kemper: $1,312 per year

Hanover is the most expensive insurer for young adults, with a full coverage policy priced at $4,937 per year, on average.

Generally, drivers in their 20s are charged higher rates compared with middle-aged drivers because of their higher incidence of at-fault accidents and moving violations. For example, a full coverage policy from Kemper costs $279 more for a 25-year-old driver than for a 40-year-old driver.

In New York, the cheapest car insurance providers for senior drivers (age 60+) are:

• Kemper: $1,011 per year
• Progressive: $1,092 per year

Hanover is the most expensive insurance provider for seniors, with a full coverage policy costing approximately $4,281 per year.

Seniors pay slightly less than middle-aged drivers. A 65-year-old driver in New York pays around $1,011 per year for a full coverage policy from Kemper, whereas a 40-year-old pays $1,033 per year for the same policy.

Insurance rates tend to increase as drivers reach their 70s and 80s. Age-related physical limitations, particularly poorer eyesight and slower reflexes, can make senior drivers more prone to road accidents, so insurers charge them more.

Kemper, GEICO, Allstate and Mercury provide discounts for drivers who are 65 and older. To save the most money, you should compare multiple insurers to find out which companies offer the best rates, since age is just one of several factors that are used to calculate your premium cost.

The most affordable insurer in New York for drivers with tickets, at-fault accidents, and DWI cases (New York does not use DUI) is Progressive.

Following a traffic violation, you might notice a significant increase in the cost of your annual premium due to higher risk. Insurers do this to compensate for the possible costs of bodily injury, property damage and death while you’re on the road.

In New York, drivers with a speeding ticket will get the cheapest premium for a full coverage policy from the following providers:

• Progressive: $1,120 per year
• Kemper: $1,326 per year

Mercury is the most expensive option at $3,902 per year.

After getting a ticket, you might pay around $296 more for your car insurance.

Drivers with at-fault accidents in New York will get the most affordable full coverage car insurance policies from the following providers:

• Progressive: $1,079 per year
• Kemper: $1,498 per year

Hanover has the highest rates at approximately $3,826 per year.

Based on our calculations, being at fault in a car accident could increase your annual premium by $223.

The following companies have the cheapest rates for full coverage car insurance if you have a DWI on your driving record:

• Progressive: $1,132 per year
• Kemper: $1,545 per year

With an average annual premium of $6,450, Chubb is the most expensive option for New Yorkers with a DWI. Remember, New York does not have DUIs, but we found that a DWI could raise your annual premium by an average of $1,158 in the state.

New Yorkers with poor credit will find the cheapest car insurance rates from the following insurers:

• GEICO: $2,677 per year
• Kemper: $2,824 per year

Hanover is the most expensive option, charging an average annual premium of $390,881 for a full coverage policy.

Drivers with bad credit pay an average of $32,573 per year with Hanover. A good credit score, ideally above 750, can get you the lowest rates because insurers consider you a low-risk driver. A credit score below 580 can increase your full coverage car insurance rates by $2,411, on average, per year.

Analytical data indicates that drivers with lower credit scores are more likely to file claims, so insurers charge them higher rates. Using credit-based insurance scores as a basis for calculating premiums is legal in New York.

If you’re looking to reduce your rates, consider improving your credit score. You should also compare rates from multiple insurers and take advantage of common discounts, like those for bundling policies or installing safety features.

These auto insurance companies provide the cheapest full coverage rates for drivers with sports cars:

• Kemper: $1,104 per year
• Progressive: $1,223 per year

Chubb, at an average cost of $3,095 per year, is the most expensive car insurer for sports car drivers.

Sports cars are typically more expensive to insure because these have higher repair and replacement costs compared with standard vehicles. However, this isn’t the case in New York. For instance, drivers with a Ford Mustang are charged $210 less than those with a Toyota Camry LE.

MoneyGeek used a Ford Mustang as its sample sports car. Depending on your car’s model, your actual rate may differ from the average rates in our study.

Typically, luxury cars, electric cars and sports cars are more costly to insure compared with other model types. But this may not be necessarily true in New York, as you’ve seen in our comparison of rates for the Toyota Camry LE and the Ford Mustang. Always compare quotes from multiple providers to find the best rates.

Kemper is the most affordable car insurance provider for active-duty military members and veterans at an average rate of $1,033 per year.

Although it is ranked as the fourth-cheapest insurer in New York in our study, USAA is another great option. It has services that are tailored to the needs of the military. A USAA full coverage policy costs $1,393 per year on average in New York.

The city, and even the ZIP code, where you live impacts the cost of your car insurance. Insurers tend to charge drivers who live in crime-prone neighborhoods more for insurance, since there’s a higher likelihood that they’ll file a claim.

Although insurance rates differ by city, the cheapest insurer was Kemper in all the New York cities that MoneyGeek evaluated. Kemper charges around $576 per year for a full coverage policy in Rochester, whereas the insurer charges roughly $1,504 per year for drivers who live in New York City.

Use our table below to compare the average car insurance rates per city.

Most states, including New York, require bodily injury liability (BIL) and property damage liability (PDL). But on top of these, New York also requires personal injury protection and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.

A minimum coverage policy in New York must include bodily injury liability, liability for death, property damage liability, uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage and personal injury protection.

Though a minimum coverage policy might cost less, you may pay more money out of pocket if you get in an accident. If your budget allows, we strongly recommend purchasing as much liability coverage as you can reasonably afford. For only a few extra dollars per year, you’ll have added security should you get into an accident.

MoneyGeek advises you to purchase bodily injury liability insurance of at least $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident. We also recommend increasing your property damage coverage to at least $100,000 per accident.

If you’re financing or leasing your car, it’s likely that you need to purchase comprehensive and collision insurance. Those with new cars may also consider purchasing comprehensive and collision coverage.

Comprehensive insurance takes care of the cost of repairing your car if it is damaged by off-road incidents, such as vandalism, theft, fire and weather-related events. Collision insurance covers the cost of repairing your vehicle in the event of a crash or collision with an object (tree, guard rail, telephone pole, pothole) or another car.

All vehicles that are operated in New York by residents must meet the liability requirements that are stated in the New York State financial responsibility law. Even vehicles that are in storage and aren’t being driven are not exempt from having liability insurance.

If you’re unable to get auto insurance for any reason, there are other alternatives that will satisfy the required financial responsibility. These are:

Self-insurance: You may apply as a self-insurer if you have more than 25 cars registered under your name. A $5 application fee for each vehicle and proof of financial ability to cover any potential accident claims for each vehicle is required. This means you’ll need lots of extra cash in reserve to cover damages to your car, another person’s car and property and possible lawsuits.

Surety bonds: This is a reduced cost alternative to traditional car insurance that could save you money unless you have to file a claim. A surety bond is a contract that requires a company to pay your financial obligations in the event of an accident. Surety bonds cost only a percentage of the bond total. Those with good credit are typically charged 1% to 2.5% of the bond value as a premium. Given that the minimum auto insurance bond or deposit in New York is $25,000, you’ll only have to pay around $250 to $625 if you have good credit. However, if you file a claim, you’ll have to pay the entire bond.

Security deposit with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV): This requires you to deposit $150,000 in cash or security. But you may be asked for additional deposits depending on your driver profile.

Drivers who are looking for car insurance typically have many questions about cost and service quality. Our answers to the frequently asked questions go over the basics of car insurance to help you learn more about the topic.