Cheap West Virginia Low-Income Car Insurance for Families and Individuals

Your income doesn’t affect how much you pay for car insurance. However, your credit score, age and adding a teen driver to your policy are among the most significant factors that determine the price of car insurance in West Virginia. MoneyGeek calculated how much low-income families and individuals would have to pay for car insurance taking those factors into consideration.

West Virginia does not have a government program to assist low-income individuals and families with car insurance costs. Although by law all drivers in the state require car insurance, approximately 9.2% of drivers in West Virginia are uninsured. This is likely because many of them are low-income drivers who cannot afford the cost of car insurance.

If you are looking for low-income car insurance in West Virginia, you may wish to consider a state minimum coverage policy, even though it provides the least protection. Low-income drivers who rarely drive may prefer pay-per-mile car insurance.

West Virginia does not have a government program to support low-income families and individuals with car insurance costs. If you need a reasonable car insurance policy in the state, try shopping around to compare quotes from several car insurance companies to get the best deal. In this guide, MoneyGeek breaks down the cheapest car insurance companies for low-income families in West Virginia to help drivers save money on their car insurance.

Auto insurers in West Virginia do not take your income when calculating your insurance rates. However, other income-related factors, like your credit score and age, are considered.

A state minimum coverage policy is the cheapest type of car insurance; however, it provides the least protection. MoneyGeek analyzed the cheapest minimum car insurance for low-income families and individuals of different ages and credit scores, finding that Erie is the cheapest car insurance company in West Virginia for these different types of drivers.

Your income does affect your car insurance premium, but your credit score does. A single parent with a teen driver and poor credit will pay approximately $1,133 more per year in West Virginia than their counterpart with good credit. Similarly, a couple with one teenage driver and poor credit will pay about $1,525 more than with a good credit score.

The two cheapest auto insurers in West Virginia for a couple with a teen driver and poor credit score are:

• Erie: $2,298
• State Farm: $2,800

USAA provides the cheapest car insurance in the state for the same driver profile at $1,940 per year on average; however, it is only available to members of the military and their families.

For a single parent with a teen driver and poor credit score, the two cheapest options for car insurance in West Virginia are:

• Erie: $1,662
• GEICO: $2,068

USAA is again the cheapest option in the state at $1419 per year for a single parent with a teen driver and poor credit, but is exclusive to military members and their families.

It is important to note that a low income doesn’t automatically mean a poor credit score. The table below can help you find the cheapest options according to your profile.

Car insurance in West Virginia is about $376 more per year for our sample 40-year-old driver with poor credit than with good credit. The two cheapest insurance companies for this driver profile with poor credit are:

• Erie: $566
• State Farm: $716

If you’re a current or former member of the military, you can take advantage of the cheapest car insurance in West Virginia at **USAA. The average yearly premium for an individual 40-year-old driver with poor credit is $478.

While a low income doesn’t affect your insurance premium, your credit score does. If you’re an adult driver with good credit, you’ll pay $324 per year on average for your car insurance through Erie and $409 through State Farm.

Students are typically low-income individuals because they’re either still in school or just starting their careers. However, car insurance rates for young student drivers are higher by default because they lack driving experience and not because of their low incomes.

The two cheapest options for young student drivers with poor credit scores in West Virginia are:

• Erie - $1,524
• State Farm - $1,927

USAA has the cheapest car insurance for low-income students with poor credit at an average of $1,298 per year. However, only military members and their families qualify for insurance through USAA.

Your low income doesn’t necessarily signify a poor credit score. A low-income student with a good credit score will save quite a bit of money on their yearly premiums. If you fit that driver profile, you’ll pay about $872 per year for car insurance through Erie and $1,102 through State Farm.

Senior drivers in West Virginia usually pay a slightly higher insurance premium for their car insurance than their middle-aged counterparts. This is due to possible health conditions and factors, including reduced vision and impaired hearing that can impair your driving ability.

The cost of car insurance for low-income seniors in West Virginia also depends on your credit score. Our sample 70-year-old driver pays about $395 per year more with a poor credit score than a good one.

The two cheapest car insurance companies in West Virginia for low-income senior drivers with a poor credit score are:

• Erie: $578
• State Farm: $716

At $482, USAA has the second cheapest car insurance for low-income senior drivers with poor in West Virginia; however, it’s exclusive to current and retired members of the military and their families.

You may have a low income, but your credit score can be high. If that’s your situation, then you can obtain minimum coverage car insurance from Erie for an average of $331 per year and $409 from State Farm.

Auto insurance companies can’t use your income to determine your car insurance rates. However, they consider other factors seemingly related to your income which do affect how much you pay for your car insurance.

For instance, while young student drivers are generally low-income, that’s not why they typically pay more for insurance than middle-aged drivers. Students lack driving experience and are thus at great risk of getting into accidents.

Another example is that insurers consider a driver’s claims history. It’s not the driver's low income that is in question; it’s the number of claims they’ve made in the past. It’s just a coincidence that most claims are made by low-income drivers who can’t afford the costs of repairs.

MoneyGeek analyzed how various factors affect car insurance rates in West Virginia. The top three are:

• Your age.
• Adding a teen driver to your policy.
• The coverage level you select.

Your credit score is important, as is the model of your car when insurers determine how much you’ll pay for your car insurance.

MoneyGeek calculated the cost of car insurance for low-income drivers in West Virginia using quotes sourced in partnership with Quadrant Information Services. The sample driver is either a 40-year-old male, a single 40-year-old parent with a 16-year-old child, an adult couple each 40 years old or a couple with a 16-year-old child. The individual or family drives a 2010 Toyota Camry LE. The driver buys the minimum car insurance required in West Virginia.

Costs for poor and good credit scores were extrapolated based on MoneyGeek’s dataset of credit score rate adjustments by score categorization.