Recent survey results reveal a significant disparity in auto insurance rates across the country.
The percentage of uninsured drivers in a given state, along with other factors such as weather and state insurance laws, are in large part what determine the average cost of auto insurance premiums.
“We often think of car insurance prices strictly in terms of our own personal details, like our driving record and our coverage amount,” says Amy Danise, senior managing editor of Insure.com. “But Insure.com’s rankings demonstrate how factors like state laws and the judicial system can be the driving force behind high rates.”
The national average annual premium is $1,561. Michigan holds the spot as the most expensive place for auto insurance because it’s the only state that guarantees unlimited personal injury protection payments by law, which is very costly for insurance companies, Insure.com says. Louisiana is the second most expensive state because of its judicial system, which generally favors individuals—meaning that insurance companies tend to lose in court, again driving up costs for insurers. By comparison, a representative driver in Vermont pays 87% less for insurance coverage than the same driver in Michigan because of the lower level of traffic congestion in Vermont and the large number of insurers competing for business.
Below are the U.S. states and the District of Columbia as ranked by the average annual premium that a representative driver would pay:
1. Michigan, $2,541
2. Louisiana, $2,453
3. Oklahoma, $2,197
4. Montana, $2,190
5. Washington, D.C., $2,146
6. California, $1,991
7. Mississippi, $1,896
8. New Mexico, $1,896
9. Arkansas, $1,836
10. Maryland, $1,807
11. North Dakota, $1,794
12. Connecticut, $1,786
13. Rhode Island, $1,747
14. Wyoming, $1,714
15. Hawaii, $1,707
16. South Dakota, $1,707
17. Georgia, $1,670
18. New Jersey, $1,663
19. West Virginia, $1,633
20. Kentucky, $1,629
21. New York, $1,627
22. Minnesota, $1,614
23. Washington, $1,584
24. Missouri, $1,563
25. Indiana, $1,518
26. Colorado, $1,508
27. Texas, $1,492
28. Delaware, $1,489
29. Florida, $1,476
30. Nebraska, $1,470
31. Pennsylvania, $1,468
32. Kansas, $1,461
33. Alaska, $1,454
34. New Hampshire, $1,334
35. Massachusetts, $1,328
36. Idaho, $1,325
37. Alabama, $1,306
38. Oregon, $1,306
39. Nevada, $1,300
40. Illinois, $1,290
41. Arizona, $1,280
42. Utah, $1,272
43. Virginia, $1,237
44. Iowa, $1,179
45. North Carolina, $1,154
46. Ohio, $1,152
47. Tennessee, $1,146
48. Wisconsin, $1,128
49. Maine, $1,126
50. South Carolina, $1,095
51. Vermont, $995