The words “low-cost” and “insurance” probably shouldn’t be used in the same sentence, especially when comparison shopping for the best coverage prices for college graduates. To help control this cost, let’s lead off by showing you some things that have an effect on insurance premiums, and find some ways to reduce the price of the next policy you buy.
The car, truck, or SUV that is being insured is one of the largest factors that determines whether or not you find affordable coverage for college graduates. Vehicles with lower performance, good safety features, or a low likelihood of having liability claims will cost significantly less to insure than higher performance models.
The next list presents coverage costs for some of the most cost-effective vehicles to insure.
| Insured Vehicle | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Honda CR-V LX 4WD | $1,132 |
| Ford Escape Limited 4WD | $1,229 |
| Honda Accord LX 4-Dr Sedan | $1,301 |
| Toyota RAV4 4WD | $1,342 |
| Hyundai Elantra Blue 4-Dr Sedan | $1,386 |
| Ford Focus SES 4-Dr Sedan | $1,396 |
| Toyota Corolla XLE | $1,412 |
| Honda Odyssey EX-L W/Navigation | $1,418 |
| Volkswagen Jetta SEL 4-Dr Sedan | $1,439 |
| GMC Sierra 2500HD SLT Crew Cab 4WD | $1,509 |
| Honda Civic DX 4-Dr Sedan | $1,514 |
| GMC Sierra SLT Crew Cab 4WD | $1,533 |
| Ford F-250 XL Super Cab Cabela Package 2WD | $1,536 |
| Chevrolet Impala LT | $1,543 |
| Toyota Prius | $1,548 |
| Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer 2WD | $1,560 |
| Dodge Ram 3500 Crew Cab Laramie 2WD | $1,572 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan Crew | $1,580 |
| Ford F-150 Lariat Crew Cab 4WD | $1,572 |
| Ford Edge Limited 2WD | $1,616 |
| Nissan Altima 2.5 S 4-Dr Sedan | $1,623 |
| Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid | $1,649 |
| Chevrolet Equinox LS AWD | $1,659 |
| Start Your Quote Go | |
Premium data assumes single female driver age 30, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and Colorado minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include claim-free, homeowner, multi-vehicle, multi-policy, and safe-driver. Price estimates do not factor in specific garaging location which can revise coverage prices greatly.
Based upon these rates, makes and models like the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, and Honda Accord are the more affordable vehicles to insure for college grads.
Finding decent, reasonably-priced insurance is not most people’s favorite thing to do, and determining which companies quote the cheapest car insurance rates for college graduates may require a little more work. Every auto insurer uses slightly different criteria to set policy rates, so let’s take a look at the most budget-friendly car insurance companies in Colorado Springs.
It’s important that you understand Colorado Springs car insurance rates are based on many factors which can substantially change the policy premium. This price variability is why Colorado Springs drivers need to compare as many rates as possible when trying to find affordable insurance quotes for college graduates. Auto insurance prices are influenced by many factors and can change without notice, so the cheapest company when you last compared rates may now be quite expensive.
Compare Cheap Insurance Quotes for Grads
| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Hartford | $825 |
| 2 | Grange | $987 |
| 3 | USAA | $1,029 |
| 4 | Nationwide | $1,121 |
| 5 | GEICO | $1,152 |
| 6 | Auto-Owners | $1,204 |
| 7 | Travelers | $1,207 |
| 8 | State Farm | $1,222 |
| 9 | American Family | $1,262 |
| 10 | Progressive | $1,376 |
| 11 | Amica | $1,381 |
| 12 | Allied | $1,439 |
| 13 | California Casualty | $1,502 |
| 14 | Farmers | $1,565 |
| 15 | Colorado Farm Bureau | $1,624 |
| 16 | MetLife | $1,811 |
| 17 | Allstate | $2,076 |
| 18 | Encompass | $2,187 |
| 19 | Safeco | $2,547 |
| 20 | Titan | $2,657 |
| View More Rates Go | ||
The Hartford normally has some of the best car insurance rates in Colorado Springs at around $825 per year. Grange, USAA, Nationwide, and GEICO also rank well as some of the more affordable Colorado Springs, CO auto insurance companies.
As the rates illustrate above, if you currently buy coverage from GEICO and switched to Grange, you could earn savings of in the neighborhood of $165. Insureds with Auto-Owners could save as much as $217 a year, and Travelers customers might lower prices by up to $220 a year.
Bear in mind that those prices are averaged for all types of drivers and the different vehicles they drive and do not take into consideration a specific location for college graduates. So the company that is best suited for you may not even be in the top 21 companies shown above. That’s why you need to compare prices as often as possible using your own driver information and specific vehicle type.
For college grads, one of the big components that are looked at to help calculate auto insurance rates is the neighborhood you call home in Colorado Springs. Larger areas tend to have more expensive car insurance rates, whereas more rural areas have the luxury of lower rates.
The illustration below lists the most expensive places in Colorado for college graduates to purchase auto insurance in. Colorado Springs makes the list at #8 with an annual premium of $1,329 on average, which is around $111 each month.
| Rank | City | Average Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aurora | $1,417 |
| 2 | Pueblo | $1,412 |
| 3 | Denver | $1,397 |
| 4 | Lakewood | $1,378 |
| 5 | Commerce City | $1,354 |
| 6 | Northglenn | $1,342 |
| 7 | Security-Widefield | $1,330 |
| 8 | Colorado Springs | $1,329 |
| 9 | Littleton | $1,306 |
| 10 | Thornton | $1,281 |
| 11 | Ken Caryl | $1,274 |
| 12 | Westminster | $1,272 |
| 13 | Centennial | $1,265 |
| 14 | Castle Rock | $1,261 |
| 15 | Parker | $1,257 |
| 16 | Arvada | $1,256 |
| 17 | Highlands Ranch | $1,241 |
| 18 | Brighton | $1,235 |
| 19 | Boulder | $1,207 |
| 20 | Broomfield | $1,179 |
| 21 | Longmont | $1,133 |
| 22 | Grand Junction | $1,132 |
| 23 | Greeley | $1,122 |
| 24 | Loveland | $1,107 |
| 25 | Fort Collins | $1,089 |
| Find Cheaper Insurance Go | ||
Annual rates are comparative as the garaging address in Colorado Springs can affect premium rates considerably.
Get discounts on Colorado Springs auto insurance
Insurance companies that offer quotes for college graduates may have price discounts that can lower rates by 25% or more if you meet specific criteria. A list of car insurance companies and some of the discounts can be found below.
- State Farm policyholders can earn discounts including good student, student away at school, multiple autos, safe vehicle, driver’s education, Steer Clear safe driver discount, and anti-theft.
- GEICO may include discounts for air bags, federal employee, seat belt use, multi-vehicle, and multi-policy.
- Allstate has discounts for auto/life discount, farm vehicle, utility vehicle, eSmart discount, teenSMART discount, and anti-theft.
- SAFECO may have discounts that include homeowner, teen safe driver, anti-theft, multi-car, and safe driver.
- Farm Bureau offers premium reductions for safe driver, good student, multi-vehicle, 55 and retired, and renewal discount.
- Progressive discounts include good student, multi-policy, online quote discount, online signing, continuous coverage, multi-vehicle, and homeowner.
- AAA offers discounts for multi-policy, good driver, pay-in-full, multi-car, education and occupation, and AAA membership discount.
The information below illustrates the difference between yearly insurance costs with and without discounts applied to the rates. The premiums assume a female driver, a clean driving record, no claims, Colorado state minimum liability limits, comprehensive and collision coverage, and $500 deductibles.
The first bar for each age group shows the average annual price with no discounts. The lower bar shows the rates with anti-theft, passive restraint, marriage, safe-driver, accident-free, and claim-free discounts applied. With discounts applied, theaverage amount saved on car insurance for college graduates is 28% or $437.
Colorado car insurance company ratings
Choosing the highest-rated car insurance company is difficult considering how many choices there are in Colorado. The ranking data shown below could help you pick which auto insurers to look at when shopping insurance around for college graduates. The rankings below are for companies with a national presence, so companies that only write business in Colorado or surrounding areas are not included in these rankings.
| Company | Value | Customer Service | Claims | Customer Satisfaction | A.M Best Rating | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USAA | 98 | 100 | 100 | 94% | A++ | 98.6 |
| American Family | 98 | 89 | 100 | 86% | A | 95.4 |
| State Farm | 88 | 93 | 96 | 90% | A++ | 92.4 |
| The Hartford | 94 | 92 | 90 | 89% | A+ | 91.7 |
| AAA Insurance | 88 | 89 | 95 | 91% | A | 91.2 |
| GEICO | 84 | 93 | 93 | 89% | A++ | 90.3 |
| The General | 89 | 91 | 89 | 88% | A- | 90 |
| Titan Insurance | 90 | 87 | 91 | 95% | A+ | 89.6 |
| Progressive | 84 | 91 | 93 | 87% | A+ | 89.5 |
| Allstate | 85 | 90 | 92 | 88% | A+ | 89.3 |
| Compare Rates Now Go | ||||||
Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies
Why are you paying too much for car insurance?
Colorado car insurance rates are influenced by many factors which can substantially decrease or increase the price you have to pay. Simply improving your credit, increasing deductibles, or getting a ticket for careless driving can trigger changes in premium resulting in some rates now being cheaper than competitors. Not only may your risk profile change, but insurers change the rates they charge in Colorado multiple times each year in order to offset underwriting gains or losses. Larger than normal claims can result in higher rates, while lower claims may cause cheaper Colorado Springs car insurance rates.
To illustrate this point, the bar chart below shows rates for the cheapest car insurance in Colorado Springs, CO for a 45-year-old female driver with a good driving record, no prior claims, and a high credit rating. If we look at prices based on her personal risk profile, The Hartford has the best car insurance rates in Colorado Springs at $1,039 annually. This is $539 less than the average price paid by Colorado drivers of $1,578. Grange, USAA, Nationwide, and Auto-Owners are the remaining most affordable Colorado Springs, CO auto insurance companies.
In the next rate comparison, we’ll give the driver from the first example a couple of claims, a lower credit rating, and a traffic ticket or two. Since each insurance company has a unique approach to determine rates, analyzing rate quotes may now present a significantly different list of the cheapest car insurance companies in Colorado Springs as shown below.
Travelers now has the cheapest rate in Colorado Springs, CO with State Farm, American Family, Grange, and Progressive now rounding out the top five. This illustrates why Colorado drivers need to perform an extensive rate comparison to get the best insurance rates for college graduates. Car insurance prices are made up of many risk factors and change substantially, so the lowest-price company three years ago may now be priced much higher than other options.
How to find more affordable auto insurance for college graduates
Lowering your rates is not difficult, and here are some thrifty ideas that can help Colorado drivers find cheaper coverage.
- Higher credit ratings may save you money
- Avoid having at-fault accidents
- Violations and traffic tickets increase rates
- Avoid filing small claims
- Buy a vehicle with excellent safety ratings
- Comparison shop at least once a year
That last piece of advice is incredibly important, as was emphasized in this piece. Coverage prices can change significantly in a year, so drivers shouldn’t be reluctant to buy from a new company if you find a cheaper price. Many drivers tend to have loyalty to a certain company, but is isn’t recommended if your bullheadedness ends up costing you hundreds of dollars a year. Now is a great time to compare rates and find cheaper car insurance for college graduates in Colorado Springs.