Best Cheap Car Insurance For Those With a Bad Driving Record
State Farm and Progressive have the most affordable car insurance rates for high-risk drivers with a bad driving record.
While your rates will likely be more expensive, you can still get car insurance from good companies even if you have a bad driving record or multiple incidents. Drivers with a speeding ticket pay an average rate of $183 per month for full coverage, while drivers with a DUI pay an average of $272 per month.
State Farm is the cheapest company for drivers with speeding tickets, with an average rate of $125 per month for full coverage. That's $95 per month cheaper than average.
Best car insurance companies for drivers with bad records
To help you find the cheapest coverage after a DUI, ticket, accident or other infraction, ValuePenguin collected thousands of rates from across the U.S. We also considered how insurance companies will treat you after an infraction.
Cheapest car insurance companies for bad drivers
State Farm is the cheapest company for drivers with an accident or speeding ticket on their records, which quoted a full coverage rate 40% to 43% cheaper than the average across major insurance companies. Progressive has the cheapest rates for DUIs at 28% less than the average.
Speeding Ticket
Accident
DUI
Speeding Ticket
Accident
DUI
Full-coverage car insurance from the cheapest company can cost up to 78% less than coverage from the most expensive option. Since rates also vary by incident, the best way for high-risk drivers to get the lowest car insurance rates is to get a free online insurance quote to compare rates from multiple insurance companies.
Monthly full coverage rates for bad drivers
How does a bad driving record affect car insurance?
Not all traffic tickets and accidents are equal. Typically, the more severe the incident, the greater the car insurance cost increase.
Minor accidents and tickets, like speeding or running a stop sign, usually cause a minor rate increase of around 23%. However, if you are convicted of a serious traffic violation, like a DUI, you could see a difference in rates of 83%.
Insurance companies charge higher rates to drivers that they expect will cost them more through insurance payouts — either for damages inflicted on other motorists that they are responsible for or to pay for vehicle repairs or replacement that result from a collision insurance claim.
According to the models that insurance companies use to set rates, drivers that have previous car accidents and tickets on their records are more likely to be in future accidents. They're charged higher car insurance rates due to the increased risk they represent to the insurance companies.
The best way for bad drivers to save on car insurance is to get free car insurance quotes from multiple companies. You can also save if you get quotes after past driving incidents are no longer on your record.
A bad driving history won't impact your auto insurance rates forever. Insurance companies typically only factor in accidents and traffic tickets from the past three years.
This means incidents that occurred more than three years ago usually won't have an effect on your rates and may not need to be reported to your insurance company.
However, there is an exception when it comes to DUI convictions, which have the potential to affect your car insurance rates for up to five years.
How to get car insurance with a bad driving record
To get affordable car insurance rates, people with a bad driving record may have to spend more time and effort shopping for auto insurance. This is because insurance companies might quote these drivers very high rates for their auto coverage. Additionally, some companies may not even offer coverage to high-risk drivers, such as those that require SR-22 insurance.
SR-22 (or FR-44 in some states) insurance refers to a special type of policy for people with bad driving records. These drivers are required by the state to have their insurance company file a certificate of financial responsibility that confirms you have the required amount of liability coverage. Usually, this is only required for drivers with serious convictions on their driving records — like DUIs — and those that have had their driver's license suspended.
If you require a SR-22 form to be filed on your behalf, major insurance companies — like Farmers, State Farm and Allstate — might not be an option, as they may choose not to offer you coverage because of your bad driving record. Instead, you may have to consider nonstandard auto insurance companies that specialize in offering coverage to high-risk drivers.
Two good nonstandard car insurance companies are The General Insurance and Direct General Insurance. However, since the impact of a bad driving record on your car insurance rates changes over time, you should shop around for insurance regularly to make sure you are getting the most affordable rates.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an auto insurance company that doesn't check your driving record?
No, essentially every insurance company will consider your driving record when setting insurance rates. However, some companies are more forgiving than others when it comes to driving history, like State Farm and Erie.
What is the cheapest insurance for drivers with accidents on their records?
State Farm is the cheapest insurance company after an at-fault accident. At $125 per month, its full coverage rates are 43% below average.
What insurance is best for a bad driving record?
State Farm has the best car insurance for drivers with an accident or speeding ticket. State Farms' full coverage rates for these drivers are 43% and 40% cheaper than average, respectively. Progressive has the most affordable rates for drivers after a DUI.
How does a bad driving record affect my insurance rates?
A bad driving record will cause your insurance rates to go up because companies believe you're more likely to cause an accident in the future. A single speeding ticket will increase your rates by 23%, on average, while rates tend to double after an accident. Drivers can expect to pay 83% more for insurance after a DUI.
Methodology
To compare rates for drivers with a clean record, speeding ticket, accident or DUI, we gathered thousands of quotes from all residential ZIP codes across the country. Quotes are based on a 30-year-old man with good credit who drives a 2015 Honda Civic EX.
All rates are for a full coverage policy, which includes comprehensive and collision coverage, along with the following limits:
Coverage | Limit |
|---|---|
| Bodily injury liability | $50,000 per person/$100,000 per accident |
| Property damage liability | $25,000 per accident |
| Uninsured/underinsured motorist liability | $50,000 per person/ $100,000 per accident |
| Comprehensive and collision | $500 deductible |
To determine the impact of different driving incidents, we collected insurance quotes for a driver in Jacksonville, Fla., from five major companies. Incidents included:
- Speeding
- Running a stop sign
- Careless driving
- DUI
- At-fault accident
Rates were provided by Quadrant Information Services and sourced from public insurer filings. Your rates will likely be different, as these are for comparison purposes only.