Who Has Cheap San Francisco Auto Insurance for Low Credit Scores?

The words “bargain” and “insurance” really shouldn’t be used together, especially when searching for the lowest insurance rates for low credit scores. To save some money, let’s learn about some of the factors that have an impact on car insurance premiums, and see how we can help you lower the price of your next policy.

The type of vehicle you are insuring is one of the biggest factors when consumers are trying to find cheap car insurance for low credit scores. Vehicles with high performance features, poor safety ratings, or a high likelihood of having liability claims will cost quite a bit more to insure than safer, lower-performance models.

The information below presents car insurance rates for a selection of the most cost-effective automobiles to buy coverage for.

Cheapest Vehicles to Insure in San Francisco, CA
Vehicle Insured Estimated Cost for Full Coverage
Jeep Wrangler Sahara 4WD 2-Dr $1,420
Ford Escape XLT 2WD $1,451
Toyota RAV4 4WD $1,496
Chevrolet Equinox LT AWD $1,503
Toyota Corolla S $1,576
Toyota Camry SE $1,584
Honda CR-V EX-L 4WD $1,588
GMC Sierra SLE Regular Cab 4WD $1,604
Kia Optima LX $1,606
Dodge Grand Caravan CV $1,624
Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer 2WD $1,631
Dodge Ram Quad Cab SLT 4WD $1,634
Honda Civic GX 4-Dr Sedan $1,652
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Data rating is based on single female driver age 50, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include claim-free, multi-policy, multi-vehicle, safe-driver, and homeowner. Premium amounts do not factor in vehicle location which can raise or lower insurance rates substantially.

Looking at the rates, we can assume that cars like the Jeep Wrangler, Ford Escape, Toyota RAV4, and Chevrolet Equinox are most likely going to be a few of the less-costly vehicles to insure for bad credit.

Trying to buy cheap auto insurance is not the easiest thing to accomplish, and figuring out which company quotes the cheapest insurance rates for low credit scores takes more quotes for comparison. Each auto insurance company uses different criteria for determining rates, so first let’s look at the rankings for the most budget-friendly insurance companies in San Francisco.

It’s a good idea to be aware that San Francisco insurance rates are impacted by many things that can increase the price of coverage. This price fluctuation is why it is crucial to shop around with many companies to find affordable car insurance quotes for low credit scores. Prices can be altered by many risk factors and can increase or decrease at any time, so the best option two years ago may now cost much more than other companies.

Lowest Insurance Price Quotes in California

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USAA has some of the best car insurance rates in San Francisco at around $1,109 annually. Wawanesa, Nationwide, CSAA, and Century National are also some of the more affordable San Francisco, CA auto insurance companies.

In the rate table above, if you buy coverage from CSAA and switched to Wawanesa, you might achieve a yearly price reduction of about $76. Insureds with Century National could save as much as $80 a year, and 21st Century insureds might reduce rates by $192 a year.

To compare your rates to other California insurance companies, click here to start your free quote or quote prices from the following companies.

Remember that these premium estimates are averaged across all types of insureds and vehicles and and are not figured with a vehicle location for low credit scores. So the auto insurance company that fits your situation best may not even be in the list above. That helps illustrate why you need to get rate quotes from many companies using your own personal information and vehicle type.

One of the many criteria that aid in calculating the amount you pay each year for auto insurance is where you live in San Francisco. Areas with more people or even just a higher incidence of claims tend to have more expensive car insurance rates, whereas areas with less people or fewer weather incidents benefit from having to pay less for coverage.

The illustration below lists the highest-priced places in California for low credit scores to purchase car insurance in. San Francisco is listed at #4 with an annual cost of $1,693 for the average policyholder, which is around $141 monthly.

How much does auto insurance cost in San Francisco?
Rank City Average Per Year
1 Los Angeles $2,168
2 Glendale $2,079
3 Sacramento $1,720
4 San Francisco $1,693
5 Oakland $1,687
6 San Bernardino $1,628
7 Long Beach $1,610
8 Santa Clarita $1,595
9 Fontana $1,581
10 Stockton $1,556
11 Modesto $1,532
12 Garden Grove $1,524
13 Moreno Valley $1,506
14 Riverside $1,482
15 Fresno $1,472
16 Santa Ana $1,453
17 Anaheim $1,430
18 San Jose $1,423
19 Huntington Beach $1,416
20 Fremont $1,403
21 Bakersfield $1,381
22 San Diego $1,368
23 Chula Vista $1,350
24 Irvine $1,343
25 Oxnard $1,318
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Table data uses comparative as the specific garaging location can modify coverage prices substantially.

Buying coverage from the top insurance provider is hard considering how many companies provide coverage in California. The company rank data in the next section may help you choose which companies you want to consider when comparing rate quotes.

These ratings include companies with a nationwide focus, so smaller companies that only insure vehicles in California are not factored into these rankings. If you wish to compare prices from these and other companies in California, simply click here.

Top 10 Large Car Insurance Companies in San Francisco Ranked by Claims Service

  1. AAA of Southern California
  2. State Farm
  3. Esurance
  4. AAA Insurance
  5. Progressive
  6. Liberty Mutual
  7. GEICO
  8. Allstate
  9. Titan Insurance
  10. The Hartford

Top 10 Large Car Insurance Companies in San Francisco Ranked by Customer Satisfaction

  1. Titan Insurance – 95%
  2. USAA – 94%
  3. AAA of Southern California – 92%
  4. AAA Insurance – 91%
  5. Nationwide – 90%
  6. State Farm – 90%
  7. The Hartford – 89%
  8. GEICO – 89%
  9. The General – 88%
  10. 21st Century – 88%

Full coverage versus liability only rates

Buying cheaper insurance should be important to most vehicle owners, and one common way to find cheaper insurance for low credit scores is to not buy comprehensive and collision coverage. The chart below illustrates the difference between insurance costs when comparing full coverage to liability only. The costs are based on no tickets, no at-fault accidents, $250 deductibles, marital status is single, and no policy discounts are applied.

On average, comp and collision coverage costs an extra $2,558 per year more than carrying just liability coverage. That raises the question if buying full coverage is a waste of money. There is no written rule to delete comp and collision coverage, but there is a general convention. If the yearly cost for physical damage coverage is more than 10% of any settlement you would receive from your insurance company, then you may want to consider only buying liability coverage.

The example below highlights how deductible choice can increase or decrease insurance costs when quoting cheap insurance for low credit scores. The premiums are based on a married female driver, full coverage, and no discounts are applied to the premium.

As shown above, a 30-year-old driver could lower their car insurance rates by $476 a year by switching from a $100 deductible to a $500 deductible, or save $712 by using a $1,000 deductible. Youthful drivers, like the Age 20 chart data, can save $1,008 annually by choosing larger deductibles on their policy.

If you do raise deductibles, it’s a good idea to have spare funds to satisfy the extra out-of-pocket expense, which deters some drivers from choosing higher deductibles.

A good deal can quickly turn bad

California insurance rates are impacted by many things that may substantially change the policy premium. Improving your credit rating, marrying your spouse, or having an at-fault accident can trigger price changes that can cause some rates to be cheaper than competitors. And not only may your rating factors change, but insurers change premium rates every year in order to offset underwriting gains or losses. An unexpected high level of claims can result in rate increases, while a lower level of claims can cause lower-cost San Francisco car insurance rates.

To illustrate this point, the chart below shows the companies that have the cheapest car insurance in San Francisco, CA for a 30-year-old male driver with no prior claims, no tickets, and a good credit history. When quoting prices based on his current situation, USAA offers the best car insurance rates in San Francisco at $1,431 annually. This is $220 less than the average rate paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, Century National, CSAA, and Nationwide round out the rest of the most affordable San Francisco, CA auto insurance companies.

In this next rate comparison, we will give the driver from above a chargeable claim, a little lower credit rating, and a few traffic violations. Due to the fact that every insurance company has a proprietary formula for filing rates in each state, comparing insurance quotes may result in a different set of the cheapest car insurance companies in San Francisco as shown below.

Grange now has the cheapest auto insurance in San Francisco, CA with Mercury, Progressive, GEICO, and Allstate now being in the top five. This example shows why it is so important to shop around with many companies when trying to find the lowest auto insurance quotes for low credit scores. Insurance prices are calculated by many factors and change frequently, so the cheapest rate when you last compared rates may now be one of the higher cost companies.

If you would rather have professional advice when comparing insurance rates for bad credit, the agents shown below can help you make a decision which insurance coverage will be best for you.

To locate a San Francisco auto insurance agent close to you, click the button at the bottom.

Express Service Insurance
2085 Van Ness AveSan Francisco, CA 94109(415) 440-5136

Wilson Chan – State Farm Insurance Agent
25 Division St #200San Francisco, CA 94103(415) 593-8802

Adrienne Ng – State Farm Insurance Agent
425 Market St #2252San Francisco, CA 94105(415) 292-8088

April Insurance Agency
1788 19th AveSan Francisco, CA 94122(415) 242-8100

Linda Williams – State Farm Insurance Agent
1536 20th StSan Francisco, CA 94107(415) 648-1155

More San Francisco, CA insurance agents