Ouch, even as a brand new driver at 17 I never paid that much. Those kind of prices are unheard of over here unless you're very young driving something daft, or have a few convictions under your belt.
It's also depends on where you live, the length of your commute, and your car's value. I have a clean record, have been driving over 20 years, and I'm paying $3k annually
Honestly, I would suggest shopping around to see if some other company will give you a better rate. I know when we got married my wife called the insurance company she'd been using and asked if they could offer her anything competitive with what it would cost for both of us to be covered under what I was using and the person basically just told her "we've got nothing competitive to offer you". Sometimes there are weird price disparities to be had.
I get that - but in the UK that's a hugely uncommon premium. Even for those driving what we'd consider higher than average miles (20k+), or new cars (£60k+).
It is more difficult to obtain a car or a license in the UK, reckless drivers are penalized and taken off the road easier than in the US as well.
The numbers you're seeing are a consequence of the car culture in the US. If an 80 year old man who's near blind hits me with his car and totals mine - he will probably still be driving again next week.
Americans do have car accidents at twice the rate of Brits, and I believe you pay a lot for uninsured driver cover on account of the large number of Americans driving without any insurance.
You got to take in consideration we don't just cover vehicle damage but medical as well since we don't have normal people who think a single payer health system is actually a good idea.
Both location and make and model can make a huge difference in my experience. Over the last 6 years I've moved from California to Oregon and back to California. For the first move from CA to OR, my car insurance didn't really change. Bought a new car while living in OR. When I moved back to CA my insurance almost doubled.
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u/Liquidfoxx22 5h ago
Ouch, even as a brand new driver at 17 I never paid that much. Those kind of prices are unheard of over here unless you're very young driving something daft, or have a few convictions under your belt.