How Much is San Jose Auto Insurance for Drivers with a DUI?

The vehicle requiring insurance is one of the primary factors that determines whether or not you find low-cost car insurance for drivers with a DUI. Vehicles with reasonable performance levels, a great safety record, or low incidents of liability claims will cost significantly less to insure than adrenaline junky models.

The next table features coverage costs for the most economical vehicles to insure in California.

Premium data assumes single male driver age 50, two speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include homeowner, multi-policy, multi-vehicle, and claim-free. Information does not factor in vehicle location which can alter premium rates substantially.

Based upon the table data, you can infer that models like the Hyundai Elantra, Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Ford Edge, and Honda Odyssey are most likely to be the most affordable vehicles to insure after getting a DUI. Auto insurance rates will be higher anyway just because there is more inherent risk for drivers with a DUI, but overall those particular models will have the best insurance prices compared to all other vehicles.

After getting a DUI, one of the largest factors that determine the annual cost of car insurance is the neighborhood you call home. Larger areas tend to have higher rates, whereas areas with lower vehicle theft rates and fewer weather claims benefit from having to pay less for coverage.

The table below lists the most expensive cities in California for drivers with a DUI to purchase auto insurance in. San Jose makes the list at #18 with a yearly cost of $1,423 for car insurance, which is around $119 each month.

Information shown are comparative as specific San Jose garaging address can change auto insurance rates noticeably.

Establishing which companies quote the cheapest car insurance rates for drivers with a DUI requires a little more sweat than just comparing a company or two. Every car insurance company has a proprietary method to establish rates, so let’s take a look at the most affordable car insurance companies in San Jose, CA.

Best Car Insurance Prices after a DUI

Compare Rates Today

USAA offers some of the cheapest car insurance rates in San Jose at around $1,109 annually. This is $542 less than the average price paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, CSAA, Century National, and Nationwide would also make the list of some of the lowest-priced San Jose, CA auto insurance companies.

As depicted above, if you buy coverage from Wawanesa and switched to USAA, you might achieve savings of about $37. Customers with CSAA might save as much as $113 a year, and Century National customers might see rate reductions of $117 a year.

To see if your current coverage is too expensive, click here to start your custom quote or quote prices from the following companies.

Remember that these premiums are averaged for all insureds and vehicles and do not factor in a specific vehicle garaging location for drivers with a DUI. So the auto insurance company that fits you best may not even be in the top 24 companies shown above. That underscores the importance of why you need to get quotes using your own driver information and specific vehicle type.

Selecting the highest-rated insurance provider can be challenging considering how many companies are available to choose from in California. The information shown below could help you select which auto insurers you want to consider when trying to find cheaper insurance for drivers with a DUI.

The rankings below are for companies with a nationwide focus, so smaller companies are not taken into consideration for the list. To compare prices from these and other companies in California, just click here.

Top 10 Major Auto Insurance Providers in San Jose 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%

Top 10 Major Auto Insurance Providers in San Jose 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

Cautious San Jose drivers save money

In a perfect world, the best way to earn low car insurance rates in San Jose after getting a DUI is to drive cautiously and avoid accidents and traffic citations. The chart below illustrates how traffic citations and accidents increase auto insurance rates for different categories of driver ages. The prices are based on a married male driver, full coverage, $250 deductibles, and no additional discounts are factored in.

The data above shows the average cost of an auto insurance policy in California per year with no accidents or violations is $2,684. Add in one speeding ticket and the average cost increases to $3,084, an increase of $400 each year. Now include two accidents along with the one speeding ticket and the 12-month cost of car insurance for drivers with a DUI goes up to an average of $6,523. That’s an increase of $3,840, or $320 per month, just for not keeping your driving record clean!

Full coverage versus liability only rates

Lowering the price of car insurance is the goal of the majority of people, and an easy way to save on the cost of insurance for drivers with a DUI is to only buy liability coverage. The diagram below shows the difference between insurance costs with full physical damage coverage compared to only buying liability only. The premiums are based on no accidents or driving violations, $1,000 deductibles, drivers are single, and no policy discounts are applied.

As an average, full coverage costs $1,849 per year more than carrying just liability coverage. At some point, about every driver wonders if physical damage coverage is worth the money. There is no definitive rule of when to stop paying for physical damage coverage on your policy, but there is a general guideline you can use. If the yearly cost for physical damage coverage is more than around 10% of the vehicle’s replacement cost less your deductible, then you might want to think about dropping full coverage.

For example, let’s say your vehicle’s claim settlement value is $6,000 and you have $1,000 policy deductibles. If your vehicle is totaled in an accident, the most your company would pay you is $5,000 after you pay the deductible. If you are paying in excess of $500 a year for full coverage, then it might be time to buy liability only.

The importance of comparing San Jose car insurance rates

San Jose, CA car insurance rates are based on many factors that control the price you pay. Turning one year older, buying a home instead of renting, or getting a couple of tickets can trigger rate changes that may make certain companies much cheaper than others. In addition to those changes, companies change premium rates as needed to help ensure profitability. Unexpectedly high claims can cause increased rates, while lower claim expenses may cause cheaper San Jose car insurance rates.

As an example, the graph below shows the companies that have the cheapest car insurance in San Jose, CA for a 35-year-old female driver with no prior accidents, a clean driving record, and a good credit history. When comparing rates based on her current risk profile, USAA may have the cheapest car insurance rates in San Jose at $1,187 per year. This is $464 less than the average rate paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, Century National, CSAA, and Nationwide are also included in the top five cheapest San Jose, CA auto insurance companies.

Now we will pretend the driver from the first set of rates some claims, poor credit, and a couple of points charged on her driving record. Since each auto insurer has a unique approach to establish rates, analyzing rates may now result in a substantially altered list of companies as shown below.

Grange now has the cheapest car insurance in San Jose, CA with Allied, Mercury, Progressive, and Allstate now rounding out the top five. This demonstrates why it is so important to shop around to get the most affordable car insurance quotes for drivers with a DUI. Prices are determined by many things and change frequently, so the best company the last time you shopped around may now not even be in the top five.