You have probably seen the ads from auto insurance companies like The General and Progressive that guarantee big savings, so you should just choose any of them, right?
It’s not that simple, unfortunately, as there are a whole bunch of unknown factors like if you have a tendency to get into accidents, if you are married or single, and whether you are female or male, that all have an effect on the price. This article goes into detail about the best ways to compare rates and will hopefully give you a good start in finding the cheapest insurance in Colorado.
Determining which company has the lowest-priced insurance rates for 17 year olds takes a little more effort in order to find the best policy. Every insurance company uses their own calculation for setting prices, so we need to take a look at the most budget-friendly insurance companies in Denver.
It’s important that you understand Colorado insurance rates are based on many factors that may substantially change the cost of having a policy. Turning one year older, marrying your spouse, or getting a ticket for careless driving can cause premium changes resulting in some companies being more affordable than competitors.
Find Cheaper Auto Insurance for Teens
| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Hartford | $834 |
| 2 | Grange | $978 |
| 3 | USAA | $1,029 |
| 4 | Nationwide | $1,121 |
| 5 | GEICO | $1,141 |
| 6 | Auto-Owners | $1,168 |
| 7 | Travelers | $1,171 |
| 8 | State Farm | $1,222 |
| 9 | American Family | $1,301 |
| 10 | Progressive | $1,336 |
| 11 | Amica | $1,381 |
| 12 | Allied | $1,439 |
| 13 | California Casualty | $1,488 |
| 14 | Colorado Farm Bureau | $1,576 |
| 15 | Farmers | $1,629 |
| 16 | MetLife | $1,866 |
| 17 | Allstate | $2,076 |
| 18 | Encompass | $2,187 |
| 19 | Safeco | $2,522 |
| 20 | Titan | $2,738 |
| Quote Your Rates Go | ||
The Hartford may have some of the cheapest car insurance rates in Denver at around $834 annually. This is $744 less than the average policy premium paid by Colorado drivers of $1,578. Grange, USAA, Nationwide, and GEICO also are some of the best Denver, CO insurance companies.
As the rates illustrate above, if you are insured with Grange and switched to The Hartford, you could see an annual premium reduction of roughly $144. Policyholders with USAA might save as much as $195 a year, and Nationwide insureds might realize rate reductions of up to $287 a year.
Understand that those policy rates are averages for all types of insureds and vehicles and are not factoring in an exact zip code location for 17 year olds. So the car insurance company that can offer you the lowest price may not even be in the list above. That affirms the importance of why you need to compare prices as often as possible using your own driver data and vehicle information.
The type of vehicle you are seeking coverage for is probably the biggest factor when comparison shopping for the cheapest insurance for 17 year olds. Vehicles with limited top-end speed, a plethora of safety features, or a low likelihood of having liability claims will cost much less to insure than high performance models.
The next list shows coverage costs for a selection of the most cost-effective automobiles to buy coverage for.
| Vehicle | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Ford Escape XLS 2WD | $4,660 |
| Honda CR-V EX 4WD | $4,703 |
| Toyota Prius | $5,045 |
| Ford Edge SE 2WD | $5,188 |
| Jeep Wrangler Sport Islander Package 4WD 2-Dr | $5,195 |
| Ford F-150 XLT Crew Cab 2WD | $5,231 |
| Volkswagen Jetta 2.0T Station Wagon | $5,338 |
| Chevrolet Impala LT | $5,527 |
| Toyota RAV4 Sport 2WD | $5,534 |
| GMC Sierra SL Extended Cab 2WD | $5,527 |
| Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 4WD | $5,535 |
| Chevrolet Malibu LS | $5,527 |
| Toyota Camry LE | $5,536 |
| Chevrolet Equinox LT AWD | $5,527 |
| Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer AWD | $5,573 |
| Toyota Tacoma Double Cab TRD Off-Road Package 4WD | $5,582 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan Crew | $5,573 |
| Hyundai Elantra Blue 4-Dr Sedan | $5,777 |
| Ford Focus SES 4-Dr Sedan | $5,784 |
| Toyota Corolla S | $5,820 |
| Start Your Quote Go | |
Table data assumes single female driver age 17, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and Colorado minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Price estimates do not factor in specific location which can modify rates significantly.
Based on these rates, models like the Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, Toyota Prius, and Ford Edge are most likely to be the cheaper vehicles to insure for teen drivers. The cost of auto insurance will be higher anyway because of the fact that there is more inherent risk for 17 year olds, but in general those particular models will most likely have the lowest prices that you are likely to find.
Types of discounts on Denver auto insurance rates
Insurance providers that provide policies for 17 year olds may have premium discounts that may potentially lower prices by as much as 25% or more if you qualify for them. A list of companies and some of the discounts are:
- GEICO may offer discounts for good student, emergency military deployment, driver training, multi-policy, seat belt use, federal employee, and multi-vehicle.
- Mercury Insurance offers discounts for ease of repair, multi-car, accident-free, location of vehicle, age of vehicle, annual mileage, and professional/association.
- Farmers Insurance offers discounts including youthful driver, distant student, business and professional, alternative fuel, mature driver, and electronic funds transfer.
- Auto-Owners Insurance may have discounts that include student away at school, company car, mature driver, safe driver, and anti-theft.
- Liberty Mutual has savings for newly retired, new vehicle discount, new move discount, safety features, multi-policy, and good student.
- SAFECO has discounts for anti-theft, accident prevention training, teen safe driver, bundle discounts, and homeowner.
- Progressive policyholders can earn discounts including multi-policy, online quote discount, continuous coverage, good student, and homeowner.
- USAA discounts include family discount, defensive driver, good student, military installation, multi-vehicle, vehicle storage, and new vehicle.
The diagram below shows the comparison of yearly insurance costs with and without discounts. The premium estimates are based on a male driver, no violations or claims, Colorado state minimum liability limits, full physical damage coverage, and $100 deductibles.
The first bar for each age group shows premium with no discounts. The second bar shows the rates with good student, paperless filing, continuous coverage, vehicle safety, anti-theft, and passive restraint discounts applied. When discounts are factored in, the average amount saved each year on insurance for 17 year olds is 28% or $710.
Choosing a highly-rated car insurance provider can be difficult considering how many choices there are in Denver. The information in the next section may help you decide which car insurance companies you want to consider comparing rates with.
These ratings are only made up of companies that insure vehicles across America, so companies that only write business in Colorado or surrounding areas will not be included in the list. If you’d like to compare prices from the insurers below and more, click here.
Top 10 Large Car Insurance Companies in Denver Ranked by Customer Satisfaction
- Titan Insurance – 95%
- USAA – 94%
- AAA Insurance – 91%
- Nationwide – 90%
- State Farm – 90%
- The Hartford – 89%
- GEICO – 89%
- Allstate – 88%
- 21st Century – 88%
- The General – 88%
Top 10 Large Car Insurance Companies Overall in Denver
- USAA
- American Family
- State Farm
- The Hartford
- AAA Insurance
- GEICO
- The General
- Titan Insurance
- Progressive
- Allstate
Full coverage or liability only
Saving money when shopping for insurance is the goal of the majority of people, and one of the best ways to find cheap insurance for 17 year olds is to not buy full coverage. The illustration below shows the comparison of auto insurance rates when comparing full coverage to liability only. The information is based on no tickets, no at-fault accidents, $500 deductibles, drivers are not married, and no other discounts are factored in.
If averaged out across all ages, physical damage coverage costs $2,209 per year more than insuring for liability only. Many drivers may wonder if you should buy full coverage. There is no definitive rule that works best for making the decision to drop comp and collision coverage, but there is a guideline you can use. If the yearly cost of full coverage is more than 10% of the replacement cost minus the deductible, then it may be the right time to buy liability only.
For example, let’s assume your vehicle’s replacement cost is $8,000 and you have $1,000 physical damage deductibles. If your vehicle is severely damaged, the most your company will settle for is $7,000 after you pay the deductible. If premiums are more than $700 a year to have full coverage, the it may be a good time to stop paying for full coverage.
How to find economical insurance for 17 year olds
Here are a few thrifty solutions that can help Colorado drivers quote more affordable coverage.
- Pay lower rates with good credit
- Accident-free drivers may qualify for discounts
- Vehicles with safetly features generally cost less to insure
- Raise your physical damage coverage deductibles
- Save money by observing traffic laws and speed limits
- Compare quotes from other companies often
That last piece of advice is especially significant, as was noted in the prior article. Prices charged by car insurance companies adjust frequently, so don’t hesitate to switch to a new company if a lower-cost policy is available.
Loyalty to a specific company is fine, but it’s not a good idea if that inflexibility results in costing you a small fortune year after year. It takes less than five minutes to compare prices to find cheaper car insurance for 17 year olds in Denver.