Auto insurance shocker...

[ukulele]

Anyone else get a shock when they added their Mazda5 to their auto insurance policy? I have 2 cars, one is a beat-up old 2003 Acura 3.2TL, the other is my 2012 Mazda5, the Mazda replaced my old 2011 Corolla S. For my old policy I was paying around $1600/year for both cars, comp/collision coverage on the Mazda only, for New Jersey that's a decent rate. Now the renewal is up but with the Mazda5 they want $2070/year (with MetLife). I called up AAA, I had auto insurance with them about 2 years ago, they quoted me at $1947/year, with a lower down payment, so I went with them (for now). My coverage limits are exactly the same, no change there, haven't had any accidents/moving violations either.

Did auto insurance just go up drastically in NJ or throughout the country?? Is it because the Mazda5's parts are expensive and/or hard to get if you have an accident?? What gives?? (uhm)

 

[torquelover]

When looking for a car last February, calling in the various VINs to my insurance agent was the norm. About the only thing less to insure than the MZ5 was the $35k Ford Flex SE (2WD, non-ecoboost) everything else was much higher.

I first went looking for a new car for myself to drive primarily to work 5 days a week, 5.5 miles in the city each way. I was shocked at the differences in insurance. These were all higher, much higher than the more expensive (MSRP) MZ5 I eventually bought my wife:
Ford Focus S/SE (If Titanium trim level, about 20% higher!)
Subaru Impreza
Ford Mustang V6
There were others, too but I forgot the rest.

When we decided to buy her a car instead, the Flex was the only one cheaper. It was also the most expensive, both MSRP and actual negotiated price. Also looked at a Scion xB Lava, Chrysler Town & Country Limited, Honda Odyssey LX/EX, Honda CRV LX/EX and Subaru Outback 2.5 Base. Of these the CRV was the least, and closest to the MZ5.

I then drove her old Town and Country for a while, sold it and pressed my Mustang originally purchased as an autocross/track day project car into daily use duty (for now). Another interesting fact: The Mustang is older, a 1995, and with coverage equal to the MZ5, it is more to insure as well. Did I mention my wife hates that car?

I came across a page somewhere at State Farm that categorizes vehicles according to crash tests, theft, rate of claim, how much the claim was, injury or not, and how much injury. From that list it pretty much lined up to my quotes (I don't use State Farm). Might wanna look into that list for peace of mind. You're closer to Hurricane Sandy after effects than I am, so I bet that is a contributor, too.

 

[ukulele]

I came across a page somewhere at State Farm that categorizes vehicles according to crash tests, theft, rate of claim, how much the claim was, injury or not, and how much injury. From that list it pretty much lined up to my quotes (I don't use State Farm). Might wanna look into that list for peace of mind. You're closer to Hurricane Sandy after effects than I am, so I bet that is a contributor, too.

I understand. Maybe something happened to my credit score. Didn't think about that, that would be interesting to find out since as far as I know all my bills are paid on time, they are all automatically withdrawn from my checking account. FICO and the credit bureaus are scoundrels. They use your credit score to rate auto policies here in NJ, don't know if they are allowed to do that in other states. But a $400 difference?? I don't know, I'm going to keep shopping. I'm beginning to think a Town and Country would be cheaper to insure.

 

[phunky.buddha]

My 2010 MZ5 didn't cost any more to insure than my 2006 xB when I swapped cars out- I think it was within $20 over a 6 month term with State Farm, with identical coverage levels. I'm sitting at around $3000/year for pretty sweet full coverage / low deductibles on all 3 vehicles, and considering that there's a sports car (S2000) and a heavy crew cab pickup in there (liability is HIGH on a 2+ ton pickup), the numbers aren't that bad- I'm a frequent speeder too. Maybe it's your area? More incident with Mazdas? Not that regional data should influence one make of car over another...

 

[ukulele]

My 2010 MZ5 didn't cost any more to insure than my 2006 xB when I swapped cars out- I think it was within $20 over a 6 month term with State Farm, with identical coverage levels. I'm sitting at around $3000/year for pretty sweet full coverage / low deductibles on all 3 vehicles, and considering that there's a sports car (S2000) and a heavy crew cab pickup in there (liability is HIGH on a 2+ ton pickup), the numbers aren't that bad- I'm a frequent speeder too. Maybe it's your area? More incident with Mazdas? Not that regional data should influence one make of car over another...

Dunno, well it goes without saying Honda Civics/Accords and some Acuras are expensive to insure here since they are essentially the "poor man's race car" as I like to call them, they are usually modded and probably involved in a lot of street races, accidents, fatalities and thefts. Don't know if in your neck its the same deal, I know certain parts of the west coast dig V-dubs. I can't imagine a Mazda5 is seen anything like these cars to insurance companies. I am checking my credit reports next month when I have extra time, right now the newborn is taking up what little time I have. It could be that in my area (NY metro) the insurance industry just saw a lot of losses and decided to raise everyone. I can't imagine auto insurance rates ever going down. Maybe it's Obama's fault!! (scratch)

At any rate I'm getting rid of the Acura this spring. Gooooood riddens!!

BTW, enjoy your low (or should I say, NORMAL) insurance rates down in the Lonestar... i'm 34 y/o, I remember when I started driving here in Jersey, I was 17, my first auto insurance policy was on a 1990 Hyundai Excel, an oil burner with the Mistu engine. Just liability coverage was about $3000/year. That was 17 years ago. Youthful drivers get (idhitit) here. I remember I couldn't find an insurance agent willing to sell me a policy with any less than 100/300 BI and UM coverage.

 

[cdnballer]

Insurance only takes a couple of factors into account:
1. rate of car theft in the area you live and the chances your make/model will be stolen
2. your commuting distance (they ask more so to see if your commute time is in line with others living in same area)
3. your driving history (obviously) - whether you've defaulted on payments, previous accidents/tickets etc
4. the likelihood you will get into accident that's expensive to insure based on the above factors

Old hondas/acuras are expensive to ensure because they were the most likely to be stolen and most likely to get into accidents that are expensive to ensure.

Essentially, your insurance rate has more to do with where you live than anything else. Your insurance rates changes dramatically depending on where you live.

 

[1987cp]

Insurance rates are weird. When I added a 1987 Crown Vic fleet package to my insurance a few years ago, it was $10-$15 more per month than either a 1987 Colony Park or a 1981 LTD (fullsize) for the same coverage (comp and liability only for those cars). Evidently the fleet model costs my insurance company more on average ... more liability payouts from high speed collisions, perhaps?

When I went to insure the '12 Mazda5, it was only about $15 more per month for full coverage than the '87 Vic had been for only comp and liability, given the same xxx/xxx/xxx and deductible levels. It was also nearly $10 LESS per month than our '03 Cavalier that also has full coverage.



As for the rates ukelele shared, I've only heard numbers like that from 16 year olds living in Canada - on cars worth maybe $2000. Are you 16 years old and drive 500 zillion miles a year in highly dangerous parts of the country? Maybe you live in an area where you can conveniently get around by bicycle?

 

[Silentnoise713]

Insurance only takes a couple of factors into account:
1. rate of car theft in the area you live and the chances your make/model will be stolen
2. your commuting distance (they ask more so to see if your commute time is in line with others living in same area)
3. your driving history (obviously) - whether you've defaulted on payments, previous accidents/tickets etc
4. the likelihood you will get into accident that's expensive to insure based on the above factors

Old hondas/acuras are expensive to ensure because they were the most likely to be stolen and most likely to get into accidents that are expensive to ensure.

Essentially, your insurance rate has more to do with where you live than anything else. Your insurance rates changes dramatically depending on where you live.

+1 Insurance companies have little armies of actuaries that have calculated every possible outcome. I've heard that NJ insurance is really expensive due to a lot of fraud/scams...

The easiest (may be not so easy) to avoid this is to NOT finance/lease so you can opt out of collision coverage; whether this is necessary is another debate. Another thing to look into is your TORT option, do you have full tort or limited tort? These two are crazy expensive if you add them! Finally, here's another tip I found from playing around. If you own two cars have one (or two drivers), change the order on which vehicle is identified as the primary commuter vehicle -this saved me a little too.



Edit: Also I believe every insurance company prioritizes categories differently with their own formulas so you really should shop around for one that benefits your record/condition.

 

[Nutella]

We pay $2800/yr 2 cars. '10 Si, '12 Mazda5 33-35+ married. Toronto, Ontario region. Private insurance mandated by law. Totally fleecing us. And I shopped around.

 

[chandlerGTi]

Weird, mine went down after buying the mZ5 from a E39 touring.

 

[ukulele]

Like the guy that said "Insurance only takes a couple of factors into account" but failed to mention credit reports. I know for a fact in NJ they use your credit report/score to tell you how much your going to pay for auto insurance, and in fact we have a company (actually more of a non-profit or co-op) called Cure Auto Insurance (current website: cure.com, formerly known as NJ Cure). Supposedly they don't use your credit report/score or even your income/education level to determine your rates, they just use your driving record. Many insurers do use your income and education level.

I have tried to get insured with them since I was 17 and every time I try, they always say "No way, Jose." Why?? Because I have generally lived in apartments where other people have lived before, and since I can't prove that those people don't live in the apartment anymore, then they see it as I am living here with all these other people and I'm just lying to them about how many people live with me that are licensed or non-licensed adults. A non-licensed adult (or person over the age of 12 I think) is seen as a big "threat" apparently and they don't like insuring people in this situation. It's bulls*** to the max bro. I have never told my auto insurance that I have a 4 year old son, next thing you know they jack me up $3000 a year because their rationale is that my son can steal my car keys in the middle of the night and make a White Castle run with Elmo riding shotgun.

 

[ukulele]

We pay $2800/yr 2 cars. '10 Si, '12 Mazda5 33-35+ married. Toronto, Ontario region. Private insurance mandated by law. Totally fleecing us. And I shopped around.

Those are Canadian dollars, eh?? Just wondering because I know it takes more Canadian dollars to buy stuff than U.S. dollars, as a kid I used to buy those booklets that you would buy the stickers for and you'd collect the stickers and put them into the booklet, e.g. Nightmare on Elm Street, remember those?? You'd collect the Freddy Kruger stickers and stick them in the booklet, it was like the coolest crap since the freaking Slip 'n' Slide. Anyway, I always used to say to myself as a kid, "Man, it must suck to live in this Canada place..." because the prices were always higher so the booklet would be stamped "$2.99 U.S. - $3.99 Canadian" I was like I'm glad I don't live there!! s*** would cost me another dollar!

 

[JMJinNC]

Might be time to switch insurance companies. When Travelers insurance almost doubled for my cars (I guess my tickets caught up to me), I started calling around. A friend recommended Amica, and they were great to deal with. Travelers would not budge, so they lost my homeowners, car, and umbrella policies (ouch), and all 3 of my policy premiums went down. When I added the Mazda5 to replace my wife's 2002 Saab 9-3 hatchback, it was only about $200 more (not bad moving from a $2k car to a $20k car).

Funny thing is, my inlaws requested quotes from Amica, and they were higher (NJ & FL), so YMMV.

BTW - CDN & US dollars are pretty much par these days.

JMJ

 

[MAZDASPEED MX5]

Post hurricane Sandy?

 

[ukulele]

Post hurricane Sandy?

ehhh... good point... didn't even cross my cerebral cortex.

 

[nuan1]

Quite honestly, auto insurance rates depend upon a number of factors. These include: age, sex, model and make of the car, driving and credit history, security devices (if any) installed to your car, number of miles you drive, where you live…so on. Really, if you’re worried about the increase, call your agent and ask them about it. Else, start looking elsewhere. Better rates to be had. Good luck!

 

[phunky.buddha]

Dunno, well it goes without saying Honda Civics/Accords and some Acuras are expensive to insure here since they are essentially the "poor man's race car" as I like to call them, they are usually modded and probably involved in a lot of street races, accidents, fatalities and thefts. Don't know if in your neck its the same deal, I know certain parts of the west coast dig V-dubs. I can't imagine a Mazda5 is seen anything like these cars to insurance companies. I am checking my credit reports next month when I have extra time, right now the newborn is taking up what little time I have. It could be that in my area (NY metro) the insurance industry just saw a lot of losses and decided to raise everyone. I can't imagine auto insurance rates ever going down. Maybe it's Obama's fault!! (scratch)

At any rate I'm getting rid of the Acura this spring. Gooooood riddens!!

BTW, enjoy your low (or should I say, NORMAL) insurance rates down in the Lonestar... i'm 34 y/o, I remember when I started driving here in Jersey, I was 17, my first auto insurance policy was on a 1990 Hyundai Excel, an oil burner with the Mistu engine. Just liability coverage was about $3000/year. That was 17 years ago. Youthful drivers get (idhitit) here. I remember I couldn't find an insurance agent willing to sell me a policy with any less than 100/300 BI and UM coverage.

Could be the Honda game... but I was all Hondas until just a few years ago. Good credit scores help too.

 

[hoppydawg]

We pay around $1300 year for comp on our 2012 M5 Sport AT. It was one of the deciding factors in buying the car,as it has one of the lowest costs of ownership of all newer cars. I was also looking at a 2012 Focus SEL , but it was going to cost $2400/year for the same coverage.

 

[X-Tanker]

I pay ~ $830/yr to cover our '09 Mazda5 Grand Touring and a '04 Pontiac Vibe with USAA. I don't think that's half bad.

 

[thaxman]

Anyone else get a shock when they added their Mazda5 to their auto insurance policy? I have 2 cars, one is a beat-up old 2003 Acura 3.2TL, the other is my 2012 Mazda5, the Mazda replaced my old 2011 Corolla S. For my old policy I was paying around $1600/year for both cars, comp/collision coverage on the Mazda only, for New Jersey that's a decent rate. Now the renewal is up but with the Mazda5 they want $2070/year (with MetLife). I called up AAA, I had auto insurance with them about 2 years ago, they quoted me at $1947/year, with a lower down payment, so I went with them (for now). My coverage limits are exactly the same, no change there, haven't had any accidents/moving violations either.

Did auto insurance just go up drastically in NJ or throughout the country?? Is it because the Mazda5's parts are expensive and/or hard to get if you have an accident?? What gives?? (uhm)

I dropped Met last year when prices went thru the roof. 2 mos later, they had a Superbowl ad with something like 30 different licensed cartoon characters. I figured the rate increase was to pay for all that hoopla. I have Farmers now & have only seen about a 10% increase (~$50/yr)