Does Car Insurance Actually Cost More For Women?
Quick, which gender pays more for car insurance? Most folks would assume it’s men, but this is only partly true. The average teenage male driver does pay hundreds more annually for insurance than his female peers. But women’s insurance premiums increase as they get older. By 35 years old, women pay slightly more. Several states are even taking steps to correct this disparity.
Does gender matter for car insurance?
The answer depends on where you live. The following states prohibit insurance companies from considering gender when deciding car insurance rates: California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania. In every other state, gender affects insurance rates.
Auto insurance companies quote a different rate for every driver. This price is based on your driving history, the make/model of the vehicle you’re insuring, and how much you drive it. The goal is to preemptively charge more money to drivers more likely to file an expensive claim.
Insurance companies also consider demographics. This includes where you live, your age, and your marital status. Car insurance companies even take gender into account when local laws allow it. In certain places, your gender can translate to hundreds of dollars difference in your car insurance rates.
Is auto insurance more expensive for men or women?
The average 18-year-old male pays $427/month for car insurance, while the average female the same age pays $343. But by 25, car insurance rates are equal for both genders. And by 35, that same man is paying $60/month while the woman is paying $61.59.
Lending Tree’s QuoteWizard insurance analysis division estimates that the average 35-year-old male driver will pay $720/year for auto insurance. The average 35-year-old female driver will pay $739.
In Deleware, the average 30-year-old woman will pay $104 more than her male peers every year. In Florida, that number is $307. Finally, in Alaska, it is $378. Arizona is the most expensive state to be a male driver, with the average 30-year-old man paying $64 more than his average female peer.
Why is car insurance more expensive for older women?
Car insurance is more expensive for young men (16-19) because they are involved in twice as many deadly accidents. But at higher ages, the prices are higher for women, and there’s no apparent reason why.
You might speculate that after their 20s, women are in more accidents, drive more expensive vehicles to insure, or perhaps opt for more comprehensive coverage and pay more for it. But you would be wrong.
When Quote Wizard calculated average insurance rates for male and female drivers, it used volunteer drivers with clean records and excellent credit. It also requested quotes for a 2012 Honda Accord driven 16,000 miles yearly. Finally, every quote was for minimum liability coverage.
The Consumer Federation of America (CFA) came up with similar findings in 2017 when it found that it costs females between 40 and 60 more to get minimum liability than men with similar driving records.
Next, read why 1 in 5 Ram pickup truck buyers are women or learn more about how age and gender affect auto insurance in the video below:
Watch CBS investigate why car insurance is up 15% this year in this final video:
