This would be a real easy article to write if we could just give you the name of the single company that has the best car insurance rates in Nebraska. It’s just not that easy, however, as there are a ton of unknown aspects like the number of miles you drive each year, the safety features built into your vehicle, and if you are a man or woman, that all go into determining the rate you pay. In this article, we will teach you about the different ways you can keep rates low and will give you some help in finding cheaper rates.
For new drivers, one of the largest criteria that are used to help calculate car insurance rates is where you call home. Cities with more crime and/or more people will most likely pay more, whereas areas that tend to be more rural benefit from lower rates.
The table below ranks the highest-priced places in Nebraska for inexperienced drivers in which to purchase auto insurance. Lincoln is listed at #24 with an annual cost of $1,062 for the average insurance policy, which is approximately $89 monthly.
| Rank | City | Annual Premium |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Scottsbluff | $1,360 |
| 2 | Alliance | $1,354 |
| 3 | Gering | $1,343 |
| 4 | South Sioux City | $1,303 |
| 5 | McCook | $1,292 |
| 6 | Beatrice | $1,272 |
| 7 | Lexington | $1,264 |
| 8 | North Platte | $1,262 |
| 9 | Kearney | $1,236 |
| 10 | Omaha | $1,233 |
| 11 | Blair | $1,224 |
| 12 | Crete | $1,198 |
| 13 | Bellevue | $1,190 |
| 14 | Nebraska City | $1,188 |
| 15 | Hastings | $1,182 |
| 16 | York | $1,180 |
| 17 | Seward | $1,179 |
| 18 | Fremont | $1,166 |
| 19 | Papillion | $1,140 |
| 20 | Columbus | $1,139 |
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Prices are approximated as zip code location can raise or lower coverage rates noticeably.
Finding decent, low-cost insurance is confusing at best, and deciding which companies quote the lowest-priced insurance rates for inexperienced drivers will involve even more shopping around. Every auto insurer uses their own method for determining rates, so first let’s look at the rankings for the most affordable insurance companies in Lincoln, NE.
It’s important that readers know that Nebraska insurance rates are impacted by many factors which can significantly increase or decrease the policy price. This price variation is why it is so important to compare as many rates as possible when trying to get the most economical auto insurance quotes for inexperienced drivers. Car insurance prices consist of many factors and can decrease or increase without notice, so the best price the last time you checked may now cost much more than other companies.
Find Cheaper Car Insurance for Newbies
| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Safeco | $804 |
| 2 | The Hartford | $873 |
| 3 | Auto-Owners | $923 |
| 4 | Allied | $949 |
| 5 | Farmers Mutual of Nebraska | $989 |
| 6 | Farm Bureau Mutual | $1,010 |
| 7 | Nationwide | $1,037 |
| 8 | American National | $1,065 |
| 9 | State Farm | $1,075 |
| 10 | General Casualty | $1,114 |
| 11 | USAA | $1,116 |
| 12 | California Casualty | $1,257 |
| 13 | Iowa Mutual | $1,295 |
| 14 | American Family | $1,296 |
| 15 | EMC | $1,314 |
| 16 | MetLife | $1,319 |
| 17 | GEICO | $1,362 |
| 18 | Progressive | $1,460 |
| 19 | Farmers | $1,586 |
| 20 | North Star | $1,642 |
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Safeco has some of the most affordable car insurance rates in Lincoln at around $804 per year. This is $512 less than the average policy premium paid by Nebraska drivers of $1,316. The Hartford, Auto-Owners, Allied, and Farmers Mutual of Nebraska also qualify as some of the more affordable Lincoln, NE auto insurance companies.
In the above example, if you currently have a policy with Allied and switched to Safeco, you could earn savings of roughly $145. Nebraska drivers with Farmers Mutual of Nebraska might save as much as $185 a year, and Farm Bureau Mutual customers might cut rates by $206 a year.
Be aware that those rates are averages for all types of drivers and the different vehicles they drive and and are not calculated with an exact location for inexperienced drivers. So the car insurance company that can offer you the best rate may not even be in the top 24 companies shown above. That is why you need to compare as many prices as possible using your own personalized driver profile and vehicle information.
Discount Lincoln auto insurance
Insurers that sell policies for inexperienced drivers may also offer premium discounts that could reduce prices by as much as 35% if you qualify. Large insurance companies and some of the premium reductions they offer are detailed below.
- Mercury Insurance policyholders can earn discounts including professional/association, low natural disaster claims, accident-free, good driver, ease of repair, and type of vehicle.
- Farmers Insurance discounts include business and professional, multi-car, early shopping, good student, alternative fuel, and switch companies.
- Farm Bureau has savings for safe driver, multi-policy, renewal discount, 55 and retired, and good student.
- State Farm may have discounts that include Steer Clear safe driver discount, multiple policy, driver’s education, good driver, safe vehicle, and anti-theft.
- Allstate has discounts for defensive driver, senior citizen, economy car, EZ pay plan discount, multi-policy, and teenSMART discount.
- GEICO offers discounts for driver training, emergency military deployment, good student, air bags, and federal employee.
The example below shows the difference between yearly insurance costs with and without discounts being applied to the rates. Data assumes a male driver, no violations or accidents, Nebraska state minimum liability limits, full coverage, and $1,000 deductibles.
The first bar for each age group shows the price with no discounts. The lower bar shows the rates with accident-free, multiple vehicle, multiple policy, homeowner, defensive driving course, and passive restraint discounts applied. When discounts are applied, theaverage amount saved on insurance for inexperienced drivers is 28% or $378.
Impact of careless driving on insurance rates
The easiest method to obtain the most affordable insurance prices for new drivers is to drive safely and maintain a clean driving record. The example below demonstrates how citations and at-fault fender-benders impact insurance rates for different age groups of insureds. The costs are based on a married male driver, full coverage, $250 deductibles, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
The data above shows the average cost of auto insurance in Nebraska per year with a clean driving record and no accidents is $1,349. Receive one speeding ticket and the average cost jumps to $1,547, an increase of $198 each year. Next add two accidents along with the one speeding ticket and the 12-month cost of insurance for inexperienced drivers goes up to an average of $3,268. That’s an increase of $1,919, or $160 per month, just for not driving responsibly!
Liability-only versus full coverage
Paying less for insurance is important to the majority of vehicle owners, and one great way to buy cheaper insurance for inexperienced drivers is to only buy liability insurance. The chart below compares insurance costs with full coverage and liability only. The premium estimates are based on no claims or violations, $1,000 deductibles, marital status is single, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
Averaged for all ages 20 through 70, comp and collision coverage costs $1,366 per year over and above liability coverage. Lot’s of drivers question if you should buy full coverage at all. There is no definitive formula that is best for determining when to drop comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy, but there is a guideline you can use. If the annual cost of comprehensive and collision coverage is more than 10% of the settlement you would receive from your company, then you might want to think about dropping full coverage.
For example, let’s assume your vehicle’s claim settlement value is $6,000 and you have $1,000 deductibles. If your vehicle is damaged in an accident, the most your company will settle for is $5,000 after the policy deductible has been paid. If it’s costing you more than $500 annually for your policy with full coverage, then you may want to consider only buying liability coverage.
There are a few cases where dropping physical damage coverage is not advised. If you still owe money on your vehicle, you have to maintain full coverage in order to prevent your loan from defaulting. Also, if your finances do not allow you to purchase a different vehicle in the event your current vehicle is totaled, you should maintain full coverage.