Compare Car Insurance Rates After a Conviction [2023]
Cheap insurance for convicted drivers can be difficult to come by as rates can increase by $149.67/mo on average after one DUI. SR-22 coverage also may be required in most states.
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Joel Ohman
Founder & CFP®
Joel Ohman is the CEO of a private equity backed digital media company. He is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, author, angel investor, and serial entrepreneur who loves creating new things, whether books or businesses. He has also previously served as the founder and resident CFP® of a national insurance agency, Real Time Health Quotes. He has an MBA from the University of South Florida. Jo...
Founder & CFP®
UPDATED: Oct 20, 2022
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Advertiser Disclosure: We strive to help you make confident car insurance decisions. Comparison shopping should be easy. We are not affiliated with any one car insurance company and cannot guarantee quotes from any single company.
Our partnerships don’t influence our content. Our opinions are our own. To compare quotes from top car companies please enter your ZIP code above to use the free quote tool. The more quotes you compare, the more chances to save.
Editorial Guidelines: We are a free online resource for anyone interested in learning more about auto insurance. Our goal is to be an objective, third-party resource for everything auto insurance related. We update our site regularly, and all content is reviewed by auto insurance experts.
UPDATED: Oct 20, 2022
It’s all about you. We want to help you make the right coverage choices.
Advertiser Disclosure: We strive to help you make confident car insurance decisions. Comparison shopping should be easy. We are not affiliated with any one car insurance company and cannot guarantee quotes from any single company.
Our partnerships don’t influence our content. Our opinions are our own. To compare quotes from top car companies please enter your ZIP code above to use the free quote tool. The more quotes you compare, the more chances to save.
On This Page
- If you have had convictions, it is still possible to receive insurance coverage
- Your coverage will automatically increase as you have become more of a risk to insure
- Your current insurer may drop you; if this happens, check with your state to see if they will offer you coverage
In order to drive, you are required to carry auto insurance on your vehicle; but cheap insurance for convicted drivers might be difficult to come by unless you know where to look.
While getting only the minimum coverage limits is one way to keep your car insurance rates low after a DUI, it’s not the best option for everyone because auto loans and leases require full coverage. Moreover, minimum coverage insurance has low liability limits, meaning that if you have an accident and don’t have enough insurance, you’ll have to pay out of pocket.
The answer to that is based on many factors, including the type of convictions and how many you have. Typically, it takes three to five years for an insurance company to lower your rates after a DUI conviction.
When you cause an accident, you are under a great deal of stress.
What’s worse, you will also face getting a ticket and eventually a conviction on your driving record.
There are all sorts of convictions that range from being less serious, such as running a stop sign, to very serious, such as driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI).
Based on the number of previous convictions on your record, you could face losing your insurance, which in turn means that you would be unable to drive your vehicle.
Therefore, if you ever found yourself asking, “How can I get cheap insurance with an accident?” or “How can I get low car insurance with a bad driving record?” it’s important to know that you are not alone.
Enter your zip code to compare cheap insurance for convicted drivers from multiple companies now!
How to find cheap insurance For convicted drivers?
The best way to find an answer to questions like, “What is the best insurance company for high risk drivers?” is by reviewing the numbers.
Take a look at the following table to see average rates from some of the most popular car insurance companies based on driving record.
COMPANY | CLEAN RECORD | ONE ACCIDENT | ONE SPEEDING VIOLATION | ONE DUI |
---|---|---|---|---|
USAA | $1,933.68 | $2,516.24 | $2,193.25 | $3,506.03 |
Geico | $2,145.96 | $3,192.77 | $2,645.43 | $4,875.87 |
American Family | $2,693.61 | $3,722.75 | $3,025.74 | $4,330.24 |
Nationwide | $2,746.18 | $3,396.95 | $3,113.68 | $4,543.20 |
State Farm | $2,821.18 | $3,396.01 | $3,186.01 | $3,636.80 |
Progressive | $3,393.09 | $4,777.04 | $4,002.28 | $3,969.65 |
Travelers | $3,447.69 | $4,289.74 | $4,260.80 | $5,741.40 |
Farmers | $3,460.60 | $4,518.73 | $4,079.01 | $4,718.75 |
Allstate | $3,819.90 | $4,987.68 | $4,483.51 | $6,260.73 |
Liberty Mutual | $4,774.30 | $6,204.78 | $5,701.26 | $7,613.48 |
Average | $3,123.62 | $4,100.27 | $3,669.10 | $4,919.62 |
As you can see from the table, the average rate increases from a clean record to one DUI amounts to $1,796 a year, or $149.67 per month.
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What happens if I have a DUI?
Driving while under the influence of alcohol not only puts you at risk, but it puts every other person on the road with you at risk as well.
That is why DUI offenses carry such heavy fines, suspended licenses, and even loss of auto insurance.
According to the Insurance Information Institute, every 53 minutes there is a death in the U.S. caused by a drunk driver.
This kind of accident costs insurance companies plenty, which is why some insurance companies will see you as a high-risk driver and may not insure you at all if you have a DUI conviction.
If your insurance company does choose to keep you after a DUI, you can expect your insurance rates to nearly triple.
While that may seem like a grim outcome, it is still possible to find affordable car insurance for high-risk drivers, especially if you find auto insurance that doesn’t check driving record or search for car insurance companies that only look back 3 years.
If you want affordable car insurance after a DUI, it’s best to disclose your DUI status when shopping around, use comparison tools, get multiple quotes and avoid any other traffic violations.
Is the SR-22 form necessary to get car insurance with convictions?
You may think that cheap car insurance for all bad drivers is difficult to come by, which is why you might be wondering, “Who has the cheapest car insurance for seniors?” just as much as you might be curious about finding cheap insurance for convicted drivers.
Whether you are looking for USAA car insurance, Titan insurance, or Geico insurance, you will be able to find what you’re looking for if you know which companies are best for convicted drivers. For example, Geico high-risk car insurance is highly popular with convicted drivers from all over the country.
Interestingly, if you live in Delaware, Kentucky, North Carolina, New York, New Mexico, Oklahoma, or Pennsylvania, it could take years for your insurance company to learn about your DUI.
That is because these states don’t require you to provide proof of insurance via an SR-22, which makes it more possible to find cheap car insurance after an accident.
Here are some facts about this form and your driving ability:
- An SR-22 is a form that you have to provide to your insurance company informing them of your DUI.
- When states find out about your DUI conviction, they are legally able to raise your insurance rates or even cancel your coverage.
- The states that do require you to file an SR-22 usually charge fees for the form. In addition, you will be required to file an SR-22 for at least three years.
- In many cases, you can have a DUI conviction removed from your driving record if you take specific classes assigned by the state.
- If you have more than one DUI, you could face a suspended license.
- Some insurance companies will still allow you to have liability insurance through their company if you have multiple DUIs, but most will not offer comprehensive coverage.
If you can’t purchase insurance due to your DUIs, your bank will purchase insurance naming themselves the beneficiary of the policy.
You will still be billed the auto insurance premiums for this policy; however, the bank receives any payments for your vehicle if you cause an accident.
They want to ensure that they receive payment for your vehicle if you become uninsurable.
Incidentally, when the bank purchases a car insurance policy for your vehicle, the premiums are typically at least two times more expensive than if you were to buy it on your own.
Do I need to worry about other types of convictions?
While a DUI is very serious, it isn’t the worst conviction that you could get while driving, such as causing an accident that kills someone. If you are convicted of negligence, it could lead to a manslaughter conviction and actual jail time.
However, there are many different types of convictions that are very minor.
Any type of conviction will affect your insurance premium, but minor offenses, especially ones that don’t lead to an insurance claim, will not cause extreme insurance price hikes.
However, you should still expect to pay rates that are higher than the average monthly car insurance payment.
The exception to this is if you have a long history of convictions on your driving record.
Basically, if you have a lot of speeding tickets, then the insurance company is going to increase your risk value. In other words, insuring you is riskier because you are a careless driver.
While there are classes that you can take to reduce the points you accrue on your license, every state has its limit on how many classes you can take.
In addition, these classes cost money, sometimes as much as $100.
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What do I do if my car insurance company drops me?
It isn’t the end of the world if your current insurer drops you as a client; there are other insurance options.
First, you need to visit your state’s Department of Insurance website and see if there is a state-sponsored program you can join. This will be more expensive, but at least you will be able to drive your vehicle.
You will have to face the fact that, if your convictions were serious enough for your insurance company to drop you, you are going to have fewer options than someone with a clean driving record.
Next, you should take the time to get car insurance quotes from several companies as well.
During the questioning process, you will be asked how many driving convictions you have, how many accidents, how long ago the accidents occurred and so on.
If the insurance company can’t insure you, you will receive a message that you aren’t eligible for their auto insurance.
If you don’t want to face that kind of rejection and you want to save time, then you should use a quote tool that allows you to compare the rates between several companies at once.
You won’t be shown companies that won’t provide you with insurance, only those for which you qualify.
When using a quote tool, it is important to be honest about your convictions as this is the only way to get an accurate quote.
A quote isn’t a guarantee of services and if you exclude anything, then you will be rejected on the back end of the quote, which is when you contact the insurance company.
Enter your zip code below to compare cheap insurance for convicted drivers from multiple companies now!
Free Car Insurance Comparison
Enter your ZIP code below to view companies that have cheap car insurance rates.
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Joel Ohman
Founder & CFP®
Joel Ohman is the CEO of a private equity backed digital media company. He is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, author, angel investor, and serial entrepreneur who loves creating new things, whether books or businesses. He has also previously served as the founder and resident CFP® of a national insurance agency, Real Time Health Quotes. He has an MBA from the University of South Florida. Jo...
Founder & CFP®
Editorial Guidelines: We are a free online resource for anyone interested in learning more about auto insurance. Our goal is to be an objective, third-party resource for everything auto insurance related. We update our site regularly, and all content is reviewed by auto insurance experts.