Car Insurance in Center City area (Philadelphia, King of Prussia: good credit, loan, living in)

[ianjh89]

I've read a few entries on this site about car insurance being through the roof in City Center Philly. Somebody said their brother was paying $5,500/yr for car insurance.

These claims seem a little overblown to me - either the people saying this have really poor driving records, they're driving really expensive cars --- OR, their car suffers so much damage in City Center that their rate goes through the roof after moving there.

I pay $80/month in suburban Atlanta (may be moving to Philly soon) for a 2002 Nissan Pathfinder, pretty good driving record, no accidents/tickets in last 5 yrs. I just got a car ins quote for living in City Center (philly zip, address, my ss# and all) and the rate was $95/mo ---- not much of a difference.

Am a missing something here?

[Eyes]

The auto .. driving record .. zip code .. garage .. driving to work (& distance) .. age ... gender .. credit history.. convictions ... multi- accounts .. auto loan ... and the insurance company

All have bearing on the rates a person receives

[FindingZen]

Philly can have some of the most expensive insurance in the country. Along with the high percentage of uninsured drivers, this creates a never-ending chicken-and-egg effect. It's not uncommon for many residents to pay double what you're apparently paying. But Eyes is likely correct that there are other factors that will minimize your bill.

[akorosdc]

$95/mo sounds cheaper than I would have thought, but as was stated there are numerous factors. When I had insurance there it was closer to $160/mo, but I was also 22 and had a car accident (not at fault) when I was 18. Compared with the $45/mo I pay in DC now, it's a huge difference.

[akorosdc]

Originally Posted by Tone509

Philly can have some of the most expensive insurance in the country. Along with the high percentage of uninsured drivers, this creates a never-ending chicken-and-egg effect. It's not uncommon for many residents to pay double what you're apparently paying.

There's actually an article by two economists (Eric Smith and Randall White) entitled "Why is Automobile Insurance in Philadelphia So Damn Expensive?". If you do a search you can find it online.

[ludakrishna]

I'm 24 and I drive an Acura TSX. I moved to Philadelphia two days ago because of work reasons and I have a clean driving record (knock on wood)

I lived in Downtown Seattle: $480/6 months would've been $280 when I turned 25

Here's what I got for the stacked option:
Quote for Center City: $1900/6 months will turn to $1200/6 months when I turn 25
Quote for Plymouth Meeting: $900/6 months will turn to $600/6 months when I turn 25
Quote for King of Prussia: $1000/6 months will turn to $700/6 months when I turn 25
Quote for Ridley Park: $1200/6 months will turn to $800/6 months when I turn 25
Quote for Media: $800/6 months will turn to $500/6 months when I turn 25

I chose Plymouth Meeting. But believe what they tell you about the car insurance. It truly IS expensive.

[niceguy19125]

Or lose the car liability if you live/work in Center City, or live in a transit friendly 'burb like the Main Line or Jenkintown. With the advent of car-sharing (ZipCar and PhillyCarShare) coupled with mass transit. it's a no brainer.

[MikeFromPhilly]

It's not overblown.That's pretty much the truth.Car insurance is high in Philly.That's why I used a Delaware County address for my car insurance and changed my mailing address to my real one.lol They tried to charge me $205 a month for limited tort car insurance on a '07 Nissan Maxima.Every car insurance company I contacted.The same price or higher.I'm 24 years old and I've had my license for over 3 years with no tickets,accidents or moving violations.It's rediculous.I used a Deleware County address and now I pay $140.15 a month with State Farm car insurance.I'm hoping when I turn 25 that number will go down drastically.

[bryson662001]

I am an older driver with good credit, no incidents in the last 20 years. For years I was paying AAA $2,000 per year but bought a new car and they raised me to $3,000. I switched to Geico and they charge me $1,000 for slightly better coverage. just goes to show you rates are all over the place and it pays to shop around.