How Forbes Advisor Rates Car Insurance Companies

At Forbes Advisor, we are deeply committed to our mission—to make smart financial decisions simple. Our editorial process is independent and free of any outside influence from insurance companies or anyone else. The same basic coverage types are available from most auto insurers, so we rate companies based on the average costs of various driver profiles and additional coverage types we find valuable. We recognize the importance of protecting your assets and strive to provide the best information to help you choose an auto policy and insurer that fits your needs.

We use the following factors in our car insurance ratings.

	Car insurance rates: We calculate average rates from each company for good drivers, drivers who have caused an accident, drivers with a speeding ticket, drivers with a DUI, drivers with poor credit, drivers caught without insurance, adding a teen driver, senior drivers and young adult drivers. Full coverage rates are based on a Toyota RAV4 and coverage of:   • $100,000 for injuries to one person, $300,000 for injuries per accident and $100,000 of property damage (known as 100/300/100). • Uninsured motorist coverage of 100/300.  • Collision and comprehensive insurance with a $500 deductible. State minimum coverage rates reflect the minimum amount of auto insurance required in each state.   Source: Quadrant Information Services
	Why it’s important to consumers: The cost of car insurance has been increasing nationwide, so we know how important it is to find a policy you can afford. For many drivers, price is a primary factor when buying a policy. We strive to give you rates for the various driver types so you have an idea of how much it may cost for your driving profile.

	Complaints: Each state’s department of insurance is in charge of logging and monitoring complaints against companies operating in their states. The complaint data we use is based on actual, verified complaints.   Source: National Association of Insurance Commissioners
	Why it’s important to consumers: Complaints offer insight into an insurer’s performance in terms of claim payouts, delays in payments, denials and other issues. You should base your decisions on valid complaints rather than those that may not be real or can be skewed by a handful of angry people who try to manipulate review data.

	Collision repair claims: We look at car insurance company grades from collision repair professionals. These grades are determined by more than 1,100 collision repair professionals who gauge auto insurers on the quality of their collision claims service.   Source: CRASH Network’s Insurer Report Card
	Why it’s important to consumers: Collision repair professionals have an insider perspective on the quality of insurers’ repair procedures, use of quality repair parts and whether they try to cut corners.

	Coverage types offered: We look at whether companies offer accident forgiveness, new car replacement, vanishing deductibles, usage-based or pay-per-mile insurance and SR-22s.   Source: Forbes Advisor staff research
	Why it’s important to consumers: Any auto insurance company can provide the basics of liability insurance, collision and comprehensive coverage and other standard offerings. But it’s also important to have access to additional coverage types that can provide greater protection or cost savings.

	Availability of non-owner policies: This a liability car insurance policy for drivers who don’t own a vehicle but need an auto insurance policy. In some of our ratings this is important coverage to have.   Source: Forbes Advisor staff research
	Why it’s important to consumers: Some drivers need an SR-22 filing to show proof of car insurance to get their license back but do not have a car to insure, and a non-owner policy is what they need. It can also help drivers who don’t own a car but frequently rent one and want their own car liability insurance policy.

We create rating systems that evaluate each company on consistent measurements. Our editors choose which metrics best reflect the companies or policy types being scored. Our metrics and ratings are not influenced by advertisers.

Best Car Insurance Companies of 2024

The best car insurance companies offer budget-friendly rates and a wide variety of extra coverage options, so we weigh these factors more heavily.

• Auto insurance rates: 50% of score
• Coverage options: 25% of score
• Complaints: 20% of score
• Collision repair: 5% of score

The Cheapest Car Insurance of April 2024

Cost matters the most when looking for the cheapest car insurance, so we focused primarily on rates.

• Auto insurance rates: 80% of score
• Complaints: 10% of score
• Collision repair: 10% of score

Best Car Insurance Companies for Seniors of 2024

To find the best car insurance for seniors we focus on costs for drivers age 65 to 80 and coverage options.

• Auto insurance rates for senior drivers: 50% of score
• Coverage options: 25% of score
• Complaints: 20% of score
• Collision repair: 5% of score

Best Car Insurance for Teens and Young Drivers of 2024

To find the best car insurance for teens and young drivers, we focused on the cost of adding a teen driver to a parent’s policy and two additional coverage types: Accident forgiveness and new car replacement, which are valuable when you have an inexperienced driver behind the wheel.

• Auto insurance rates for adding a teen driver: 50% of score
• Complaints: 20% of score
• Collision repair: 10% of score
• Accident forgiveness coverage: 10% of score
• New car replacement coverage: 10% of score

Best Car Insurance Companies for High Risk Drivers of 2024

To find the best car insurance companies for high risk drivers we looked at only insurers that offer SR-22 filings, as high risk drivers are more likely to need this certificate of financial responsibility. We analyzed the cost of auto insurance for drivers who caused an accident with injury or property damage, drivers with a DUI and drivers with poor credit, as these issues tend to get someone labeled as a high risk driver.

• Auto insurance rates for high risk drivers: 50% of score
• Non-owners policy option: 20% of score
• Complaints: 20% of score
• Collision repair: 10% of score

Best Car Insurance for Drivers With Bad Credit of 2024

To determine the best car insurance for drivers with bad credit we focused on rates for drivers with poor credit as well as helpful coverage types.

• Auto insurance rates for drivers with bad credit: 50% of score
• Complaints: 20% of score
• Collision repair: 5% of score
• Accident forgiveness coverage: 5% of score
• New car replacement coverage: 5% of score
• Vanishing deductible coverage: 5% of score
• SR-22s: 5% of score
• Usage-based insurance or pay-per-mile insurance: 5% of score

Our editorial team has over 102 years of combined insurance experience that we use to provide unbiased information and ratings. We employ a data-driven methodology to score companies, a process free of subjective biases or speculation. Each company is evaluated on consistent measurements and we eagerly anticipate finding the top performers when we complete our calculations—because we too shop around for car insurance and rely on our lists for guidance.

Read more details on our editorial guidelines.