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Age, Gender and Marital Status Significantly Affect Car Insurance Costs


older driver

SAN FRANCISCO--April 10, 2014: Age, gender and marital status significantly affect how much Americans pay for car insurance, and the variability is highest among younger drivers, according to a new insuranceQuotes.com report.

Age For both men and women, the average cost of car insurance falls each year until age 60. For example, a 25-year-old single male pays an average of 49% less for car insurance than a 20-year-old single male. And 25-year-old single women pay 39% less than 20-year-old single women. After age 60, premiums rise a small amount each year for both men and women.

Gender Up until age 30, women typically pay less – sometimes a lot less. The average single 20-year-old man pays 23% more than the average single 20-year-old woman for the same policy. The gap narrows to four percent at age 25, and from ages 30 to 65, average premiums are actually slightly lower for men (about one percent cheaper). That flips after age 65, when women tend to pay about one percent less than men.

Marital Status The average married 20-year-old female pays 28% less for car insurance than the average single 20-year-old female (married 20-year-old men pay 24% less than single 20-year-old men). The gap narrows considerably by age 25 (when married women pay seven percent less than their single counterparts and married men pay nine percent less), and it gets even smaller after that.

Summary "All drivers can pay less for car insurance, regardless of their gender, age or marital status," said Laura Adams, insuranceQuotes.com's senior analyst. "In addition to regularly comparing at least three quotes from different insurers, consumers should review potential discounts with their current insurer. This is even more important for younger drivers because they tend to pay the highest rates. Consider things like good student discounts, avoiding small claims and bundling your car and renter's insurance policies with the same carrier."

Hawaii is the only state that doesn't allow car insurers to use age, gender or length of driving experience when setting rates.

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