Best and Cheapest Car Insurance for Bad Drivers

So, you made a few mistakes on the road. If you’ve gotten a DUI, received several tickets, or were at fault in a few accidents, your car insurance premiums will probably skyrocket. 

You can expect to pay more in car insurance premiums than the average American if you have a bad driving record. However, there are still several options for auto insurance for people with bad driving records that won’t break the bank. Keep reading to discover the best and cheapest auto insurance for a bad driving history.

If you’ve made some risky choices on the road and dealt with the consequences, you may be ready to move on but come to find car insurance companies aren’t prepared to let you move on from your mistakes. Auto insurance for bad drivers might encompass drivers who:

If you meet those criteria, you may pay more than the average American in car insurance premiums. On average, car insurance for a bad driving history costs drivers about $1,800 more than the national average cost of auto insurance, with variations in cost by state. The national average premium is $2,160 annually, which means bad drivers pay, on average, about $3,960 annually.

If you meet any of the above criteria, you may also need to file an SR-22, which doesn’t drive up premiums itself. However, the event that causes you to file an SR-22 will cause your premiums to increase. 

There are a couple of ways drivers may get auto insurance for poor driving records. The method available to you will depend on how bad your record is. Depending on the severity of your driving history, you may still be able to find insurance on the standard market.

If you have a few speeding tickets on your record or have poor credit, but it’s easy to see you’re working on it,  you may still be eligible to receive a policy from a standard insurer with a broad national presence. If this option is available to you, we recommend going this route.

On the other hand, if you have been involved in several at-fault accidents or received a DUI, it may be difficult to get a policy on the standard insurance marketplace. You may need to seek out an insurance company specializing in nonstandard car insurance. 

Geico, Progressive, and State Farm are some of the best, larger car insurance companies on the standard market that have been known to offer bad driving record auto insurance. While these companies may offer policies to some drivers with bad records, since motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death in the U.S., they’re choosy with their bad drivers. 

On the other hand, some of the best car insurance companies specializing in nonstandard insurance are The General, Travelers, and Metromile.

We recommend you take some time shopping around online for quotes from some of the above insurers to ensure you get the right policy.

The best auto insurance for drivers with accidents will be a full-coverage policy from a car insurance company with a large national footprint with several discounts applied to your premiums. You’ll want to maintain full coverage so you’re adequately covered if you get into another accident.

Depending on what qualifies you as a bad driver, you may be able to take out a policy with a large, standard insurance company. The benefits of having a policy with a large auto insurance company with a broad national footprint range from better customer service to various discounts you can use to lower your premiums.

Companies like State Farm, Progressive, and Geico may have the best car insurance for people with points because they offer several discounts that can help lower your premiums. For example, each of these insurers offers a defensive driving course you can take to lower your premiums by up to 15%. You may also qualify for a good student discount, a low mileage discount, and an anti-theft discount from these insurers. When combined, you could save a significant amount on your premiums.

While you may want or need to seek out a nonstandard insurer, the best full coverage car insurance for a bad driving record will be a policy with a more prominent insurer simply because they’re more reliable financially and with their customer service.

Affordable car insurance for bad drivers can be hard to find, as insurance rates go up any time you file a claim or are involved in a traffic violation. Getting your rates to go down after filing a claim or getting a ticket can be difficult, especially if you repeatedly break the law.

However, there are some ways to find the cheapest car insurance for a bad driving history, like binding a policy with an insurer on the standard marketplace that offers premiums in the ballpark of the national average, which is $2,160 annually. These insurers generally offer better rates and have a wide variety of discounts you can use to lower your premiums. 

Lowering your coverage limits to liability-only is another way to get the lowest rates on bad driver auto insurance. Since liability only covers the other party in an accident caused by the policyholder, it’s much cheaper than a full coverage policy. Just know that while it may be cheaper to get liability-only coverage, you’ll be on the hook for any damages or medical costs to you or your vehicle.

Full coverage is almost always more expensive than liability coverage because it encompasses several coverages, like liability, uninsured motorist, MedPay, PIP, and collision coverage. Because you’re more covered with a full coverage policy, your premiums are naturally more expensive. While it may be the more expensive option, having more coverage in an accident may save you more in the long run.

Finding the cheapest car insurance with accidents on your record or other traffic violations will depend on whether you’re eligible for discounts. If you qualify for discounts or are willing to take some safe driving courses to save on your premiums, the cheapest policy will likely come from a larger insurer like Geico or Progressive, as they tend to offer more discounts than nonstandard insurers.

There aren’t any bad driver car insurance companies that don’t check your driving record. In fact, all auto insurance companies need to assess the risk they take by having you as a policyholder, and part of this process is checking your driving record. 

Auto insurance companies typically check your driving record each time you renew your policy, so they usually check once or twice each year. While getting car insurance with no driving history might be easier than getting a policy with a poor record, drivers who can’t prove that they make good decisions behind the wheel tend to pay more for insurance. 

If you cause an accident or are involved in a traffic violation like drag racing or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, there are insurance companies for people with bad driving records, such as The General or Metromile, that specialize in high-risk car insurance. These insurers are often a last resort option because they tend to offer policies with minimal coverage at an above-average rate.

Bad driving record car insurance can be challenging to find and sometimes embarrassing to search for. Here at Clovered, we want to make that process as easy for you as possible.

If you’re going to switch your insurer to get cheap insurance for bad driving records, check out our free quoting tool and submit your information to get your quotes in minutes. You may also contact a Clovered agent directly by calling us at 833-255-4117 or emailing us at [email protected].