The words “low-cost” and “insurance” really shouldn’t be used together, specifically when looking for the lowest insurance prices for college graduates. To save some money, let’s learn about some of the things that have a considerable impact on insurance premiums, and find a way to take the sting out of your next policy.
For college grads, one of the big things that are looked at to help calculate the cost of insurance is your address in Memphis. Cities with larger populations or higher claim trends tend to have more expensive car insurance rates, whereas areas with fewer weather claims and lower vehicle theft rates tend to receive cheaper rates.
The following table sorts the highest-priced areas in Tennessee for college graduates to buy auto insurance in. Memphis is ranked #1 with a yearly premium of $1,505 for the average insurance policy, which is around $125 per month.
| Rank | City | Premium Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Memphis | $1,505 |
| 2 | Bartlett | $1,405 |
| 3 | Collierville | $1,363 |
| 4 | Germantown | $1,360 |
| 5 | Jackson | $1,253 |
| 6 | Knoxville | $1,230 |
| 7 | Columbia | $1,226 |
| 8 | Oak Ridge | $1,210 |
| 9 | Maryville | $1,208 |
| 10 | Clarksville | $1,206 |
| 11 | Spring Hill | $1,193 |
| 12 | La Vergne | $1,186 |
| 13 | Nashville | $1,177 |
| 14 | Franklin | $1,175 |
| 15 | Morristown | $1,171 |
| 16 | Brentwood | $1,168 |
| 17 | Gallatin | $1,167 |
| 18 | Chattanooga | $1,161 |
| 19 | Smyrna | $1,159 |
| 20 | Hendersonville | $1,158 |
| 21 | Murfreesboro | $1,148 |
| 22 | Cookeville | $1,147 |
| 23 | Cleveland | $1,091 |
| 24 | Johnson City | $1,063 |
| 25 | Kingsport | $1,037 |
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Price information shown is estimated as the specific geographic location can impact premiums substantially.
Finding reliable, cheap car insurance is challenging, and deciding which companies quote the cheapest auto insurance rates for college graduates will require even more rate comparisons.
Every car insurance company uses different criteria to set premium rates, so let’s take a look at the most budget-friendly auto insurance companies in Tennessee. It’s important to know that Tennessee auto insurance rates are determined by lots of factors that can increase the cost of your policy. This price variation is why it is crucial to shop around with many companies to find the best insurance quotes for college graduates. Insurance prices are calculated by many risk factors and can change without notice, so the most economical option two years ago may now be one of the more expensive options.
Find Cheaper Auto Insurance for Grads
| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Utica National | $760 |
| 2 | Auto-Owners | $861 |
| 3 | Cincinnati Insurance | $884 |
| 4 | Penn National | $899 |
| 5 | USAA | $929 |
| 6 | Erie | $957 |
| 7 | Tennessee Farmers | $961 |
| 8 | Nationwide | $1,042 |
| 9 | Westfield | $1,047 |
| 10 | Allied | $1,060 |
| 11 | GEICO | $1,156 |
| 12 | State Farm | $1,165 |
| 13 | Travelers | $1,165 |
| 14 | Shelter | $1,199 |
| 15 | State Auto | $1,204 |
| 16 | The Hartford | $1,221 |
| 17 | Progressive | $1,226 |
| 18 | Direct General | $1,251 |
| 19 | 21st Century | $1,274 |
| 20 | Chubb | $1,277 |
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Utica National may offer some of the lowest car insurance rates in Memphis at around $760 a year. This is $568 less than the average rate paid by Tennessee drivers of $1,328. Auto-Owners, Cincinnati Insurance, Penn National, and USAA also qualify as some of the best Memphis, TN car insurance companies.
As shown in the rates above, if you are a policyholder with Cincinnati Insurance and switched to Utica National, you might see a yearly savings of approximately $124. Drivers with Penn National could save as much as $139 a year, and USAA insureds might reduce prices by as much as $169 a year.
To get a fast rate comparison, click here to get a free quote or quote rates from the companies below.
It’s important to note that these prices are averaged across all drivers and vehicles and are not factoring in an exact zip code location for college graduates. So the auto insurance company that has the cheapest price for you may not even be in the list above. That affirms the importance of why you need to get rate quotes using your own personal information and vehicle type.
Get discount Memphis auto insurance
Insurance providers that sell policies for college graduates may also offer rate discounts that could reduce prices by as much as 25% or more if you are eligible. Companies and some of the premium reductions they offer can be found below.
- 21st Century offers discounts for teen driver, good student, student driver, automatic seat belts, anti-lock brakes, and driver training.
- State Farm discounts include Steer Clear safe driver discount, safe vehicle, multiple policy, accident-free, and Drive Safe & Save.
- AAA may offer discounts for good student, education and occupation, AAA membership discount, pay-in-full, multi-car, multi-policy, and good driver.
- Liberty Mutual may include discounts for preferred payment discount, good student, new move discount, multi-car, newly married, exclusive group savings, and teen driver discount.
- Progressive policyholders can earn discounts including multi-policy, multi-vehicle, good student, continuous coverage, and online quote discount.
The chart below visualizes the comparison of annual premium costs with and without policy discounts. The prices are based on a male driver, no accidents, no driving violations, Tennessee state minimum liability limits, comp and collision included, and $500 deductibles. The first bar for each age group shows insurance cost with no discounts. The lower bar shows the rates with defensive driving course, multiple vehicle, safe-driver, anti-theft, passive restraint, and multiple policy discounts applied. In this example, theaverage yearly reduction on auto insurance for college graduates is 28% or $507.
Rate comparison of full coverage and liability-only
Paying less for auto insurance is probably important to most drivers, and a great way to find cheap insurance for college graduates is to buy only liability coverage. The information below compares insurance costs with liability coverage only compared to full coverage. The information is based on no claims or driving citations, $250 deductibles, drivers are single, and no discounts are applied to the premium.
Averaged for all age groups, comprehensive and collision coverage on your policy costs an extra $1,521 per year more than carrying just liability coverage. That proposes the question if physical damage coverage is worth the money. There is no specific rule that works best for making the decision to drop physical damage coverage, but there is a guideline you can use. If the annual cost of comprehensive and collision coverage is 10% or more of the replacement cost minus the deductible, then you might want to consider buying only liability coverage.
For example, let’s pretend your vehicle’s replacement value is $6,000 and you have $1,000 full coverage deductibles. If your vehicle is totaled, you would only receive $5,000 after paying your policy deductible. If you are currently paying more than $500 a year to have full coverage, then it might be time to buy liability only.
The illustration below illustrates how your deductible choice can impact annual premium costs when quoting cheap insurance for college graduates. The premiums are based on a single male driver, full physical damage coverage, and no policy discounts are applied.
The data above shows that a 30-year-old driver could pocket $322 a year by switching the physical damage coverage from a $100 deductible to a $500 deductible, or save $482 by selecting a $1,000 deductible. Young drivers, such as the 20-year-old example, could roll back prices as much as $936 every year by using a higher deductible. If you do decide to increase your deductibles, it is a good idea to have additional funds in a savings account to offset the extra out-of-pocket expense associated with higher deductibles.
The importance of shopping around
Tennessee auto insurance rates are impacted by many factors which can substantially change the cost of a policy. Simply having another birthday, buying a different home, or having a fender bender may cause policy rate changes resulting in some companies being cheaper in comparison to the competition. In addition to those changes, car insurance companies change premium rates multiple times each year to reflect underwriting profits or losses. A period of higher than normal claims can cause higher prices, while a lower level of claims can cause cheaper Memphis car insurance rates.
The graph below shows rates for the cheapest car insurance in Memphis, TN for a 40-year-old female driver with no accidents or violations, and a decent credit rating. If we look at prices based on her current situation, Utica National offers the cheapest car insurance rates in Memphis at $1,109 a year. This is $219 less than the average policy premium paid by Tennessee drivers of $1,328. Auto-Owners, Cincinnati Insurance, Penn National, and USAA are also on the list of the top five cheapest Memphis, TN auto insurance companies.
The chart below compares rates after we give the driver in the first chart a couple of claims, bad credit, and a few blemishes on her driving record. Since every insurance provider has their own unique process for determining rates in each state, getting updated rate quotes most likely will result in a completely different list of the cheapest car insurance companies in Memphis as shown below.
Erie now has the best auto insurance rate in Memphis, TN with Nationwide, Westfield, Allied, and GEICO completing the list. This example proves why consumers need to take the time to shop around with many companies when trying to find the lowest car insurance rates for college graduates.
Insurance rates consist of many things and can change substantially, so the best company the last time you compared rates may now be wasting a lot of money.