High Insurance costs on 2004 Prius?

DAMN!!! I wish I had :guns: insuranace rates like that here in jersey, I got quoted at 5k :cussing: :guns: :cussing: :cussing: :cussing:

-John.

 

Odd. My 03 Prius was cheaper than my VUE.

 

My suggestion is this:

Get some auto insurance quotes online. I tried Progressive with an 04 Camry and Prius; the Prius was cheaper (only a few bucks but still cheaper).

Real names, e-mail addresses, street addresses, social security numbers, etc., are typically not necessary. Just fill in all of the fields with bogus information. Not 100% accurate but should get you in the right ballpark.

 

I also dream of low rates. With a youthful driver in the family, my monthly auto insurance (on auto-debit) looks more like a car payment.

 

Los Angeles Insurance Costs (one example)

Of course the insurance costs are going to vary due to many, many reasons. Location, your age, driving history, car or cars insured, how much you drive, where you keep your car, etc.

I live in Los Angeles (a 900XX zip code). I'm replacing a nearly 10 year old (lesser) car and upping my coverage from 30/60/50 to 100/300/50. I'm married, have a house, drive 7,500K or less per year and have been a licensed driver with a clean record for more than 15 years.

My Tideland BI got me a discount because of the ABS and additional airbags.

That said, my insurance is going from $506 for 6 months to $780. Yes, it's a big jump, but it's not an apples to apples comparison. It's a little more than my husband's 2001 Saab. (But his car is a few years old.)

Basically, I'm doing everything right, I'm not driving a lot, I've got all the safety features (except the VSC) and have combined coverage but because I live in the city of Los Angeles, I find my insurance rates to be absolutely ridiculous.

I'm only offering this as a touchstone for other folks curious about
the insurance costs associated with the prius.

 

Re: Los Angeles Insurance Costs (one example)

Ditto, and I'm in a (very) quiet suburb of Chicago with a family that has zero claims in the last 10 years, no tickets or infractions, etc.

Let's face it, the primary problem is that these insurance companies haven't been able to get a decent return on their investment over the past few years because of the low interest rates and they're taking it out on us. :cussing:

 

Insurance on my '04 Prius is exactly the same per year as the 1998 Mazda Millenia it replaced. While the Millenia was a much more luxurious car in its day, it's blue book value, retail, was only about $10k versus $20k plus for the new Prius.

 

I traded in a 2002 Solara convertible for my Prius. The insurance went down $54 a year.

 

I checked with State Farm about the increase I could expect from buying a Ford Focus wagon or a Toyota Prius. The Focus would up the rate by 28 bucks a month; the Prius, by 40 bucks. Considering that my present car is a 1991 Escort wagon, I felt the increase to be quite reasonable. I didn't inquire about a possibly lower increase should I get a Prius with the added safety features. This is in the Seattle area; single owner, no kids on policy. I have had very good service from State Farm for more than 35 years. I'll let you all know if the actual, genuine, DELIVERED, Prius actually costs this little to insure....
Bob

 

This is for Vancouver, Canada, but my rates are:

$750 for basic (mandatory) insurance (this includes my %43 safe driver discount).

+

$850 for extended insurance:

-$2,000,000 3rd party liability
-Collision (anything that hits car, or gets hit by car)
-Comprehensive (any damage to car while it's not moving, theft, etc)
-Full Replacement Value for first 3 years

All-told, it's only up $500 from my previous car, which was a '87 Corolla. Not too bad considering how happy I am with the new one.

Dave

 

My Allstate 6-month policy went up $146 over what I was paying for a 1999 Kia Sephia.

I'm grandfathered into a $100 collision deductible, which I refuse to raise to save money...

 

Is this different in Canada? Typically, down in the lower 48, wild animal hits (e.g. deer) are considered a comprehensive loss.

 

You definitely have to do your research to get the best auto rates - they vary wildly for the same coverage. I just went through this exercise and some rates that I had a quote for were DOUBLE other rates. I found those companies that advertise low rates like Geico, Progressive had some of the highest rates. In the end I went with a regional affiliate of Liberty Mutual - Colorado Casualty from an agent who works with several companies and compares them to get you the best rate. With full coverage on the Prius with a $500 ded and 100/300/100 coverage, my premium for 6 months is $244. This was actually less than for my 1993 Subaru Legacy. For one thing be sure to mention all the safety features - ABS, side and curtain air bags, and the passive anti-theft key (I'm talking about the regular key not SE/SS). When you take the key out of the car, it automatically sets the alarm so that counts as a passive anti-theft which got me 15% off! Yes, they say all of that is listed as part of the VIN number, but it isn't as I got the discount only after I told the agent about it. My advice is to shop around if you want to save money and ask about all possible discounts.

 

I live in New Jersey, and unforuntally, we are VERY VERY limited to where we can get auto insurance because of peoples greed. Its very unfortunate that some suffer because others want a free ride threw life.

:cussing: :cussing: :cussing: