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USAA, Geico, Travelers and Erie offer the cheapest minimum-coverage insurance in Baltimore
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Rashawn Mitchner is a MarketWatch Guides team editor with over 10 years of experience covering personal finance, loans, insurance and warranty topics.
Minimum-coverage car insurance in Baltimore costs about 120% more than the national average, so it pays to compare rates and shop from cheap companies. We at the MarketWatch Guides Team have ranked the best car insurance companies on a variety of factors including cost. In this article, we’ll show you where to find cheap rates in Baltimore based on your driver profile.
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Our top five picks for car insurance in Baltimore are USAA, Geico, State Farm, Travelers and Erie. These companies not only offer rates below the minimum- and full-coverage averages for the city, but they also have strong customer service reputations and offer quality coverage.
Our data shows that minimum-coverage insurance in Baltimore costs $115 per month or $1,380 per year on average. This is about 120% more than the national average of $52 per month or $627 per year. Similarly, full-coverage insurance costs $217 per month or $2,604 per year on average, which is about 30% more expensive than the national average of $167 per month or $2,008 per year for full coverage.
USAA offers the cheapest liability insurance with average rates of $60 per month or $716 per year. However, USAA is only available to military members and veterans plus their spouses and children. Geico is the second-cheapest option in Baltimore with average rates of $63 per month or $758 per year.
Liability coverage is the minimum coverage required by the state of Maryland and includes bodily injury liability, property damage liability and underinsured/uninsured motorist coverage.
Full-coverage car insurance can be pricey in Baltimore. Full coverage includes liability plus comprehensive insurance and collision insurance, which protect against damage to your vehicle in a variety of situations. Geico is the cheapest full-coverage option with average rates of $142 per month or $1,708 per year. We found USAA and Travelers offer similar average auto insurance rates, though costs jump up significantly after that for other companies.
Many factors affect car insurance rates, and the cheapest company for one driver might not be the cheapest for another. In this section, we’ll look at the cost of car insurance in Baltimore by driver age, credit score and driving record. Baltimore contains a few ZIP codes with different average car insurance costs, so we’ll look at those, as well.
The average cost of car insurance declines as drivers enter their twenties and continues to drop throughout middle age. Below, you can see some average minimum-coverage car insurance costs in Baltimore for a variety of age groups.
Car insurance for teens is expensive, but some providers tend to be more affordable than others. Our data shows Geico is the cheapest car insurance company for teen drivers with minimum-coverage rates as low as $219 per month or $2,633 per year. Erie, USAA and Travelers also offer affordable premiums for Baltimore teens.
Most states allow car insurance companies to use credit scores to determine premiums, including Maryland. People with poor credit scores pay more for car insurance and vice versa.
Our rate data shows Geico is the cheapest option for car insurance for bad credit in Baltimore. The company offers minimum-coverage policies to drivers with poor credit for $82 per month or $978 per year on average. This is even cheaper than the overall state average for minimum coverage for good credit.
Drivers with speeding tickets, accidents or DUIs on their records can expect to see increased car insurance premiums. On average, speeding can increase your rates by 24%, an at-fault accident by 58% and a DUI by 69%.
The average price increase varies by company. We found Geico is the best company if you have any violations on your driving record. The table below shows average rates by company for drivers who have either a speeding ticket, accident or DUI on their record.
Let’s break things down a bit further. According to our data, USAA offers the cheapest rates to drivers who have a speeding ticket on their record — $71 per month or $853 per year. Geico follows close behind with an average monthly rate of $74, while Travelers, Erie and State Farm round out the top five options for cheap speeding ticket car insurance in Baltimore.
Having an at-fault accident in your driving history can increase rates more than a speeding ticket. Geico and USAA are the cheapest options here with rates of about $100 per month on average. You can see some auto insurance companies charge two to three times this amount for coverage after an accident.
A DUI is a serious infraction that can increase your rates for car insurance in Baltimore by hundreds per year. The good news is that Geico is very cheap compared to other companies — it offers average rates of $82 per month or $978 per year for drivers with a DUI. Erie, Travelers and State Farm are also good options with rates under $130 per month on average.
Different parts of the city have varying rates of insurance claims, which affects what you pay for insurance. Below, you can see certain ZIP codes in Baltimore can be up to 15% cheaper or 15% more expensive than the city average.
While auto coverage in Baltimore is 51% higher than Maryland car insurance and 120% higher than the nationwide average, there are still cheap providers to shop from. USAA offers the cheapest minimum coverage in the city for about $60 per month. For those who don’t qualify for USAA, Geico also offers highly affordable rates for Baltimore drivers at $63 per month.
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Our data shows a minimum-coverage auto insurance policy in Baltimore costs $115 per month or $1,380 per year on average. If you want full coverage, you’ll pay an average of $217 per month or $2,604 per year.
Baltimore car insurance is expensive because it has a high population density and more auto claims compared to suburbs or rural areas. Car insurance in Baltimore is comparable to insurance in other big cities throughout the U.S.
Full-coverage car insurance in Baltimore is about 30% more expensive than the national average while minimum-coverage insurance is 120% more expensive than the national average.
*Cost data comes from Quadrant Information Services and is accurate at time of publication.
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