When looking for the cheapest car insurance in Texas, it’s important to shop around and not settle for the first quote. Rates fluctuate significantly from one insurer to the next and depending on personal factors such as age and accident history.
To help Texans get a feel for their state’s car insurance market, NerdWallet calculated the three cheapest options for several types of drivers, including:
- Good drivers
- Young drivers
- Families with a teen driver
- Drivers with poor credit
- Drivers with one at-fault accident
- Retired drivers
Cheapest for good drivers
For drivers with no at-fault accidents, DUIs or moving violations; range of average prices: $1,207 to $7,259 a year.
Price
- $1,207/year
Price
- $1,331/year
price
- $1,423/year
The average for good drivers among the three cheapest insurers was $1,320. While USAA notched a better price than its competitors, the company services only active and retired military and their family members. Geico and State Farm generally provide a larger offering of safety-oriented discounts. State Farm in particular has four separate discounts associated with defensive and accident-free driving.
Cheapest for young drivers
For drivers in their early 20s; range of average prices: $771 to $2,350 a year.
price
- $771/year
price
- $894/year
price
- $1,115/year
Young drivers often have fewer coverage needs than those with families or extensive assets. As a result, they can get some of the cheapest car insurance in Texas. This category had the smallest range of average quotes of any we tested — only about $1,500 between lowest and highest — meaning young drivers can keep costs fairly low among a wide variety of insurers.
Cheapest for families with a teen driver
For middle-aged couples adding a teen driver; range of average prices: $1,146 to $11,629 a year.
price
- $1,146/year
price
- $3,945/year
price
- $4,080/year
Teen drivers run a high accident risk, which is why they tend to raise their parents’ car insurance costs significantly. USAA scored fairly affordable rates in this category, but again, only active or retired military and their families qualify. The sample rates from the next closest competitor, State Farm, were more than three times higher at $3,945 per year. While some level of premium increase is all but guaranteed, parents can mitigate the blow to their wallet with teen-focused discounts, such as those for good grades, a driver training course or going away for school.
Cheapest for drivers with poor credit
Range of average prices: $1,499 to $9,164 a year.
price
- $1,499/year
price
- $1,633/year
price
- $1,929/year
Though your credit may seemingly have little to do with car insurance, many in the industry see poor credit as an indicator of future claims. While average rates in Texas for this category were very pricey at the high end — almost $10,000 per year — they were more reasonable among the cheapest insurers. This goes to show that drivers with less-than-ideal credit have a major incentive to compare as many quotes as possible.
Cheapest for drivers with one at-fault accident
Range of average prices: $1,654 to $8,828
price
- $1,654/year
price
- $1,671/year
price
- $2,040/year
Having even one at-fault accident can add a significant sum to your Texas car insurance premium. The lowest average rate for this category was roughly $400 higher than the lowest average for good drivers with clean records. Both USAA and Farmers offer an accident forgiveness feature that may prevent your rates from spiking if you’ve gone years without incident but recently had an at-fault claim.
Cheapest for retired drivers
For drivers in their mid- to late 60s who no longer use their car for commuting; range of average prices: $985 to $23,360 a year.
price
- $985/year
price
- $1,077/year
price
- $1,250/year
By and large, insurers in Texas reward retired drivers for their experience and reduced annual mileage with relatively cheap rates. However, retired motorists should be aware of extremes on the high end. The most expensive average quote — $23,360 from Liberty Mutual — was the highest of any group we tested. Regardless of age, drivers should always compare several estimates before committing to one company.
Minimum car insurance requirements in Texas
Drivers in Texas are required to have liability insurance, which helps cover others’ injury treatment or property damage if you’re responsible for a crash.
The minimum limits are:
- $30,000 bodily injury liability per person
- $60,000 bodily injury liability per accident
- $25,000 property damage liability per accident
Experts recommend buying more than the bare minimum, however, to avoid vulnerability. For example, if you totaled another driver’s brand-new Porsche, repair costs could easily exceed your $25,000 property damage limit. Liability insurance also won’t cover incidents such as car theft, so you may want to consider common add-ons such as collision and comprehensive coverage.
Alternative car insurance in Texas
High-risk drivers who are unable to get car insurance on the open market might be able to buy basic coverage through the Texas Automobile Insurance Plan Association. TAIPA coverage is available only to those who are refused a policy by at least two insurance companies. It’s also more limited and more expensive than traditional coverage.
Another alternative for Texans is to put down a $55,000 bond instead of buying car insurance at all. However, this would leave drivers open to damages and lawsuits after an accident, so it’s likely simpler to purchase traditional coverage.
Check out NerdWallet’s car insurance comparison tool for help securing Texas car insurance at the most competitive price.
Methodology
For most categories, NerdWallet averaged rates from the largest insurers for 30-year-old men and women in 10 ZIP codes and with 100/300/50 liability insurance limits and 100/300 uninsured motorist coverage. We used a 2012 Toyota Camry in all cases.
To test rates for families with teen drivers, we used a 46-year-old female and 47-year-old male with a 16-year-old son. Our sample retired driver was 67 and drove 50% fewer annual miles than other groups. Our sample young driver was 22 and carried the minimum required levels of liability coverage. The range described includes quotes retrieved by NerdWallet from the eight largest insurers in the state. Your own rates will be different.
Alex Glenn is a staff writer for NerdWallet, a personal finance website. Email: aglenn@nerdwallet.com.
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