It’s a commonly known fact that car insurance rates are set based on many factors such as demographics, driving records and your vehicle’s value, but one thing that shocks many drivers is that gender affects the rate you pay for coverage. In fact, your car insurance rates can vary as much as 50 percent based on gender, age and marital status. [1] Young married couples in their early 20s pay an average of 21 percent less per person than single drivers, but the women in the relationship is likely to pay 25 percent less than her young husband..
Why Women Pay Less for Auto insurance
Statistically, women are safer drivers, and they tend to file claims for damages less often than men. [1] The reasons for these trends aren’t …show more content…
However, rate-changing legislation isn’t on the political horizon in the United States and Canada. Insurance rates and underwriting practices are determined by statistical models that apportion costs--and insurance company profits--based on sharing the risks among certain demographic groups. Young drivers, male drivers and people with poor driving records are simply at higher risk of making insurance claims, so their rates are proportionately higher than seasoned drivers, people who work in professional positions and those who’ve demonstrated safe driving histories.
Other Factors that Affect Car Insurance Rates
In some cases, drivers can reduce their driving and insurance costs by changing their demographic status. These changes aren’t as easy to make as changing your Facebook status, but since driving and its associated expenses make up a big part of most people’s lives, it could be worth the effort. [4] Your mailing address, marital status and geographic location affect your car insurance costs, so it could prove financially beneficial to change one of these. You can also save money by driving a less expensive vehicle that has certain safety equipment installed.
Other factors that affect your insurance rates …show more content…
[5] However these differences can be even more dramatic depending on other insurance underwriting criteria. A perfect example of this gender gap is a hypothetical set of 18-year-old fraternal twins in Nevada. The male twin would pay $6,268 to insure a sedan while his sister would pay $4,152 to ensure an identical vehicle. That amounts to a 51-percent gap between the two rates, which is based entirely on gender. Men can get lower car insurance rates, however, based on using new driving technologies, driving more safely, taking defensive driving courses, shopping around for car insurance rates and looking for other discounts. Tips to reduce car insurance rates for men include the following recommendations:
· Prove that you’re a safe driver: There are now monitoring apps that can monitor your driving so that you qualify for pay-as-you-drive discounts. This technology is currently available only in 34 states and Canada, so check with your local