Your age, your marital status, and even where you live can affect the cost of car insurance, but there are other more obscure factors too.
Most people know that a single 18-year-old man who drives a Mustang GT and lives in downtown Miami will definitely pay more in car insurance than a 40-year-old woman who drives a Honda CR-V and lives in rural in South Dakota.
If that young man adds some traffic tickets to the mix, or an accident, insurance costs can soar.
There are less well-known factors that can make a big difference in cost.
If you use your car for business, driving multiple places during a typical week, you can get tagged with pricey commercial insurance rates. The same is true with a long commute or high annual mileage over 15,000 miles per year.
City dwellers pay more because they cope with more traffic and higher risks of theft, vandalism, and other crime.
A low credit score can increase premiums since insurers think credit scores indicate financial responsibility.
Lots of insurance claims can mark you as a high-risk driver.
Even state laws can raise premiums. States with higher minimum coverage requirements (Michigan's no-fault system, for example) can increase premiums. State peculiarities can make a difference. Louisiana, for example, stands out from other states for its abundance of law suits and plaintiff-friendly courts, according to The American Tort Reform Foundation.
