Cheap Car Insurance in Charlottesville, VA, Starting at $32 (2024)

Charlottesville drivers pay an average monthly premium of $106, which is lower than both the state and national averages of $133 and $160 per month, respectively.

Virginia’s overall low insurance premiums could be a result of many factors, including the unique insurance requirements where drivers don’t necessarily need to carry coverage. But your premiums could look very different based on your personal situation and driving profile, which is why it’s important to compare quotes from several insurers before choosing a policy.

3 of the cheapest car insurance companies in Charlottesville

Thanks to low insurance premiums in the state of Virginia, Charlottesville drivers should have an easy time finding affordable car insurance. The cheapest insurance company for you may vary depending on your individual situation and needs.

We’ve rounded up three of the cheapest insurers in Charlottesville to help get you started on your search. The rates in the table below are for Virginia overall.

Best insurer for personalized service: Auto-Owners

Best insurer for customer satisfaction: State Farm

Best insurer for discounts: GEICO

How to get the cheapest car insurance in Charlottesville

Many things affect your car insurance premiums, including your age, gender, driving history, ZIP code, and more. Though some of those factors may be outside your control, you can take some key steps to get the cheapest car insurance:^[1]

• Compare rates. When you’re getting ready to purchase car insurance, shop around and compare rates across several insurers. This way, you can make sure you’re getting the best deal on a policy for your situation.

• Consider your coverage needs. Not everyone has the same insurance coverage needs, whether it be the type of coverage or the amount of coverage. Make sure to build an insurance policy that’s sufficient to cover your needs while avoiding wasting money by purchasing more insurance than you need.

• Choose a higher deductible. The deductible you choose when you purchase your policy directly affects your premiums. A higher deductible — meaning you pay more out of pocket when you file a claim — results in a lower premium, while a lower deductible results in a higher premium.

• Save with discounts. Car insurance discounts can help you lower your insurance premiums by rewarding you for everything from bundling your insurance policies to driving a safe vehicle to being a member of certain affinity groups. Each insurer has its own lineup of discounts, so make sure to keep that in mind when narrowing down your options.

• Bundle your policies. Many insurance companies offer a discount when customers bundle their auto insurance policy with their home insurance, renters insurance, or even life insurance policy. The amount you can save and the types of policies you can bundle depend on the insurer.

Cheapest liability-only car insurance in Charlottesville: Auto-Owners

A liability-only insurance policy includes two coverage types: bodily injury liability and property damage liability. These coverages protect other drivers on the road, paying for their damages when you’re at fault for an accident. However, it doesn’t provide any protection for you or your vehicle.

The table below shows the cheapest liability-only rates for drivers in Charlottesville. As you can see, Auto-Owners offers the cheapest liability-only policies, at $32 per month.

Cheapest full-coverage car insurance in Charlottesville: Auto-Owners

Full-coverage car insurance includes liability insurance, but it also includes other coverages to protect you and your vehicle. For example, a typical full-coverage policy includes collision and comprehensive coverages, both of which pay for damage to your vehicle.

Because liability insurance doesn’t protect your vehicle, full coverage is often a good idea, especially if you can’t afford to replace your vehicle out of pocket. Your lender may also require it if you have a loan or lease on your vehicle.

Drivers can find the cheapest full-coverage insurance with Auto-Owners, with rates of $57 per month. Check out other full-coverage insurance quotes in Charlottesville in the table below.

Car insurance requirements in Virginia

Virginia is unique because, though it has minimum insurance limits, you don’t necessarily have to meet them. Virginia drivers have two options:

• Purchase the state’s minimum liability insurance limits, which are listed in the table below.

• Pay the annual $500 uninsured motor vehicle (UMV) fee, which allows you to drive without insurance.

If you fail to meet one of those requirements, you may have your driver’s license and vehicle registration suspended until you pay a $600 fee. You’ll also be required to file an SR-22 with the state’s DMV for three years after reinstatement.^[2]

It’s important to note that paying the UMV fee doesn’t absolve you of responsibility if you’re at fault for an accident. It simply allows you to drive at your own risk. As a result, if you’re responsible for an accident, you could be liable for all property damage and injuries.

Here are the minimum coverage requirements in Virginia for people who decide to purchase insurance rather than pay the UMV fee:

In addition to the required insurance coverages in Virginia, Charlottesville drivers can add several optional coverages to their policies. Here are some of the most common:

• 

  Collision coverage

  Collision insurance pays for damage to your vehicle after an accident, regardless of who’s at fault.

• 

  Comprehensive coverage

  Comprehensive coverage pays for damage to your vehicle after an incident that’s not an accident, such as storm damage or vandalism.

• 

  Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage

  Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage pays for damage to your vehicle when the driver responsible for an accident doesn’t have insurance or doesn’t have sufficient coverage.

• 

  Roadside assistance coverage

  Roadside assistance pays for emergency services you need while on the road, including towing, jump-starts, lock-out service, and more.

• 

  Rental reimbursem*nt coverage

  Rental reimbursem*nt pays for your rental car when your vehicle is undrivable due to a covered incident, such as an accident.

Cheapest car insurance for drivers with an incident

Drivers without violations on their records pay the cheapest premiums. Having any sort of incident on your record, whether it be a speeding ticket, at-fault accident, DUI, or anything else, is likely to increase your premiums.^[3]

The amount your premiums will increase after an incident depends on a variety of factors. The more severe the incident, the more your premiums are likely to increase. Additionally, different insurers may increase rates by different amounts after incidents.

For example, drivers with clean records in Charlottesville pay a monthly average of $75 for liability coverage. But an at-fault accident increases that rate to an average of $107 per month.

Average cost of car insurance by age

Age is an important factor that determines your car insurance rates. Generally speaking, young drivers, especially teens, pay the highest premiums. Their lack of experience and propensity toward high-risk driving behaviors present a higher risk for insurers.^[4]

On the other hand, older drivers usually pay the lowest rates. Rates tend to drop throughout a driver’s 20s, 30s, and 40s, reaching their lowest level in a driver’s 50s and 60s.

Finally, some drivers see their rates increase again in their 70s. Though older drivers often make safer driving decisions, a decline in their physical or cognitive health can result in a slower reaction time and more accidents.^[5]

The table below shows the average monthly quote for drivers in different age groups in Charlottesville.

Charlottesville car insurance quotes by credit tier

In most states, your credit history is another factor that insurance companies take into consideration when setting your insurance premiums.^[6] Credit history can be an indication of risk. Insurance companies consider drivers with good or excellent credit as lower risk, meaning they pay lower premiums.

On the other hand, insurers may consider drivers with poor credit as more likely to file claims and charge them higher premiums as a result.

In the table below, you can see the average premium for drivers of each credit profile in Charlottesville:

Charlottesville car insurance FAQs

Insurify data scientists analyzed more than 90 million quotes served to car insurance applicants in Insurify’s proprietary database to calculate the premium averages displayed on this page. These premiums are real quotes that come directly from Insurify’s 50+ partner insurance companies in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Quote averages represent the median price for a quote across the given coverage level, driver subset, and geographic area.

Unless otherwise specified, quoted rates reflect the average cost for drivers between 20 and 70 years old with a clean driving record and average or better credit (a credit score of 600 or higher).

Liability-only premium averages correspond to policies with the following coverage limits:

• Bodily injury limits between state-minimum rates and $50,000 per person, $100,000 per accident
• Property damage limits between $10,000 and $50,000
• No additional coverage

Full-coverage premium averages correspond to the same bodily injury and property damage limits in addition to:

• Comprehensive coverage with a $1,000 deductible
• Collision coverage with a $1,000 deductible

Quotes for Allstate, Farmers, GEICO, State Farm, and USAA are estimates based on Quadrant Information Services’ database of auto insurance rates.

1. Insurance Information Institute. "How to save money on car insurance."
2. Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. "Insurance Requirements."
3. Insurance Information Institute. "What determines the price of an auto insurance policy?."
4. Insurance Information Institute. "Background On: Teen drivers."
5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Older Adult Drivers."
6. National Association of Insurance Commissioners. "Credit-Based Insurance Scores."

Erin Gobler is a personal finance writer and journalist based in Madison, Wisconsin. With more than five years of experience, Erin has covered topics such as investing, credit cards, mortgages, insurance, and more. Her work has been featured in major publications like Business Insider, Fox Business, and Time. Erin received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh in 2013, studying journalism and political science. She also received a certificate of financial planning from Boston University in 2022.