A good credit score to get the best car insurance rates is a credit score of 700 or higher.
You can still get auto or car insurance with any credit score but your premiums will typically be higher.
Your credit score can affect your car insurance rates a lot and if you have a bad credit score it can sometimes increase your auto insurance rates by as much as $1,000.00 to $3,000.00 per year.
A good credit score could lower your auto insurance rates by half or more.
A higher credit score decreases your car insurance rate, often significantly, with almost every company and in most states.
Getting a quote, however, does not affect your credit.
Your credit score is a key part of determining the rate you pay for car insurance.
Bad credit does affect your car insurance.
When you have bad credit the auto insurance company sees you as a risk so your auto insurance rates will sometimes be higher per month than it would be if you had a better credit score.
Having a higher credit score means you're less of a risk so you should have lower auto insurance rates.
Your credit score affects your car insurance as it shows the insurance company how risky you are and how likely you are to file a claim.
And credit-based insurance scores are generally built to help insurance companies understand the likelihood that someone will file insurance claims that cost the company more than it collects in premiums.
Factors that influence your credit scores can also affect your credit-based insurance scores
You can switch your auto insurance at anytime to any other insurance company you want to switch too.
Just give your current auto insurance company notice when possible so that you will have coverage during the switch.
You can switch car insurance companies at any time.
This includes the day you start coverage and even when you have certain open claims.
You also won't be penalized for switching multiple times in one year.
I would recommend shopping around for coverage at least once per policy term to make sure you have the best price.
Applying for car insurance does not affect your credit score.
Although when you apply for car insurance or you get auto insurance quotes your credit score will be checked but it will only put a soft inquiry on your credit report.
When getting auto insurance quotes or applying for auto insurance they'll be a soft inquiry which does not affect your credit score or credit.
The soft inquiry differs from a hard inquiry.
Hard inquiries appear when you've given someone permission to check your credit report in order to process a credit or loan application these can also lower your score.
Soft credit inquiries don't harm your credit score but do involve someone checking your score.
Soft inquiries do not affect credit scores and are not visible to potential lenders that may review your credit reports.
They are visible to you and will stay on your credit reports for 12 to 24 months, depending on the type.
Soft credit inquiries have no impact on your credit score.
If a lender checks your credit report, soft credit inquiries won't show up at all. Soft inquiries are only visible on consumer disclosures—credit reports that you request personally.
Fortunately, buying car insurance isn't difficult whether you've had insurance in the past or not.
It may be more expensive for first-time car owners, though, and it's important to research the insurance in advance prior to purchasing the policy so that you know for sure what you're getting into.
You will need to buy car insurance before purchasing your car.
It's illegal to drive without car insurance in every state except New Hampshire and Virginia.
So, you will need to have at least the minimum liability insurance anytime you're behind the wheel.
Among national insurers, USAA has the cheapest rates, at $36.00 per month, with State Farm in second place, at $44.00 per month.
The cheapest local company is Farm Bureau, at $39.00 per month.
You can also get cheaper auto insurance rates by bundling your auto insurance with renters insurance, condo insurance, homeowners insurance or by adding multiple vehicles to the same auto insurance policy.