There are clear advantages of living in the beautiful, warm state of Florida. Cheap auto insurance in Florida is not one of them. Florida is one of the more expensive states to live in if you own a car. There are ways to offset these costs and make it less likely that you will have to choose between your car and groceries.
All around the perimeter of the peninsula and coastline of Florida are thousands of miles of beaches. These are the more popular destinations of Floridians and tourists from all over the US and even the world. It is less likely you will get cheap auto insurance in Florida in these areas for two main reasons: Hurricanes and population density.
Some coastal towns will be worse than others. An example of this would be Tampa. Hillsborough County cites over 4000 DUI convictions in 2006 which is nearly double the convictions from the next highest county with DUI's: Pinellas County, which is home to St. Petersburg. For that reason alone you will not get cheap auto insurance in Florida because of the risk associated with these statistics.
Accident statistics will also play a very large role in determining car insurance rates. According to the Florida DMV website, Miami-Dade county reported over 48,500 auto accidents in 2005. Comparatively, Alachua experienced only about 4300 that same year. You can expect to find cheap auto insurance in Florida as a resident of Alachua County than you would in Miami.
Aside from where you live, there are a few things you can do to increase your chance for cheap auto insurance in Florida no matter where you are.
* First and foremost is to keep your driving record spotless and do not place any claims unless it is entirely unavoidable. This alone will help you increase your chance for cheap auto insurance in Florida.
* Take collision off cars that do not have much value. It doesn't make sense to pay $2000 a year for collision coverage on a car that's worth $900.
* If you must have collision, consider a high deductible to make the monthly cost more affordable.
* If you must buy a car and have full coverage, stay away from cars that are not on the list as "most stolen". You will pay high comprehensive coverage costs.
You may not have any say in where you live and you may not have any option but to pay the cost of insuring in a high-cost area of Florida. If that is the case, be sure you keep a good driving record and good coverage on your policy. These two positive items will ensure you are getting the best rate possible no matter where you live.
