petitefrancaise

We changed from 21st Century to Nationwide because they were cheaper.

Something that surprised us and I mentioned it on BE was that when we exchanged our 3 year old Honda Fit for a brand new Toyota 4runner, the insurance premium went down! Group decision seemed to be that this reflected the increased safety of being in a 4runner with decreased chance of high hospital bills in case of an accident.

Pulaski

It's also much easier to "total" a small car which is nearly all crumple-zone.

mrken30

That used to be the case, Dodge RAM 1500s do not even have front bumpers , but are big trucks. A friend has one hit his Camry, no damage to the Camry, front end of the RAM was not a pretty sight.

Pulaski

If you're looking for a robust, well-built vehicle you probably shouldn't be looking at Chrysler Dodge Ram products.

Bob

If you're in MA, the best way to save money is living in a posh, expensive town, that is well away from the NH border and have covered, off street parking available at both, home and work locations and minimise mileage to less than 5K a year. Having lo-jack type of security features and lots of airbag type safety features help too.

ZanM

In case it's any use to anyone, I've just had a car insurance quote (Florida) from Progressive reduced by $300 because I have proof of UK car insurance (as a named driver, not policyholder) covering the period up to the start date of the US policy. The guy was "99% certain" that my UK insurance wouldn't affect the quote at all, but (luckily) decided to double check and it worked out. If anyone else is in a similar situation it might be worth pushing the issue just in case it applies to other states as well (and maybe hold off on cancelling your UK insurance for a little while before you move to the USA ).

Harveyspecter

What worries me there, is that if you base that on an average of 40mph, it means you have been sat behind the wheel of a car for 479 days or 1.31 years continuously of your 14 in the USA

Pulaski

I think my average speed is higher (for several years my commute was only slightly less than a mile a minute), but based on hours/week I can reach an aggregate of about one year behind the wheel.

What you won't have seen unless you have read several years of my posts, is why I commute so far. My "back yard" is about five acres of woodland and clearings, with deer, squirrels, chipmunks, tortoises, rabbits, groundhogs, and all manner of birds, including two species of woodpeckers, and sapsuckers.

Harveyspecter

Well could be worse, at least you have been sat in some nice cars during that time!

Hanco

Geico, AllState, StateFarm... All insisted UK claims history had no relevance when I was shopping around

Two of us, a 2011 pickup and a 2013 Kia saloon car. GA licenses 1 yr old. $1,300 every 6 months. I tend to agree with Pulaski, the US is not a cheap place to live as people sometimes think it is...

Hanco

If anyone has a rental vehicle and has a bump, definitely call for the police report. Injuries or not, just do it. Rental co's usually want this and it does mean everything is on record and undisputed later. There is a fee to pay to get the police report off the Internet later (of course there is, it's America!)

Hanco

Interesting... I found no interest in my uk history. I did not go to Progressive though. Does your quote/invoice show this reduction and refers to previous/UK history?

Edit: I'm in GA, not FL. States vary too I guess.

Bob

It doesn't. It just means you're treated as a fresh 18 year old driver, instead of a spotty 15 year old with a permit.

Hanco

Yeah that's what we decided was the case. Then when I reversed into a parked car here after 3 months of having a truck, I decided I was driving like a spotty 15 year old

(after 11 years no claims in the UK!!)

Pulaski

Well if you will drive something that is closer to a British HGV than a car!

(Says he who drives an F250 crew cab truck. )