CheapInsurance.com has put together expert tips and quote comparisons to help you find Arizona cheap car insurance.
Arizona is the sixth biggest state in the U.S., offering 35 national parks and preserves. In addition, the iconic Arizona Trail offers over 800 miles of scenic landscapes for hikers, mountain bikers, and horse riders.
Along with being outdoors, Arizonans love to drive. Over half of the 6.9 million residents of Arizona are registered drivers.
Although Arizona has affordable auto insurance, you should still compare the cheapest car insurance quotes from multiple insurance companies to ensure you’re getting the best car insurance.
Arizona Highways Ahead: Recent Updates & Insurance Insights For Car Insurance
Get ready to cruise the Grand Canyon State with these essential recent updates for car insurance:
Arizona Vehicle Code Changes:
- Distracted driving crackdown: Effective July 1 2024, holding a phone while driving is completely prohibited, even at stoplights. Hands-free devices remain acceptable. (Source: Arizona House Bill 2306)
- School bus stop arm violation: Penalties for disregarding stopped school buses have increased, with potential fines up to $2,500 and driver’s license suspension. (Source: Arizona Revised Statutes Title 28)
- Motorcycle lane splitting: While not explicitly legal, Arizona allows “filtering,” moving between lanes in slow traffic, if done safely and not exceeding 15 mph slower than surrounding traffic. (Source: Arizona Department of Public Safety)Remember: Your individual car insurance price may vary significantly based on driving history, vehicle type, location, and other factors, such as motor vehicle thefts rates.
Is It Legal to Drive Without Arizona Car Insurance?
Arizona law requires all drivers to meet the minimum liability insurance requirements. Legally, you do not need comprehensive coverage and collision coverage, although it is wise to have both.
What Is Minimum Liability Insurance?
Liability insurance is designed to protect third parties and their property from damage you may cause while driving. It does not cover any damages to your own vehicle.
While each U.S. state will have different minimum liability insurance requirements, it always addresses three key points:
- Bodily injury coverage per person: This covers medical bills, legal fees, or lost wages you might be required to pay to an individual third party.
- Bodily injury coverage per accident: This is the maximum amount your insurer will pay out for medical bills, legal fees, or lost wages in the event of an accident, regardless of how many people are injured.
- Property damage coverage per accident: This is the maximum amount your insurer will pay out for repairs or a replacement if you cause damage to another person’s property.
The minimum automobile liability insurance requirements in Arizona are:
- $25,000 for bodily injury per person.
- $50,000 for bodily injury per accident.
- $15,000 for property damage.
All drivers in Arizona have to meet these liability requirements. If you’re found at-fault in a car accident and do not meet the minimum auto liability insurance requirements, as a result, you will be held personally responsible for paying the other party’s medical bills, legal bills, and lost wages.
At any point while you’re driving, law enforcement can request to see proof of insurance. If you do not have vehicle liability insurance that meets these minimum requirements, at this point, you may be subject to the following penalties:
- A $500 fine.
- Driver’s license suspension.
- Registration suspension.
- License plate suspension.
Once your driver’s license has been suspended, you may be required to file an SR-22 in order to get it reinstated.
Insurance with SR-22 proves that you meet the minimum liability insurance requirements, and for this reason, will often increase the price of automobile insurance.
Is Minimum Liability Coverage Enough?
While it may seem like a good idea to save money by getting only the minimum liability insurance required to comply with Arizona law, in many instances this may not be sufficient.
Say, for example, you’re in a serious at-fault accident and you need to cover $50,000 of the other party’s medical bills.
Because the Arizona minimum coverage for bodily injury liability is $25,000, you will have to pay the additional $25,000 from your own pocket.
Remember, liability insurance only protects third parties and doesn’t reimburse you if your car is stolen, damaged, or totaled.
Cheap Insurance For Full Coverage Arizona Auto Insurance
While having cheap insurance for full coverage Arizona car insurance is optional, you shouldn’t skip it unless you have savings that can cover damage to your vehicle in the following examples:
- Theft or theft of parts.
- Non crash damage (e.g. natural disasters, fire, flooding).
- Broken windshield.
- Car damage from hitting an animal.
Repairing car damage can cost thousands of dollars. Without full coverage automobile insurance, you risk finding yourself in a situation where you can’t drive your car and can’t afford to get it repaired.
Cheap Car Insurance Quotes for Drivers with Clean Driving Records
“Good” drivers (drivers with a clean driving record) are in a good position to find cheap car insurance quotes. Moreover, Car insurance companies consider good drivers, for example:
- Not been found at-fault in a car accident.
- No traffic offenses.
- Who have a good credit score.
- No speeding tickets on their DMV report.
- Have no reckless driving charges.
- No DUI convictions.
Saving you further money, many car insurance companies also offer a good driver discount on your car insurance.
Some auto insurance companies will offer an additional discount if you have completed an accredited defensive driving course. Provide this information to your insurance company to get the cheapest car insurance.
If you aren’t sure whether your auto insurance has these discounts, you should call your insurance agent to find out if you are eligible for these cheap car insurance discounts.
Even a small savings on your vehicle insurance each month adds up to significant savings over time to get you the lowest priced car insurance.
Arizona Cheap Auto Insurance Quotes for High-Risk Drivers
Auto insurance companies use the term ‘high risk’ to describe drivers who are more likely to make a claim against their auto insurance policy.
Some of the offenses that may lead to being considered a high-risk driver include:
- Carrying SR-22 insurance.
- Receiving a DUI conviction.
- Reckless driving.
- Speeding tickets.
- Being found at-fault in a major accident.
- Having too many points on your driving record.
- Driving without meeting the minimum liability coverage requirements.
- A poor credit score.
- Unpaid child support payments.
- Unpaid insurance policy premiums.
If you are a high-risk driver, Arizona auto insurance companies are likely to increase the price of your auto insurance quote.
Need Affordable Car Insurance in Other States?
Out-of-state insurance is illegal in almost all U.S. states, and is considered to be insurance fraud. This means that your car insurance must be registered in the state you live in.
Some of the penalties for committing insurance fraud include:
- Up to five years in prison.
- A $50,000 fine.
If you plan to move from Arizona, you will need to find a new car insurance company in the state you move to.
You will usually have a 90-day grace period to cancel your car insurance policy and find affordable car insurance in your new state.
Top Tips for Finding Inexpensive Arizona Auto Insurance Quotes
Take Note of Lender Requirements
If your car is financed or leased, your lender is likely to require that you have liability insurance, comprehensive coverage, and collision insurance.
In fact, most car dealerships won’t let you drive the car off the lot until you can prove you have full coverage car insurance. Full coverage car insurance protects your lender if you’re in a car accident or your car is stolen and you can no longer afford to meet your monthly repayments.
What Is Full Coverage Car Insurance?
Full coverage car insurance is made up of three different types of car insurance policies:
- Comprehensive coverage: This type of insurance will compensate you if your car is totaled due a non-accident related event (e.g. fire, flood) or if it’s stolen.
- Collision coverage: This type of insurance will compensate you if your car is totaled or damaged in a car accident.
- Liability insurance: This type of insurance covers you for damage you may cause to another person’s property or injury/death you may cause while driving.
If your required car insurance coverage is canceled or non-renewed, your lender could add single-interest insurance to your loan in order to protect themselves.
You should avoid allowing your insurance to lapse because this type of automobile insurance is much more expensive than standard car insurance.
Consider How You Use Your Car
If you only drive to get to work, the grocery store, and social events, then most types of standard car insurance will meet your needs.
If, however, you have unique needs, you should check whether your auto insurance covers these requirements.
Unique needs can include:
- Multiple drivers sharing one car.
- Using your car for ridesharing.
- Using your car for deliveries.
- Wanting to consolidate all of your insurance policies under one provider by bundling.
Compare Inexpensive Automobile Insurance Quotes from Different Insurance Companies
Even if you think you’ve found a good deal on car insurance, it’s always a good idea to shop around for inexpensive Arizona automobile insurance.
You can do this yourself, but going through an insurance agent can save you a lot of time and money.
The only way to be completely certain that you’re getting the best cheap car insurance quotes is to compare insurance quotes from multiple insurers.
You can do this yourself, but it is time-consuming. You’ll need to phone each car insurance company or fill out an online auto insurance form for them to give you a quote.
Arizona Vehicle Insurance FAQs
Do I need to have car insurance in the state of Arizona?
Full coverage car insurance is not a legal requirement in Arizona. However, all Arizona drivers must meet the state’s minimum car liability insurance requirements.
Is Arizona automobile insurance expensive?
Auto insurance is relatively affordable when compared to other states.
To find the cheapest Arizona car insurance, we recommend comparing auto insurance quotes from multiple companies. This can be a time consuming process.
