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Fortunately, car insurance in Virginia isn’t as expensive as car insurance in many other states. However, that doesn’t mean you should go with just any provider. In this article, we’ll cover the cheapest Virginia car insurance companies and how to get coverage.
In this article:
- Cheapest car insurance in Virginia
- 5 car insurance options in Virginia
- Virginia car insurance requirements
- How to get car insurance in Virginia
- Frequently asked questions
- Our methodology
Cheapest car insurance in Virginia
According to our rate estimates, USAA tends to be the cheapest car insurance company in Virginia, with an average cost of $782 a year for full coverage. Good drivers can also find cheap rates from Erie Insurance, Progressive, Nationwide, State Farm and a few others.
| Car Insurance Company | Estimated Annual Cost* |
| USAA | $782 |
| Erie Insurance | $885 |
| Progressive | $913 |
| Nationwide | $928 |
| State Farm | $1,014 |
| Geico | $1,015 |
| Virginia Farm Bureau | $1,083 |
Average cost of car insurance in Virginia
According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), Virginia drivers paid $854 on average for car insurance in 2018. This price includes both full coverage and minimum coverage policies.
So, how does this compare to the rest of the country? Virginia’s average was about 19% lower than the national average of $1,057 in 2018. It ranked in 35th place for car insurance costs nationwide. Overall, drivers in Virginia will see cheaper rates than drivers in many other states.
Cheapest Virginia car insurance for young drivers
Your age has a huge impact on the car insurance rates you pay. According to our estimates, Geico jumps to the top of the list for cheap car insurance in Virginia for young drivers.
| Car Insurance Company | Estimated Annual Cost* |
| Geico | $1,117 |
| USAA | $1,144 |
| Erie Insurance | $1,197 |
| State Farm | $1,397 |
| Nationwide | $1,402 |
Cheapest Virginia car insurance for drivers with a speeding ticket
In Virginia, USAA, Erie Insurance and State Farm all offer cheap rates for drivers with speeding tickets, though USAA is the cheapest at $948 on average.
| Car Insurance Company | Estimated Annual Cost* |
| USAA | $948 |
| Erie Insurance | $1,012 |
| State Farm | $1,112 |
| Nationwide | $1,237 |
| Progressive | $1,238 |
Cheapest Virginia car insurance for drivers with a recent accident
Having a recent car accident will raise your rates for car insurance in Virginia, but by how much depends on the company. USAA is typically the cheapest option in Virginia, and State Farm is very cheap for anyone who doesn’t qualify for USAA.
| Car Insurance Company | Estimated Annual Cost* |
| USAA | $1,144 |
| State Farm | $1,209 |
| Erie Insurance | $1,271 |
| Progressive | $1,468 |
| Virginia Farm Bureau | $1,469 |
Cheapest Virginia car insurance for drivers with poor credit
Having bad credit can increase your car insurance rates by about 65% in Virginia, according to our estimates. Believe it or not, a bad credit score has less of an impact on car insurance in Virginia than in many other states. Some drivers in other states may pay more than double for having poor credit.
Looking at providers, Nationwide, USAA and Progressive may be decent options for affordable car insurance in Virginia for those with poor credit.
| Car Insurance Company | Estimated Annual Cost* |
| Nationwide | $1,284 |
| USAA | $1,359 |
| Progressive | $1,497 |
| Geico | $1,538 |
| Virginia Farm Bureau | $1,733 |
5 car insurance options in Virginia
Our team looked beyond cost to assess factors including coverage options, customer experience, reputation and claims servicing. Here’s how we rated five car insurance companies in Virginia.
| Virginia Car Insurance Companies | Overall Rating | Coverage Rating | Cost Rating |
| 1. USAA | 9.1 | 8.5 | 9.5 |
| 2. Erie Insurance | 7.5 | 8.0 | 9.0 |
| 3. Geico | 9.1 | 8.5 | 8.5 |
| 4. Progressive | 9.0 | 9.0 | 8.5 |
| 5. State Farm | 8.6 | 8.5 | 8.0 |
(Our research team considers nationwide factors when scoring providers. The ranking of providers in this table is specific to car insurance in Virginia.)
1. USAA
USAA offers the cheapest rates for many types of drivers, according to our research, and it provides a variety of coverage options. You qualify if you are a member of the military, a veteran or an immediate family member.
USAA offers standard coverage, plus extras such as classic car insurance, accident forgiveness, car replacement assistance and rideshare insurance. The company’s usage-based program, SafePilotTM, is also available in Virginia.
USAA scores well in many industry studies, including:
2. Erie Insurance
Our research shows Erie Insurance also offers affordable coverage in Virginia. Erie offers a variety of coverage extras, including:
- New car replacement
- Rental car coverage
- Roadside assistance
- Erie Rate Lock®
- Accident forgiveness
The one thing that Erie is missing compared with major insurance companies is a usage-based option. So, if you are counting on a program like that to save money, you’ll have to look elsewhere.
In general, Erie has solid customer service ratings. The company has an A+ rating from the BBB. It also ranked in second place in the J.D. Power Auto Insurance Study for the mid-Atlantic region.
| Erie Insurance pros | Erie Insurance cons |
| A+ financial strength rating from AM Best | No usage-based insurance |
| A+ BBB rating | |
| Good selection of extra coverage options |
3. Geico
Geico insurance offers many types of coverage that include:
- Mechanical breakdown insurance
- Classic car coverage
- Rental reimbursement
- Roadside assistance
- Rideshare insurance
Geico also offers a usage-based program, DriveEasy, which you can get in Virginia.
Geico has an A+ rating from the BBB, along with an A++ financial rating from AM Best. However, the company has average ratings in the J.D. Power Auto Insurance Study, J.D. Power Insurance Shopping Study and J.D. Power Auto Claims Satisfaction Study. Geico has not yet responded to request for comment on these scores.
| Geico pros | Geico cons |
| A+ BBB rating | Average customer experience |
| A++ financial strength rating from AM Best | |
| Wide selection of coverage and extra options |
4. Progressive
According to our cost estimates, Progressive is the third-cheapest car insurance company in Virginia. It’s also an affordable option for drivers with bad credit. If you shop from Progressive’s website, you can use its price comparison tool to compare multiple providers at once.
When shopping, you can use the Name Your Price® tool to see plans that fit your ideal budget. As far as coverage options go, Progressive insurance offers all the standard choices, plus extras including rideshare insurance, gap insurance, roadside assistance, custom parts value and rental reimbursement. Progressive’s usage-based Snapshot® program is also available in Virginia.
Progressive has not yet responded to request for comment about its below-average J.D. Power scores.
5. State Farm
Our cost estimates show that State Farm is an affordable car insurance provider in Virginia, especially for drivers who have a speeding ticket or accident on their record. State Farm can also be affordable for students since it has the best good student discount in the industry. With the discount, good students under 25 years old can save up to 25% on their policies.
Extra coverage options from State Farm include:
- Rideshare coverage
- Roadside assistance
- Car rental and travel expense coverage
- Classic car insurance
- Drive Safe & SaveTM usage-based insurance
State Farm is the largest car insurance company in the country. According to the NAIC, State Farm wrote over $40 billion in premiums in 2020. State Farm is not rated by the BBB, but it has an A++ financial strength rating from AM Best. The company performed better than average on all three J.D. Power studies below:
- J.D. Power Auto Insurance Study
- J.D. Power Insurance Shopping Study
- J.D. Power Auto Claims Satisfaction Study
| State Farm Pros | State Farm Cons |
| A++ financial strength rating from AM Best | Not rated by the BBB |
| High marks on J.D. Power studies | Not always the cheapest option |
| Usage-based option in Virginia |
Virginia car insurance requirements
Each state sets its own financial responsibility laws that dictate car insurance requirements. According to the Virginia DMV, drivers in the state are required to have liability car insurance with the following minimum coverage limits:
- $25,000 bodily injury liability per person
- $50,000 bodily injury liability per accident
- $20,000 property damage liability per accident
Be aware that the state minimum liability coverage only pays other parties in accidents you cause. You can add comprehensive coverage and collision coverage to pay for damage to your vehicle. Underinsured/uninsured motorist coverage helps out if someone without insurance causes an accident, and medical payments (MedPay) can cover your hospital bills.
If you are not driving your vehicle, you can pay a $500 uninsured motor vehicle fee, which allows you to have an uninsured vehicle for up to a year before renewing the fee. This is not insurance, however.
If you’re caught driving without insurance, your registration will be suspended and you’ll have to pay to get it reinstated. You’ll also need to file an SR-22, which will make insurance much more expensive for the next few years.
How to get car insurance in Virginia
As a driver in the state of Virginia, you can take advantage of some of the most affordable car insurance rates in the nation. We recommend USAA as the cheapest provider in the state with quality coverage options.
Compare providers to find the best auto insurance coverage for you. You can shop around and compare car insurance quotes any time your policy is up for renewal to make sure you have the best rate.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest car insurance in Virginia?
According to our rate estimates, USAA tends to offer the cheapest car insurance in Virginia, with annual prices around $782 for full coverage. Erie Insurance, Progressive and Nationwide also offer affordable coverage—typically under $1,000 a year.
How much is car insurance in Virginia?
According to the NAIC, drivers pay about $854 annually for car insurance coverage in Virginia. In our own rate estimates, we found prices ranging from $782 to $1,083 and above for a full coverage insurance policy.
Is it mandatory to have car insurance in Virginia?
Yes, you are required to have car insurance in Virginia at all times. As a driver, you need limits of $25,000/$50,000 for bodily injury liability per person and per accident, plus $20,000 of property damage coverage. If you do not drive your vehicle at all, you still need to pay an uninsured motor vehicle fee of $500 a year.
Our methodology
We created a rating system to formulate our rankings of car insurance companies. We collected data on dozens of auto insurance providers to grade the companies on a wide range of ranking factors. The end result was an overall rating for each provider.
Here are the factors our ratings take into account:
- Reputation: Our research team considered market share, ratings from industry experts and years in business when giving this score.
- Availability: Auto insurance companies with greater state availability and few eligibility requirements scored highest in this category.
- Coverage: Companies that offer a variety of choices for insurance coverage are more likely to meet consumer needs.
- Cost: Auto insurance rate estimates generated by Quadrant Information Services and discount opportunities were both taken into consideration.
- Customer Experience: This score is based on volume of complaints reported by the NAIC and customer satisfaction ratings reported by J.D. Power. We also considered the responsiveness, friendliness and helpfulness of each insurance company’s customer service team based on our own shopper analysis.
*Data accurate at time of publication.
