Car insurance prices are skyrocketing. The most recent Consumer Price Index — the federal government’s main tool for measuring inflation — found that the average car insurance premium has risen more than 22% in the last year.
Unsurprisingly, Americans are shopping around for a better deal.
In a new report, J.D. Power finds that more Americans are getting rate quotes from multiple insurers amid the price increases.
Related: How to Buy Car Insurance: Everything You Need to Know
Most Americans Don’t Comparison Shop, but the Number Who Do Is Growing
Most drivers don’t shop around; they renew their existing auto insurance when its term ends. But the number seeking a better deal is rising. In January, researchers say, 11.7% of those with an expiring plan chose to shop around. In February, the number was 12.1%. In March, when rates jumped 2.6% in just one month, 13.5% of shoppers looked for a new policy.
Most, however, didn’t find a deal that made them change insurers. Just 4% of shoppers switched insurance companies last month.
A year ago, the most common reason drivers cited for shopping around was “just browsing rates.” Now, it’s “my rate was too high.”
Drivers in the South were most likely to look for a new insurer — 14.4% tried to find a better deal last month. J.D. Power’s numbers don’t break out results by state. But it’s worth noting that one prominent insurer, Farmer’s, left the state of Florida altogether recently, forcing many to shop for alternatives. Drivers in the Northeast were least likely to shop around. Just 9.5% tried.
Rate increases can make us all comparison shop, but typically, we adjust to higher prices and stop looking for a better deal fairly quickly. Last year, J.D. Power said, “Consumers responded to continual premium increases by shopping in the first half of the year and relented to higher premiums in the second half of the year.”
