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ELRev

Member
Mar 7, 2016
242
243
Los Angeles, CA
#1
I hope here to gather any and all helpful tips, advice, or hair-brained ideas current or future Tesla owners have for negotiating a fair rate from any one of the countless car insurers nationwide and worldwide.

I'm fortunate enough to have been among the group of non-owners invited to configure their Model 3 this past Thursday (2/22). Since, I've been researching online car insurance quotes daily. While the chasm between some of the quotes I've received is comparable in size to the Grand Canyon, they've all had 1 thing in common - they're expensive.

I'm a 27-year old male who lives in suburban Los Angeles. All of those factors work against me. What I hope to learn here is what other life factors or factors pertaining to my Tesla itself might serve me well in negotiating a more reasonable price for car insurance.

For reference, the cheapest quote I've received online was from the company that currently insures my Hyundai Sonata, Geico - $250/month. The most expensive quote I received was from AAA - $700.33/month. Not a typo.

When I receive my VIN and call these various insurance companies for a quote, what can I do/say to help keep the rate down?

EDIT: 100% clean driving record. Never been in an accident. Never gotten a speeding ticket. Nothing to see there. Seems like these insurance companies just don't what they're dealing with when it comes to Tesla and Model 3. Might as well be pulling ping-pong balls out of a spinning crate. Help.
 
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#5
I know one thing that is a killer for me here on Los Angeles County is my mileage. I put close to 30K miles on a car each year, and my insurance company makes me pay the price for that. My record is also clean other than being in two 100% not at fault accidents with uninsured drivers. No speeding tickets.

You can always try to find an independent insurance agent to shop around for you. I have never done that, but supposedly they can get rates that aren't available through the online quote systems. It is kind of like getting a mortgage broker to shop mortgages for you.

Just don't try to skimp on coverages by going to the minimums in liability, etc.

Oh - and try Ameriprise via Costco. Them and Geico had the cheapest rates when I called around. I am not gonna say their claims service is good as I just used it when my S was totaled. I had to keep on them, but in the end they did pay - it just took about 3 times longer than it should.
 
#7
Do not use Hotmail or any other outdated email domain while searching for an insurance policy. This may be more of an issue overseas... related article.

Compare a $500 collision deductible with a $1,000 option. The premium difference as I found out was quite large - at least with Geico. It made sense to go with the higher deductible since the break-even with the premium savings was less than a year and a half.
 
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Reactions: thegooch49 and Dr. J
#8
Do you have any family in the military?

Back when I bought my 350Z, i was getting outrageous quotes from insurance companies until I was able to add myself to my mom's USAA account, then eventually split of off my own and get (reasonably priced) insurance through them.
This was done over the course of a few weeks so as to avoid mooching off of my mom :)

I've had USAA since them (10+ years) and they are fantastic - they insure all of my vehicles, and renter's insurance as well.
My quote for all three vehicles + renter's insurance is roughly $300 a month, but that's with low deductibles and options that I will need to update now that i'll have three vehicles (two of which are paid off as of this month).
 
#11
jjh1234 said:
Check with Metromile.com
Click to expand...

Interesting! Thanks for the suggestion. Their rate is competitive, depending on my actual driving habits. Have you had an experience processing claims through them? Curious if their lesser-known status has any drawbacks.

DMack said:
Do you have any family in the military?
Click to expand...

I don't unfortunately. I have a co-worker who can't speak highly enough about USAA. Not an option for me, sadly.
 
#12
ELRev said:
Interesting! Thanks for the suggestion. Their rate is competitive, depending on my actual driving habits. Have you had an experience processing claims through them? Curious if their lesser-known status has any drawbacks.



I don't unfortunately. I have a co-worker who can't speak highly enough about USAA. Not an option for me, sadly.
Click to expand...

I didn't have any claims, but all my other experiences with them were great. The only negative I see with the Metromile and the M3 is the lack of a OBDII connector to plug in their tracking device. M3 owners will have to use a 12v outlet adapter to power the device.
 
#13
Pkmmte said:
I'm in a similar situation as you, just younger and without a Model 3 invite. I was even quoted $4,000 per MONTH for a Model S 75D last year.

Though I do not yet have a Model 3, the cheapest I was able to find was Geico. I'm really hoping that Root Insurance comes to California soon. They seem very promising.

Announcement: Car Insurance Discount for Tesla® Owners
Click to expand...

Do you get into accidents often? Are you a teenager? $4000 a year seems over the top for me...
 
#14
Joshua N said:
Do you get into accidents often? Are you a teenager? $4000 a year seems over the top for me...
Click to expand...
Just like him. 100% clean record and not even a speeding ticket. I was 21 at the time. Most quotes were around $1k per month but the cheapest I found was around $450 per month.

Hopefully he's able to find a reasonable price for the Model 3, given how it should be cheaper to repair compared to the Model S.
 
#15
I'd try Progressive.com, as they were half price on my EVs (MS85, ELR, Volt) versus my prior policy with Allstate (before I bought my EVs, which are my every day drivers). The only other 2 factors (that are very hard for you to easily change) are (1) your marital status and (2) your state of residence. I'm married and live in Iowa, so my MS is only $400 per year (cheap mainly because I insure eight vehicles plus my home, and have zero loss runs, which means no claims, period). Most of my cars are about $200 per year for full coverage; total bill is under $2k annually for 8 cars.

Insurance company actuaries assume the worst, which causes the high rate quotes. Since you're single, they assume you go out every night to the bars (even if you don't) and are on the road after midnight when drunk drivers without insurance may hit you. Statistically, CA has more uninsured drivers than IA, more traffic and crime, and this all means more risk that could result in the insurance company paying out big bucks if you're hit by an uninsured driver who totals your car and causes physical injury/death. Then add in the cost of repairing a Tesla that can only obtain parts from a Tesla-certified service center at a premium rate, and it just goes downhill from there. Progressive uses Snapshot devices (that I put in all my non-EV cars (not available in my 3 EVs) so I could prove to them I wasn't driving late at night when risk goes up. Rates vary wildly from state to state, but I'd simply keep calling until you find something affordable. Good luck!
 
#16
2012MS85 said:
...this all means more risk that could result in the insurance company paying out big bucks if you're hit by an uninsured driver who totals your car and causes physical injury/death...
Click to expand...

I'm glad you brought this up, because it's something else that I thought might be a negotiating point.

Is there nothing to be said, as far as the insurance companies are concerned, that Model 3s, and Tesla's in general, are particularly safe?

I almost feel like I should bring a stack of articles and injury reports from major wrecks involving a Tesla to argue for a discount because of the REDUCED risk of injury/death specifically because of the car I'm trying to insure.
 
#17
jjh1234 said:
I didn't have any claims, but all my other experiences with them were great. The only negative I see with the Metromile and the M3 is the lack of a OBDII connector to plug in their tracking device. M3 owners will have to use a 12v outlet adapter to power the device.
Click to expand...
Check to be sure that the device isn't expecting more from the OBDII connector than just power. There is a lot of information available there on an ICE, e.g. vehicle VIN, vehicle speed, how aggressively you are driving, etc. Supplying just power to it may not give them what they are expecting from the device, and giving them all that data (if you're using it on another car) may be a concern to some for privacy reasons.
 
#18
<30, male, single, high mileage, high rate of uninsured, live in the city, expensive state... all against you.

Credit score? The higher the score, the lower the rate. It can make a surprising difference, spend a few months working to raise it (a single late payment anywhere the last two years is a killer with the score)

Get married, move, or wait until you are 30...

In the meantime, it it will hurt. Find an independent broker and buy home, life (if you want it), auto and umbrella policies as a package to get the best overall deal.
 
#20
Az_Rael said:
I know one thing that is a killer for me here on Los Angeles County is my mileage. I put close to 30K miles on a car each year, and my insurance company makes me pay the price for that. My record is also clean other than being in two 100% not at fault accidents with uninsured drivers. No speeding tickets.

You can always try to find an independent insurance agent to shop around for you. I have never done that, but supposedly they can get rates that aren't available through the online quote systems. It is kind of like getting a mortgage broker to shop mortgages for you.

Just don't try to skimp on coverages by going to the minimums in liability, etc.

Oh - and try Ameriprise via Costco. Them and Geico had the cheapest rates when I called around. I am not gonna say their claims service is good as I just used it when my S was totaled. I had to keep on them, but in the end they did pay - it just took about 3 times longer than it should.
Click to expand...
I have been with Geico for 11 years. I have perfect driving record. Insured the Model 3 with them last year and everything was great but they're raising my cost in March quite a bit. So I went with Ameriprise via Costco with even a much better rate than I currently have. Give Ameriprise a try you never know. Still very upset with Geico.
 
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