Have you checked recently what you’re paying for car insurance? A new study from Bankrate shows the annual cost of auto insurance is up 42% in the D.C. area, a much higher jump than the national average.
The annual cost of auto insurance is up 26% across the country in 2024, making the national average annual premium $2,543, according to Bankrate’s report.
The survey didn’t analyze the District’s data on its own, but instead grouped the D.C. metro area as a whole. Bankrate analyst Shannon Martin said the average cost of full coverage in the D.C. region is $2,430 a year — up $719 from last year.
In Maryland, the average annual premium is $2,493 and in Virginia it’s $1,975, according to Bankrate.
What’s driving up auto insurance costs?
“Car insurance is reactionary,” Martin said. “When inflation increased the cost of health care supplies, car parts, then there were extreme weather, labor costs, product shortages.”
One reason for rising costs of auto insurance is the uptick in fatal crashes, she said. In 2021, there was over a 10% increase in car crash deaths.
Another factor is the rise in carjackings, specifically in the District. According to a report from Insurify, D.C. residents paid an average of $230 a month for full coverage in 2023 and there were over 900 reported carjackings in the city last year.
Stolen or vandalized cars are covered under comprehensive insurance coverage, which are considered no-fault claims, according to Martin.
“You might not see your insurance premium increase right away,” she said, adding that when it starts happening in one area, then “everyone’s premiums start to go up.”
With all the high-tech safety censors, even a fender bender costs more to repair.
“A bumper isn’t a bumper anymore. You can’t just put it back on with duct tape,” Martin said. “Even small accidents and small acts of vandalism create a lot of expensive damage.”
WTOP’s Tadiwos Abedje contributed to this story.
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