Car insurance in Wisconsin

Posted on September 26, 2014

In 2016, Wisconsin was, on average, the third least expensive state in which to buy car insurance. Wisconsin residents who purchase auto insurance enjoy lower premiums than vehicle owners in other states. Below is a summary of helpful info regarding rates and coverage for Wisconsin car insurance. This information will help Wisconsin drivers customize an affordable auto insurance package.

Wisconsin Minimum Liability Coverage

In compliance with Wisconsin laws, all drivers must prove the ability to pay for damages if found to be at fault in an accident. Drivers are offered a choice of either purchasing liability insurance or placing a cash deposit of $60,000 with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. This is a sneaky way of getting all drivers to buy auto insurance, even though the state doesn’t demand it.

In Wisconsin, the state-mandated minimum coverage requirement is 25/50/10 per vehicle. This means that a driver must purchase no less than $25,000 in coverage for personal injury protection (PIP), $50,000 in coverage against total injury per accident, and $10,000 in coverage against property damage. Also recommended is UMI coverage, which protects a driver against other drivers who are uninsured or leave the scene of an accident.

Penalties for Driving Without Insurance in Wisconsin

Drivers of uninsured vehicles in the state of Wisconsin face fines of up to five thousand dollars and a suspended license if an accident occurs. The license is revoked, and the driver must then show proof of insurance when reinstating their driver’s license. According to Top50States.com, the state of Wisconsin has a relatively low percentage of uninsured vehicles on the road.

Auto Insurance Rates in Wisconsin

The average annual car insurance premium for drivers in Wisconsin was $912 in 2016. Compare this to the overall national average of $1,347. Wisconsin had the third lowest average annual car insurance premiums of all U.S. States in 2016. This is partly because Wisconsin follows a “tort” system, which is the opposite of a no-fault system. So, benefits are paid only by the insurance company covering the driver who is at fault. Premiums tend to run lower in tort states than in no-fault states. Another plausible reason is Wisconsin’s relatively low population density.

Low Cost Car Insurance Programs in Wisconsin

There are many auto insurance companies at your disposal, but Erie Car Insurance is a regional favorite, known to offer safe driver discounts, senior citizen discounts, good student discounts, vehicle safety discounts, anti theft device discounts, multi auto discounts, multi policy discounts and more. Most car insurance carriers offer these discounts. You can lower your premiums by asking about and applying for every possible auto insurance discount.

Obtaining Auto Insurance Quotes in Wisconsin

Some Wisconsin drivers opt for Erie Insurance, American Family Insurance, Indianhead Insurance and Wisconsin Mutual. Others prefer big-names like Allstate, Geico, Met Life, Travelers, Farmers, Nationwide, Progressive, State Farm and Liberty Mutual. Either way, call many companies to comparison shop. Remember to ask about their discounts. Compare numerous free online quotes. Then simply select the least expensive premium package available to you.

Wisconsin Car Insurance

This page is fully loaded with facts and data pertaining to Wisconsin car insurance.

Included herein is a wealth of income data, driver statistics, population info, and average car insurance quotes for the state of Wisconsin, as well as for individual zip codes. Find out how to cut the cost of premium rates on auto insurance policies in Wisconsin. Learn about the discounts available to Wisconsin drivers. Scan a list of the largest car insurance companies in Wisconsin. Read about the types of car insurance Wisconsin drivers need. Peruse a collection of wacky Wisconsin traffic laws.

This page also lists the four highest priced and the four lowest priced (on average) zip codes in the state of Wisconsin to buy car insurance. You will notice that car insurance premium rates will vary not only between states, but also between zip codes within the same state. Reasons for this are provided below.

Scroll down to learn all you need to know about Wisconsin car insurance.

Wisconsin Car Insurance Statistics

A 2016 population estimate ranks the state of Wisconsin 20^th among states, with nearly 5.8 million people living here. Roughly 600,000 of the residents of Wisconsin (more than 10 percent) live in Milwaukee, the largest city in Wisconsin. The entire city of Milwaukee has a population density of about 6,188 people per square mile.

The median resident age of the people who live in the state of Wisconsin is approximately 39.4 years.

The average poverty rate for the state of Wisconsin is roughly 12.1 percent, a comfortable margin below the United States average poverty rate of 13.5 percent. The rate of unemployment in Wisconsin is 3.4 percent, again a comfortable margin below the national average unemployment rate of 4.4 percent. Wisconsin has a relatively strong, stable economy.

Recently, the Insurance Research Council ran a study concluding that about 11.7 percent of drivers in the state of Wisconsin are driving uninsured vehicles. Wisconsin is about average among states in terms of the percentage of uninsured drivers on the road. Nonetheless, more than one in nine vehicles in the state of Wisconsin is uninsured.

Drivers in Wisconsin sometimes want to know the statewide “average” annual premium rate for a Wisconsin car insurance policy. However, statewide averages are not useful in calculating your premium rates on car insurance. This is mainly because these statewide averages are based on fictional American drivers. Even if you fit the chosen demographics, your premium rates on car insurance will still depend on which Wisconsin zip code you live in.

In any case, the statewide “average” annual premium rate for an auto insurance policy purchased in the state of Wisconsin was about $908 last year. This made Wisconsin the 7^th cheapest state in the nation to buy car insurance, on average. The national average car insurance premium was about $1,224 at that time.

The Largest Wisconsin Car Insurance Companies

The ten largest car insurance companies in the United States are Allstate Insurance, State Farm Insurance, Geico, Progressive Insurance, Nationwide Group, AAA, Liberty Mutual Insurance, 21^st Century Insurance, GMAC, and AIG, in that order. In this study, car insurance companies were simply ranked in terms of the dollar amount of premiums written annually. This gave researchers an indication of each insurance company’s market share.

Shown below is a list of the ten largest car insurance companies in Wisconsin, in terms of each company’s total revenue within the state of Wisconsin.

Rank	Company	Premiums ($)	Market Share (%)
1	American Family Insurance Group	$518,471	20.42
2	Progressive Insurance Group	$405,739	15.98
3	State Farm Group	$345,618	13.61
4	Berkshire Hathaway Insurance	$99,126	3.9
5	Allstate Insurance Group	$97,349	3.83
6	Acuity A Mutual Insurance	$93,461	3.68
7	Farmers Insurance Group	$80,733	3.18
8	West Bend Mutual Insurance	$75,148	2.96
9	Liberty Mutual Insurance	$66,099	2.6
10	Auto Club Group	$49,273	1.94

By far, the three biggest insurance companies in the state of Wisconsin are American Family Insurance, Progressive Insurance, and State Farm. Still, there are many other major Wisconsin car insurance companies out there, as well as quite a few smaller, regional carriers that serve the area. Obviously, there is no such thing as The One Best Wisconsin Car Insurance Company.

Cutting Costs on Wisconsin Car Insurance

As mentioned, Wisconsin is one of the cheapest states in America to buy car insurance. Yet, drivers in Wisconsin can reduce their car insurance rates even further. All they need to do is get a few online quotes for Wisconsin car insurance from various car insurance websites, before deciding which company to choose. You can even obtain quotes for several Wisconsin zip codes in your area, using your own personal information. Doing research in this way might take just a little bit more time, but it can save Wisconsin drivers hundreds of dollars a year on Wisconsin car insurance.

Drivers in Wisconsin (and across the USA) should also read at least a few recent consumer reviews of local car insurance carriers. Auto insurance companies are competitive, and they all have slightly different areas of expertise. Also, each car insurance company has its own set of deals and discounts.

Of course, all car insurance companies receive complaints. What’s worse, all car insurance companies get sued every now and then. However, analyzing the content of independent car insurance company reviews should give you some idea of the trustworthiness of a particular car insurance company.

Once you’ve selected your favorite auto insurance companies, Wisconsin drivers only need to compare car insurance quotes across several zip codes, and from several different Wisconsin car insurance carriers. Doing this will surely save you money on Wisconsin car insurance rates.

What Types Of Car Insurance Do Wisconsin Drivers Need?

The required minimum liability for car insurance in the state of Wisconsin is $25,000 in bodily injury protection for each person injured, $50,000 in bodily injury liability for each accident, and $10,000 in coverage against the cost of property damage.

Also required are the same liability limits for uninsured motorist insurance (UMI). Underinsured motorist protection is optional, although it is probably a good idea, since the minimum liability limits in the state of Wisconsin are too low to cover the costs of most accidents.

That’s why insurance experts throughout the United States suggest that drivers in Wisconsin (as well as in all other states) buy higher than the minimum car insurance coverage required by state law. Experts recommend coverage amounts of $100,000 for personal injury liability protection, $300,000 coverage against bodily injury to others, and at least $50,000 to cover the cost of property damage.

Wisconsin drivers may also choose higher levels of car insurance, such as comprehensive and collision coverage. Among other things, Wisconsin winters can be very unforgiving. Comprehensive and collision insurance will cover the cost of auto repairs due to damage caused by hail storms and icy roads, as well as by collisions, animal strikes, falling objects, fires, floods, vandalism, and car theft, to name a few.

Outdated Wisconsin Traffic Laws

In Wisconsin, it is illegal to camp in a wagon on any public highway. Anyone caught doing so will be fined ten dollars.
In Wisconsin, livestock have the right of way on public roads.
In Sun Prairie, it is illegal to ride a bicycle with your hands not touching the handlebars.
In Hudson, it is illegal to sit on a parked vehicle without the owner’s consent.
In La Crosse, it is illegal to tie up your horse along Third Street (a street now known for its endless array of bars).
In Milwaukee, it is illegal to park for more than two hours unless a horse is tied to the car.

Best And Worst Zip Codes For Wisconsin Car Insurance

There exists a wide range of premium rates on auto insurance between the zip codes in the state of Wisconsin. Premium rates in Milwaukee are pretty much double the rates in cheaper parts of the state. Car insurance premiums are affected by variables like population density, unemployment rates, median incomes, median resident age, and crime stats, among other factors that change as zip codes change, even within the same state.

Not too long ago, we ran a quotes comparison study of zip codes in Wisconsin. Annual premium rates in the most expensive zip codes in Wisconsin can be as low as around $1,080, or as high as around $1,860. Of course, the four most expensive zip codes in the state of Wisconsin are all located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin’s largest city.

Zip Code	Pop Density	Unemployed %	Poverty %
53206 (Milwaukee)	9,905	24.70%	47.50%

This zip code is home to nearly 27,000 people. Population density is high, unemployment is nearly eight times the state average, and almost half of this neighborhood lives at or below the poverty line. The median resident age in this urban zip code is about 29.3 years, more than a decade younger than the state average. These are all solid reasons why this zip code is the priciest zip code for Wisconsin car insurance.

Zip Code	Pop Density	Unemployed %	Poverty %
53205 (Milwaukee)	7,143	28.50%	45.10%

This neighborhood has a population of about 10,000. The median resident age here is about 27.2 years, more than a dozen years younger than the state average of 39.4 years. Unemployment in this neighborhood is more than eight times the state average of 3.4 percent. Likewise, the poverty rate skyrockets above the 12.1 percent state average.

Zip Code	Pop Density	Unemployed %	Poverty %
53212 (Milwaukee)	7,801	14.70%	38.40%

Almost 32,000 people live in this Milwaukee-Glendale neighborhood. The median resident age in this zip code is approximately 29.9 years, nearly a decade younger than the state average. Population density is high. The poverty and unemployment rates are way above the state average.

Zip Code	Pop Density	Unemployed %	Poverty %
53203 (Milwaukee)	2,632	2.20%	17.90%

This tiny zip code spans less than half a square mile, and is home to fewer than 1,200 residents. The population density is average, and unemployment falls way below the 3.4 percent state average. Poverty is a little on the high side in this neighborhood.

Compare the information shown above to the list that appears below. This is a list of the four least expensive zip codes (on average) in the state of Wisconsin to buy car insurance. Annual premium rates in these neighborhoods can be anywhere from less than $600 to more than $1,350.

Zip Code	Pop Density	Unemployed %	Poverty %
54136 (Kimberly)	3,048	5.30%	7.30%

Kimberly is a town of roughly 6,000 people in Outagamie County. Unemployment is slightly high in this neighborhood, but the poverty rate is quite lower than the state average of 12.1 percent.

Zip Code	Pop Density	Unemployed %	Poverty %
54302 (Green Bay)	3,261	8.20%	21.60%

This Brown County neighborhood has a population exceeding 31,000. The unemployment rate and the poverty rate are both over the state average, but not by a lot. The population density is moderate here.

Zip Code	Pop Density	Unemployed %	Poverty %
54301 (Allouez)	3,357	6.60%	13.80%

In this zip code of almost 22,000 people, the population density is average. Unemployment is above the state average, but not by enough to cause alarm. Also, the poverty rate is just slightly above the state average.

Zip Code	Pop Density	Unemployed %	Poverty %
54952 (Menasha)	929	4.90%	11.00%

Menasha is a town of about 26,000 people. Population density is quite low here, and the poverty rate falls below the 12.1 percent state average. Unemployment is only slightly higher than the 3.4 percent state average.

Altogether, the state of Wisconsin is home to 893 zip codes that span 72 counties containing 752 cities, from Abbotsford to Wisconsin Rapids and every town in between. There is a broad range in rates between the cheapest zip codes and the most expensive zip codes for Wisconsin car insurance.

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