Why the Cost of Your Virginia Auto Insurance Climbs the Farther You Go Up I-95

Why the Cost of Your Virginia Auto Insurance Climbs the Farther You Go Up I-95

If you're fortunate enough to call the Western side of Virginia home you probably haven't felt the slap of rising car insurance rates that have struck the east coast. On the other hand, if you happen to live anywhere from Richmond to D.C. you already know just how bad your Virginia auto insurance can be as you travel north-and how much more that insurance costs the closer you get to D.C.

The question is, why? What is it that makes insuring a car along the east coast so much more expensive than the rural west? And why on earth would anyone pay it?

Relative Risk

The only thing you need to understand to acquire an intimate, in-depth understanding of why your auto insurance premiums are what they are is the concept of relative risk. It doesn't matter which Virginia auto insurance company you happen to be doing business with, they're in the business to make a profit right? And they're not going to see the profit margins they want to see if they spend all of their capital on car insurance claims!

Looking at your auto insurance from that angle, consider the concept of relative risk. If you're more likely to get into an accident you're more likely to need to file car insurance claims. If you're more likely to need to file car insurance claims you're more likely to cost your Virginia auto insurance carrier money. And if you're more likely to cost your Virginia auto insurance carrier money you're going to be paying higher auto insurance rates-period.

The Ratio of Highway to Vehicles

I don't know if you've ever had the privilege of driving down I-81, drinking in the natural beauty of western VA, but I can tell you that it's a far cry from the traffic filled streets and constantly whirring traffic that mark most of the space between Richmond and D.C. and gets steadily worse the farther north you go. As a matter of fact, it's something of a miracle if you can manage to live in or around Alexandria and avoid paying a small fortune in deductibles over the course of your tenure!

Not because you're a bad driver, but because there's always so much traffic you really can't help yourself!

When you spend your day (or even your commute) in bumper to bumper traffic you're putting yourself right on the front lines of the traffic wars, and the cost of those wars in car lives is going to cost you over the years. Your Virginia auto insurance company will be the one paying the bill, and they're going to want that investment back in the form of your annual premiums.

The Bottom Line

To put it in plain and simple terms, when you live with a lot of traffic you're going to live with the constant risk of being in an accident, much more so than you would if you spent your day driving down idyllic country roads, and your Virginia auto insurance rates are going to reflect that. The best thing you can do is try and stay one step ahead of the other drivers out there and make sure you (and your car) both get home in one piece.

After you've spent the day on I-95, that's enough of an accomplishment for anyone.

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• Why the Cost of Your Virginia Auto Insurance Climbs the Farther You Go Up I-95 - Sep 16, 2009 - 6:28:03 PM