Franklin County woman Kimberly Myers says she’s rarely behind the wheel of her paid-off 2016 Honda. Yet, it hasn’t stopped her insurance premium from increasing 44%.
This March, her plan went from $163 a month to $235 dollars.
“I was pretty surprised,” said Myers. “I work from home. I’m a corporate accountant. I’m 46. I have no history of major accidents on anything,” she explained.
Looking closer at national trends, she’s not alone.
Chase Gardner, Data Insight Manager for Insurify, says their annual state of auto insurance report shows a 24% hike.
“For people to see that for the average American, it’s really gone up hundreds and hundreds of dollars over the course of just one year; That’s a big difference,” said Gardner.
Their data from more than 70 top insurers shows Kentuckians may be feeling the impact even more than some other states.
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The average amount paid in 2023 was $2,348, an increase of 16% from 2022 to 2023 but representing a larger portion of the average income.
It accounted for an estimated 4.1% of the state’s median household income of $57,556 compared to the nationwide 2.5% average.
“Which does make Kentucky one of the 15 most expensive states for car insurance,” said Gardner.
With Kentucky’s median household income being lower than the national average, people in the Commonwealth are spending more of their money on insurance.
“For something that is essential but for something that- it’s not like their coverage is changing or their coverage is getting greater. They’re essentially just paying more and more money for the same service,” said Gardner.
Inflation has also caused an increase in other goods that Kentuckians have to factor into their budgets.
Experts like Gardner say it’s directly related to the increase in car accidents and the cost of car parts for repairs.
The consumer price index reports the cost of vehicle maintenance and repairs rose about 20% for most customers in 2023.
States do have to approve price increase requests from insurers.
Following the current trend, Insurify predicts the average cost of car insurance will continue to rise in 2024.
Based in New York, Stephen Freeman is a Senior Editor at Trending Insurance News. Previously he has worked for Forbes and The Huffington Post. Steven is a graduate of Risk Management at the University of New York.