Minnesota sees nation's sharpest car insurance hikes: Why, and how to save

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Car insurance rates in Minnesota jumped 55 percent over the last year, a dramatic hike higher than those in every other state, according to a report by insurance website Insurify.

The rise is nearly twice the national average, which was 28 percent, according to the report. The average annual cost of full coverage is $2,315, up from $1,492. The report measured a period between June 2023 and June 2024.

The report blamed severe weather for the surge in rates, pointing out the hailstorms in August 2023 that dropped golf- and baseball-size hail on the Twin Cities. Those storms caused 1.8 billion worth of damage, the report said. The uptick in claims cost the insurance companies, which then pass the cost to consumers.

But Andrew Whitman, a former deputy insurance commissioner and professor at the University of Minnesota, said drivers also share the blame.

"People are driving way over the speed limit, and when they crash it totals the car," he said.

Only one other state, Missouri, saw a spike of more than 50 percent.

Whitman said consumers have more options than in years past if they want to switch carriers. He also noted that insurers don’t raise rates higher than necessary to avoid losing business.

"They can go to the market on the web in a way that they couldn’t do a few years ago, and that creates competition," he said. "The insurance companies are not going to increase their premiums any more than they have to because they want to keep their market."

Another way to save money, he said, is to keep your car, since insuring a new one is always more expensive.