Key Takeaways
You can get high-risk car insurance if you cause an accident, file a claim, or get a ticket for a major violation. It's common for bad drivers to pay a lot more for car insurance. How much more you pay depends on your driving record, your insurance company, and the state where you live.
You can expect your car insurance rates to go up if you are found to be at fault for an accident. The average insurance rate after an at-fault accident is $2571, while the average rate across the country is $2022. A big event, like an accident where you were at fault, will stay on your insurance record for up to three years!
| Location | With At-Fault Accident - Annual Rate | No At-Fault Accident - Annual Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | $2571 | $1890 |
| National Average | $2022 | $1410 |
USAA is the best car insurance company in Florida after an accident where you were at fault. After an accident, USAA's rates usually go up by $1,727, which makes their premiums 68% less expensive than the average for all companies. If you were at blame in a Florida accident, stay away from Progressive and Allstate because their rates are higher than the rest.
| Insurance Company | Annual Rate After an At-Fault Crash |
|---|---|
| USAA | $843 |
| State Farm | $1584 |
| Progressive | $3420 |
| Allstate | $3813 |
Most of the time, cars that speed get the "high-risk" tag. After getting a speeding ticket in Florida, your rates will go up by $548 per year, for a total of $2,426 per year.
| State | With a Speeding Ticket - Annual Rate | No Speeding Ticket - Annual Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | $2436 | $1887 |
| National Average | $1737 | $1410 |
If you get a speeding ticket and want to find cheap car insurance, you should look around and compare your choices. USAA has the cheapest car insurance in Florida after getting a speeding ticket. After getting a ticket, USAA's average rate is $1521 less than the state average. Infinity won't be the cheapest choice if you get a ticket for speeding in Florida.
| Insurer | Annual Premium With a Speeding Citation |
|---|---|
| USAA | $1521 |
| State Farm | $1719 |
| Allstate | $3069 |
| Progressive | $3348 |
| Infinity | $5088 |
You will have to pay more for car insurance if you get a ticket for driving while distracted. Car insurance rates usually go up by $309 a year in Florida. That's 16% more than the average Florida yearly rate and 72% more than the average cost of car insurance across the country for someone with a citation for distracted driving.
| Location | With Distracted Driving - Annual Rate | No Distracted Driving - Annual Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | $2187 | $1890 |
| National Average | $1581 | $1410 |
After getting a ticket for texting or driving while busy, the best way to find cheap car insurance is to compare a few different plans. After getting a ticket for reckless driving in Florida, USAA has the cheapest auto insurance. Their average rate is only $771 per year, which is 65% less than the average rate from all insurers.
| Insurer | Annual Rate With Racing |
|---|---|
| USAA | $783 |
| State Farm | $1584 |
| Allstate | $1896 |
| Progressive | $3417 |
Racing is a very serious crime. Car insurance companies usually charge a lot more for people who get racing tickets. In Florida, for example, if you get a racing ticket, your yearly premium goes up by $1,035. The average annual cost of car insurance in Florida has gone up by 55%.
| Location | With a Racing Citation — Annual Rate | No Racing Citation — Annual Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | $2922 | $1887 |
| National Average | $2409 | $1410 |
If you have a race ticket, make sure you do your research and look around for the best deals. USAA has rates that are 48% less than the state average in Florida after a race ticket, so you might want to look into those.
| Insurer | Annual Rate With Racing |
|---|---|
| USAA | $1512 |
| State Farm | $1716 |
| Progressive | $3417 |
| Allstate | $3813 |
When you drive recklessly, you will definitely have to pay more for car insurance. This is one of the worst moving violations you can get. After getting a ticket for risky driving, your car insurance rates go up by $981 a year.
What a difference! That's 52% more than the average Florida car insurance rate and 27% less than the average price increase for a reckless driving ticket in America.
| Location | With Reckless Driving - Annual Rate | No Reckless Driving - Annual Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | $2862 | $1887 |
| National Average | $2406 | $1410 |
If you've been caught driving recklessly, get quotes from several insurance companies to find the best deal. In Florida, USAA is the best insurance company for someone with a reckless driving ticket.
| Insurer | Annual Rate With Racing |
|---|---|
| USAA | $1125 |
| State Farm | $1716 |
| Progressive | $3588 |
| Allstate | $3813 |
The best way to get car insurance as a high-risk driver is to compare policies and choose the one that works best for you.
Florida's traffic rules are there to keep people on the sidewalks and in cars from getting hurt or killed by drivers who are speeding, texting while driving, driving while using a cell phone, or racing. There are also laws in place to make sure drivers have the right insurance before they hit the roads in Florida and to figure out who is at fault in an accident.
In Florida, you are speeding if you are going "greater than is reasonable and prudent under the circumstances and having regard to the actual and potential hazards then existing.
Even if you're going the speed limit, you might need to go slower in some situations. If you go faster than that, you might get a ticket.
It's against the law to speed in Florida if you go faster than:
Some cities and towns may lower the top speed limit to 20 to 25 miles per hour on local roads and residential streets.
In Florida, the slowest speed is 40 miles per hour on interstates with four lines or more.
70 miles per hour on interstates with four lanes or more where the speed limit is 50 miles per hour
In Florida, drivers must slow down to a safer speed when they are approaching:
In Florida, going over the speed limit is a moving violation that can lead to fines like:
If you go over the speed limit by up to five miles per hour in a school zone, you will be fined $50. Driving faster in a school zone or a work zone will get you twice as much of a fine as the ones above.
If you are caught driving 30 miles per hour or more in Florida again within a year of your first conviction, you will have to pay a fine that is twice as much as the first crime.
Driving too fast is a crime in Florida, and anyone caught does get points on their license.
In Florida, reckless driving means driving with "willful and wanton disregard for the safety of persons and property." In Florida, you are also guilty of reckless driving if you try to get away from a police officer in your car.
In Florida, a driver is guilty of aggressive, reckless driving if they do at least two of the following things at the same time or right after each other:
Florida law says that reckless driving is when you don't pay attention to "the width, grade, curves, corners, traffic, and all other attendant circumstances, so as not to endanger the life, limb, or property of any person."
When a driver is first caught driving recklessly in Florida, they are:
If you are found guilty of reckless driving a second time or later in Florida, you will:
If you drive recklessly and hurt someone or damage property, you are also committing a first-degree crime and could face:
If someone gets seriously hurt because of reckless driving, the person who did it is guilty of a third-degree crime and can face:
People who commit major crimes more than once are given harsher punishments.
In Florida, you can get a $100 fine for the first time you drive recklessly or aggressively and between $250 and $500 for each subsequent violation. An individual who commits a second crime will also have to appear in court. People who break the law will also get points on their licenses.
In Florida, the punishment for reckless driving is:
Florida law says that you are distracted when you are driving and your mind is not on the road. Distracted driving includes more than just texting or talking on the phone. It also includes things like eating, grooming, reading, or talking to other people in a way that makes it hard to see, move, or think.
In Florida, you can use portable devices like cell phones to talk to people and find your way around.
Florida doesn't let drivers type or enter more than one character at a time into a gadget by hand or send or receive messages like emails and texts.
In Florida, driving while distracted is a traffic violation, but it is not a crime. In Florida, people who are caught driving while distracted get a non-moving violation and a fine of at least $30, plus more taxes, fines, and court costs.
If you are charged with careless driving again within five years, you will get a moving violation and:
A phone company may ask for a driver's phone records if they are involved in an accident that kills or hurts someone else. This is done to see if the driver was distracted while driving.
In 2019, Florida made major changes to its cellphone driving laws, making it a main offense to use a handheld device while driving. Drivers in Florida are not allowed to have a wireless gadget in their hands while going through a school zone or a construction zone where workers are present.
From January 1, 2020, Florida drivers who break this rule will face the following penalties:
For racing in Florida, using one or more vehicles in a race that starts with a challenge to show which vehicle or driver is better and accepting that challenge, either ahead of time or right away, is racing.
In Florida, racing means that a rival tries to:
Florida law says that drag racing is when two or more cars go "from a point side by side at accelerating speeds in a competitive attempt to outdistance each other."
Drag racing can also include "the operation of one or more motor vehicles over a common selected course, from the same point to the same point, for the purpose of comparing the relative speeds or power of acceleration of such motor vehicle or motor vehicles within a certain distance or time limit."
In Florida, it is also against the law to plan, watch, block traffic, or ride as a passenger in any kind of driving race.
Florida has laws against racing. It is a first-degree crime to race in Florida for the first time, which means:
If you get a second ticket for racing in Florida within five years of your first arrest, it is a first-degree misdemeanor and can lead to:
Racing violations three or more times in Florida within five years of a prior conviction are first-degree felonies that lead to:
Watching a race or drag race is a noncriminal traffic violation that gets you fines and fees as a non-moving violation.
At least in some ways, Florida doesn't punish people who cause car crashes.
In Florida, drivers must keep up with:
People who drive in Florida are not required to have bodily damage liability insurance.
If you are in an accident, PIP insurance will cover you and your guests up to the limits of your policy. If you damage someone else's car, your property damage responsibility will pay for it, but not if you damage your car.
It was an accident in Florida that hurt another driver permanently. That person may be able to sue you for money. This is especially true if the accident happened because:
Significant and lasting loss of a body function that is very important
Permanent harm that is likely to happen within a reasonable range of medical possibilities, excluding scarring or disability
Major scars or disfigurements that won't go away
End of life
A driver can also claim damages if they get hurt in an accident that costs more than their PIP policy covers.
When drivers in Florida are in a crash, they must:
Ask for help for anyone who is hurt.
If the accident caused more than $500 in damage or harm, you should report it to the Florida Highway Patrol or the local police.
When the police arrive at the scene of a crash, everyone involved must show proof of insurance. Not showing proof of insurance is a noncriminal traffic violation that is punished as a non-moving offense. If proof of insurance is shown within 24 hours of the accident, a ticket for not having insurance may be thrown out.
Suppose you do not keep your PIP and property damage liability insurance on your car. In that case, you will get a non-moving traffic ticket and have your license taken away. After getting insurance, the renewal fee is:
Giving a police officer information about outdated insurance on purpose is a first-degree misdemeanor that can lead to fines and even jail time.
In Florida, failing to report an accident is a noncriminal traffic error that can get you fined.
The auto insurance rates published in this guide are based on the results of research completed by Way.com’s data team. Using a mix of public and internal data, we analyzed millions of rate averages across U.S. ZIP codes.
Quotes are typically based on a full coverage policy average unless otherwise noted within the content.
These rates were publicly sourced from insurer filings and should be used for comparative purposes only — your own quotes will differ. Given this, it’s important to go through our insurance steps form to find how much you can save with way.com
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