Insure.Com Announces the Most and Least Expensive SUVs & Minivans to Insure

DARIEN, Ill., July 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Packing up the family car for a summer trip? Results from research by Insure.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: NSUR) reveal the most and least expensive SUVs and minivans to insure.

Insure.com calculated average car insurance premiums for almost 300 vehicles, including SUVs and minivans, for model year 2009.

Topping the "most expensive to insure" list for SUVs is the Mercedes-Benz G-Class. With a retail price tag around $100,000, the G-Class is equipped with a standard V8, 382-horsepower engine and a 7-speed automatic transmission with overdrive. Its national average annual premium is $2,088. Compare that to the lowest-premium SUV, the Hyundai Santa Fe, at $832, and you can see how your car choice can deliver a surprising insurance bill.

The most expensive SUVs to insure

AverageSUV

annual

premium

$2,088 Mercedes-Benz G-Class

$1,912 Hummer H2

$1,603 Land Rover Range Rover

$1,584 BMW X6

$1,553 Cadillac Escalade

$1,472 Lexus LX 570

$1,457 Land Rover Range Rover Sport

$1,392 Mercedes-Benz GL-Class

$1,390 Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid

$1,389 Infiniti QX56

The least expensive SUVs to insure

AverageSUV

annual

premium

$832 Hyundai Santa Fe

$840 Kia Sportage

$911 Saturn Vue

$913 Mazda Tribute

$939 Jeep Wrangler

$964 Subaru Forester

$974 Land Rover LR3

$976 Honda Pilot

$976 Jeep Patriot

$977 Hyundai Veracruz

Insure.com's research shows that minivans can be fairly inexpensive to insure and they don't have the wide range of premiums seen with SUVs. The Hyundai Entourage is the least expensive minivan to insure with an average annual premium of $848. The most expensive minivan to insure is the Nissan Quest at an average of $1,021 annually. But the premium difference among the lowest and highest is less than $200.

Average insurance premiums for minivans

AverageMinivan

annual

premium

$1,021 Nissan Quest

$1,008 Volkswagen Routan

$965 Toyota Sienna

$960 Dodge Grand Caravan

$929 Mazda Mazda5

$915 Chrysler Town & Country

$871 Honda Odyssey

$857 Kia Sedona

$848 Hyundai Entourage

The minivan's reputation for being driven by safety-conscious parents hauling kids and groceries, along with safety features, help make them among the cheapest to insure.

Low insurance rates reflect fewer and less-expensive insurance claims from drivers of the vehicles.

"If you're looking to get the lowest car insurance price possible, these rankings can point you in the direction of vehicles that can help you get there," said Amy Danise, editor of Insure.com. "Shopping around is the No. 1 easiest way to lower your rate. Other big factors include maintaining a good driving history and credit record."

The full rankings of average car insurance premiums are available on MSN Money at http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/marketplace/ auto-insurance/insurance-premiums-main.aspx.

Save money no matter what car you drive

Even if you're not in the market for a new car and don't want to change insurance companies, there are ways you can lower your car insurance bill immediately:

-- Trade higher deductibles for lower premiums - but make sure you can

afford your deductible in case you crash your car.

-- Drop collision and comprehensive on older cars, especially vehicles with

low resale value.

-- Make sure you're getting all the discounts to which you're

entitled. Have you recently installed a car alarm, lowered your annual

mileage or even changed jobs? All these could qualify you for a

discount.

-- Buy your home/renters policy and car insurance policy from the same

company, for a multiline discount.

About the rankings: To compare car insurance rates, Insure.com used a driver profile of a 40-year-old single male who drives 12 miles to work with policy limits of 100/300/50 ($100,000 for injury liability for one person, $300,000 for all injuries and $50,000 for property damage in an accident) and a $500 deductible on collision and comprehensive. Policies quoted include uninsured motorist coverage of 100/300. Rates were averaged across multiple ZIP codes and insurance companies. Average rates are for comparative purposes; drivers' own rates will depend on age, driving history, location, discounts and other factors.

See Insure.com's related articles at:

The most and least expensive 2009 SUVs to insure

http://www.insure.com/car-insurance/most-least-expensive-2009- SUV.html

Average insurance premiums for 2009 minivans

http://www.insure.com/car-insurance/most-least-expensive-2009- minivans.html

About Insure.com

Insure.com provides a comprehensive consumer information service and companion insurance brokerage that caters to the needs of self- directed insurance shoppers. Visitors to company's flagship Web site, www.insure.com, are able to obtain free, instant car insurance quotes, instant life insurance quotes, home, business and health insurance quotes from leading insurers and have the freedom to buy online or by phone from any company shown. Insure.com is home to hundreds of originally authored articles on consumer insurance topics and provides free insurance decision-making tools that are not available from any other single source. Insure.com generates revenues from receipt of industry-standard commissions, including back-end bonus commissions and volume-based contingent bonus commissions that are paid by participating insurance companies. Shares of the Company's common stock trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol NSUR. Insure.com was originally founded in 1984 as Quotesmith Corporation.

SOURCE Insure.com, Inc.

Originally published by Insure.com, Inc..