Posted by: John S Kiernan

An auto insurance score is similar to a standard credit score. The main difference is that it’s used to predict how likely you are to file an insurance claim, rather than your odds of not repaying money you’ve borrowed. By analyzing years of data on credit scores and car accidents, insurers have found certain connections between financial misbehavior and motorist mistakes. In other words, people who are less responsible with credit are also more likely to get into accidents. And insurance companies consider such trends when pricing their policies.

But your own driving record has nothing to do with your auto insurance score. Yes, insurers do consider applicants’ driving records in other ways. But your score is just your credit history graded from an insurance perspective. And the more of a red flag your auto insurance score says you are, the higher your monthly premiums will be. You’ll also have a harder time getting approved for a new policy if you try to switch.

So everyone with a car should understand how auto insurance scores work. And that’s especially true if you’re planning to purchase car insurance in the near future. Below, we’ll compare the most common types of auto insurance scores and offer some tips on how to check and improve your ratings.

1. Comparing Common Auto Insurance Scores
2. How To Improve Your Auto Insurance Score

Comparing Common Auto Insurance Scores

Your auto insurance score, like a credit score, is an indicator of your risk. And it plays a role in whether you can get approved for a particular car insurance policy as well as what you wind up paying.

Auto insurance scores are generally based on the same information as credit scores, including your payment history with loans and lines of credit, your credit utilization, and any public records or collections accounts that may be in your name. Unlike a credit score, however, an auto insurance score also takes into account your history with car insurance. This includes your track record paying monthly premiums and information on claims you’ve made in the past.

That’s what the major auto insurance scores have in common. There are differences, though, including what range they use and where their credit data comes from. You can see how the most popular types compare in the table below.

Here are the three major auto insurance scores:

Provider	Auto Insurance Score	Score Range	Credit Report Used	Cost
Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO)	FICO Auto Score 9 XT	250-900	TransUnion	$19.95/mo (Part of FICO Essentials 1B package)
LexisNexis*	LexisNexis® Attract™ Auto Insurance Score	500-997	Equifax	$12.95 (one-time)
TransUnion	CreditVision Auto Score	300-850	TransUnion	Not specified (Website says to contact bureau for more info.)

*Formerly ChoicePoint

How to Get Your Auto Insurance Score

Unlike credit reports, you’re not entitled to any free auto insurance scores. But scores are available for purchase at a cost of $12.95 to $19.95, depending on which you buy.

The good news is you won’t have to purchase them often. You don’t need to track your auto insurance score as closely as your credit score. Doing so before shopping for car insurance is enough.

You may not even have to check it at all. If you’ve always paid all your bills on time and never filed a car insurance claim, for example, it may not be necessary. That’s especially true if you’ve been preapproved for the lowest advertised rates. After all, your auto insurance score is largely tied to your standard credit score.

What Is a Good Auto Insurance Score?

Simply knowing your score isn’t enough. You need to know what it means for your auto insurance payments. And that means you need a benchmark. The tricky thing is each score provider has a different definition of a “good” score.

FICO calls 700+ good. LexisNexis says 776+. And TransUnion doesn’t specify. But higher is always better.

With that being said, individual insurance companies may see things differently. And if a company happens to have high standards, what’s “good” in FICO’s book might not be enough for a good policy.

How to Improve Your Auto Insurance Score

It’s important to again stress the connection between auto insurance scores and credit scores. When your credit score goes up, your auto insurance score usually does, too. And vice versa. For example, people with no credit pay an average of 65% more for car insurance than those with excellent credit. And looking at car costs more broadly, excellent credit will save you more than $6,000 in interest on a five-year car loan, compared to fair credit.

In other words, you should probably check your latest credit score, which you can do for free on WalletHub. Checking out our top credit improvement tips wouldn’t hurt, either.

Get Your Latest Credit Score – 100% Free

But you shouldn’t stop there. There are several things that you can do to improve your auto insurance score. In particular, make sure to:

1. Be as financially responsible as possible. Since your standard credit score heavily affects your auto insurance score, you should be aiming to improve your standard score. This means paying bills on time, having low credit utilization, and making other good choices. To learn about other ways to improve your credit, check out WalletHub’s guide.

2. Be a safe driver. Things like speeding tickets don’t factor into your car insurance score. But your claims do. And that means your ability to avoid accidents has a big impact on your standing. Sure, not all claims come from accidents. And not all accidents are preventable. But adhering to the speed limit and other rules of the road is something that you can control. And not only will it save you money on insurance and fines, but making improvements in this area could also save your life.

3. Stay on top of your credit history. By joining WalletHub for free, you’ll have access to daily-updated versions of your credit score and report, as well as a personalized credit analysis that advises you on how to improve.

At the end of the day, auto insurance scores won’t have as big of an impact on your life as credit scores. But they’re still an important tool that you should know how to use.

 

Image: Nadia Buravleva/Shutterstock

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