Who Has the Cheapest Auto Insurance Quotes in Maine?

Car insurance rates can differ based on where a driver lives and parks their car, and their choice of insurers in the Pine Tree State. We analyzed auto insurance quotes across 51 cities in Maine, and found that rates can differ by as much as 85% a year - more than $2,360 difference for our sample driver's quotes between the most expensive and lowest cost car insurer. The most expensive place in Maine was Lewiston, where local rates were about 8% above the state average and the cheapest was Presque Isle, where rates were about 10% under the state average. Enter your zip code for a list of insurers near you to start searching for good rates; for more on affordable car insurance in Maine, read below.

Cheapest Auto Insurance in Maine

To find the lowest rates, we obtained quotes from a group of nine car insurance companies in Maine across 51 locations using a benchmark of a sample 30 year old male driver with a good driving record. This research showed that the cheapest five car insurance companies in Maine were found at GEICO, Patriot, Country Way Insurance, Concord, and MetLife.

Most Expensive Auto Insurance Companies in Maine

On the other hand, our profile male motorist found his highest rates at Hanover, which quoted him $3,041 for the same coverage amounts. On a statewide basis, that amounts to a difference between the most expensive and the cheapest insurer of $2,360 for our study's driver.

List of Auto Insurance Companies in Maine

How do the nine insurers surveyed compare against each other in our study? Here is a list of all nine, ranked by their average annual rates from lowest to highest:

Cheapest Car Insurance in Maine: by City

Our study found that the cheapest insurers also vary slightly by where a driver lives. Our benchmark motorists living in the 10 largest Maine cities typically found that the three cheapest insurers are usually GEICO, Patriot, and Vermont Mutual or Country Way. Below is a table illustrating the company and the average insurance rates our study's driver saw, followed by more detailed analysis of cheapest auto insurance companies in each of the five most populated Maine locations:

Portland, ME

The largest city in the Pine Tree State, Portland is home to more than 66,000 residents who have access to many art and historical tourist attractions. The cost of a year of auto insurance coverage for Portland locals was higher than the state average for our benchmark motorists, at $1,173. To find the cheapest auto insurance quotes near you in Portland, we recommend looking into GEICO, Patriot, Country Way Insurance. These insurers quoted on average $770 a year for our sample driver, who had excellent track records on the road.

Lewiston, ME

Lewiston was the #1 most expensive city for car insurance in Maine with an annual average rate of $1,224 for our sample driver - 7% higher than the state mean. Finding the most savings on auto insurance can be as easy as comparing quotes from GEICO, Patriot, and Country Way Insurance. These three carriers had the best car insurance rates in Lewiston. Annual rates from these insurers were as low as $624 a year – nearly 47% less than the Lewiston average for our motorists.

Lewiston is the second largest city in Maine with a population of over 41,000. Its residents can be reached by Interstate 95, U.S. Route 202, Maine State Route 196 and 126. Originally a successful industrial city, Lewistown’s textile industry declined after World War I. In the early 2000s, Lewistown redeveloped its old mills and expanded its business enterprises to regain economic diversification. Lewistown is home to Bates College and the University of Southern Maine Lewiston-Auburn College. The town holds many annual festivals and events. One of them is the Patrick Dempsey Challenge, a fundraiser for cancer research hosted by the actor.

Bangor, ME

We found that the cost of insuring our benchmark drivers' cars came out to be around $896 a year when living in Bangor. To those motorists looking for the lowest auto insurance rates in Bangor, we recommend GEICO, Patriot, and Countryway Insurance based on our research. On average, our male sample driver found insurance coverage to cost around $775 a year with these companies. That is a 31% saving when compared with the city’s mean. A local commercial and cultural hub in northeast Maine, Bangor is the second largest city in the state. 154,000 residents call Bangor home, and the city hosts a number of visitors from the four counties surrounding Penobscot.

South Portland, ME

For our sample motorists, coverage cost around $1,107 a year in South Portland, which was about 3% cheaper than the state’s mean.  Nevertheless, insuring with the cheapest car insurance providers in South Portland could mean as much as $350 of savings each year for those focused on saving money. For the least expensive South Portland auto insurance rates near you, our study results point to GEICO, Patriot, and Country Way Insurance.

Biddeford, ME

With average annual auto insurance rates around $1,131 for our sample motorist, costs here were about the same as the state average.  We recommend drivers looking for affordable car insurance rates to check out quotes from GEICO, Patriot, and Country Way Insurance. These insurers were roughly $400 cheaper than what the typical company charged in Biddeford. One of first sites where European settlers landed, Biddeford's early economy was based on lumber and fishing. Today, the city has recently developed with more growth centered around its downtown revitalization and healthcare industry.

Cost of Car Insurance in Maine: by City

Below is the full list of 51 cities and towns included in our Maine study. They span in costs from $1,039 on the cheapest end to $1,224 on the most expensive end. The cities and towns with the five most affordable car insurance in Maine averaged an annual rate of $1,047 for our driver. On the other hand, the five most expensive places returned an average annual rate of $1,206, a 7% premium above the state average. These cities ranged from college cities to islands to tourist attractions with populations varying from 1,000 to 41,000. 

Best Auto Insurance Companies in Maine

Using the number of complaints filed against a insurer – data collected from the National Auto Insurance Council – we were able to produce the complaint index of 22 auto insurance carriers in Maine. The complaint index compares the company's complaints per dollar of premium against the overall Maine auto insurance industry. An index value of one indicates that a company's complaints are in line with the industry, while a value higher than one means the company is worse than average (the company has a higher ratio of complaints to business versus the market). On the other hand, an index below one means a company is performing better than the average.

How We Conducted the Study

We compared insurance rates for one sample driver - a single 30 year old male with a good driving record – across 51 cities. He owned a 2011 Toyota Camry and drive 12,000 miles a year, mainly to commute to work. He also had a good credit score and great driving record with no accidents or violations in the past five years.

Costs were determined based on a basic liability protection program for the 2011 Camry from insurers like Liberty Mutual, Patriot, and Allstate. The state of Maine requires minimum liability coverage of $50,000 per person, $100,000 for bodily injury per accident, $25,000 for property damage, $50,000 per person, $100,000 for uninsured motorist bodily injury per accident and $2,000 per person in personal injury protection.

Here are all of the cities, presented in alphabetical order from Augusta to York:

Sources:

Maine Minimum Auto Insurance Requirements: http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/statutes/29-A/title29-Asec1605.html

Population Data:http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/23000.html