Geico has the most affordable car insurance rates in Paterson, NJ. Drivers pay just $783 annually, on average. Paterson drivers looking for full coverage can also find the lowest rates with Geico, which charges $1,674 annually.

Paterson is the third-most populous city in New Jersey, which means rates for minimum-coverage auto insurance are higher than average. The statewide average is $979 annually, but Paterson residents pay 52% more — $1,484 per year, on average.

Cheapest for minimum liability

{"eventCategory":"Visual TOC Item","eventLabel":"Cheapest for minimum liability","cloudinaryImageName":"referral_logos\/us\/insurance\/geico-5","link":"#paterson-cheapest-companies","linkText":"Cheapest for minimum liability"}

Cheapest after a DUI

{"eventCategory":"Visual TOC Item","eventLabel":"Cheapest after a DUI","cloudinaryImageName":"referral_logos\/us\/insurance\/plymouthrock-2","link":"#dui","linkText":"Cheapest after a DUI"}

Cheapest auto insurance in Paterson: Geico

Geico has the cheapest rates for auto insurance in Paterson, charging $65 per month on average for minimum coverage. That's 48% cheaper than the state average, which is $124 per month.

Shoppers looking for minimum coverage should also get quotes from Plymouth Rock and NJM. Together, these three insurers have an average premium of $89 per month, saving drivers $35 per month, or $416 per year.

Cheap rates might make minimum coverage sound attractive, but bear in mind that in New Jersey, minimum coverage only pays for the other driver's injuries and property damage, as well as your own injuries. If you get in an accident, your insurer will not cover repairs to your car.

Cheapest full-coverage car insurance in Paterson: Geico

Full coverage costs $2,841 per year on average in Paterson, but drivers can save $1,167 by getting a policy from Geico. On average, full coverage from Geico costs $1,674 annually. State Farm and NJM come in second and third, costing $1,987 and $2,458 per year, respectively.

Full coverage ensures that your own car is protected both on and off the road — not just the other driver's car. It adds collision and comprehensive coverages to the liability coverage and personal injury protection (PIP) that New Jersey law requires.

Cheapest car insurance for drivers with prior incidents

Insurers usually raise rates if you have an accident, DUI or speeding ticket on your record. We identified the cheapest insurers for Paterson drivers who have:

Cheapest car insurance in Paterson after an accident: Geico

Accidents raise rates for full coverage from $2,841 per year to $4,733 per year in Paterson — a 67% increase. Geico is the cheapest insurer for drivers with an at-fault accident. Its annual rate is $2,384, making it $2,349 cheaper than the city average.

Cheapest car insurance for drivers with a speeding ticket: Geico

Paterson drivers pay 17% more on average for auto insurance after a speeding ticket. This makes it the least costly incident in our study. Both accidents and DUIs raise rates by at least 45%.

Drivers in Paterson with a speeding ticket should get quotes from Geico and Plymouth Rock. Neither of these insurers raise rates for full coverage after a speeding ticket, and both charge rates lower than the city average — $1,644 and $1,331 less per year, respectively.

Cheapest car insurance for drivers with a DUI: Plymouth Rock

Plymouth Rock has the best rates for drivers with a citation for driving under the influence (DUI) on their record. The average rate after a DUI in Paterson is $4,131 per year, but Plymouth Rock charges less than half of that — $2,605 per year for full coverage.

Cheapest car insurance for married drivers: Plymouth Rock

Plymouth Rock has the cheapest insurance for married drivers, according to ValuePenguin's analysis. Its average rate is $1,944 per year for full coverage. That's 32% cheaper than the Paterson city average, which is $2,849 for married drivers.

Most insurers offer married drivers lower rates. In fact, in Paterson, auto insurance costs $87 less per year for married drivers than it does for single drivers.

Cheapest car insurance for young drivers: Geico

Rates for young drivers in Paterson underscore the importance of getting multiple quotes. Progressive, the most expensive insurer, is nearly four times more expensive than Geico, the cheapest insurer. The average rate from Geico is $4,263 per year for full coverage — 63% cheaper than the city average.

Insurance companies view young drivers as riskier to insure than adult drivers. A sample 18-year-old driver in Paterson pays $8,650 per year, on average. That's almost three times more than the average rate paid by a 30-year-old sample Paterson driver.

To keep rates low, young drivers should ask their insurer about discounts, such as good student and student-away-from-home discounts. Another option is to stay on your parents' insurance, if possible. ValuePenguin found that it costs half as much for a teen to stay on their parents' policy as it does for them to take out their own policy.

Best auto insurance companies in Paterson, New Jersey

The in-state insurer has strong customer service, according to the J.D. Power customer satisfaction survey, and has a high ValuePenguin editor's rating. Geico, State Farm and Travelers also ranked well.

To learn more about each auto insurer, check out ValuePenguin's study of the best cheap auto insurance in New Jersey.

Auto theft statistics in Paterson

In 2019, Paterson was not only the third-most populous city in New Jersey, but it also had the third-highest rate of auto theft. Our analysis of 2019 FBI crime data showed that about three cars were stolen for every 1,000 residents.

Methodology

Unless otherwise noted, our sample driver was a 30-year-old man with full coverage. He drives a 2015 Honda Civic EX that he owns. We used the following coverage limits for a full-coverage policy:

This ValuePenguin analysis used rate data from Quadrant Information Services. Rates were publicly sourced from insurer filings. Your own quotes may be different, so use these rates for comparative purposes only.