Average Cost of Car Insurance in Virginia: What Drivers Pay Per Month and What Drives Your Quote

Virginia's average expenditure on car insurance was $949.48 per insured vehicle per year in 2022, or about $79.12 a month, according to the NAIC 2022 Auto Insurance Database (opens in a new tab), the latest state data available. A policy with liability, collision and comprehensive together averaged $1,055.30 a year, or about $87.94 a month, which was below the national combined average of $1,258.10. The monthly figures are simple division, not monthly prices. These are statewide averages, not quotes. Your own price depends on the coverage, limits and deductibles you choose, your vehicle, where it's garaged, who drives it, driving records and other rating factors.

What the Virginia averages include

The NAIC publishes two different averages, and they answer different questions. Average expenditure is total written premium for liability, collision and comprehensive divided by the number of insured car-years for liability. It assumes every insured vehicle carries liability, but not every vehicle carries collision or comprehensive, so it works as an estimate of what drivers spend across all insured vehicles. Combined average premium adds the three coverage-specific averages together, so it represents a policy that carries all three coverages.

These figures aren't minimum-coverage or full-coverage quotes. "Full coverage" isn't a category in the NAIC data, and the averages mix voluntary and residual-market business. They don't separate limits, deductibles, vehicle characteristics, policyholder classifications, demographics, traffic conditions or legal differences between states, according to the NAIC (opens in a new tab). Treat them as a reference point, and compare your own quotes using identical limits, deductibles, vehicles and drivers.

How Virginia compares with neighboring states and the national average

Virginia's 2022 combined average premium of $1,055.30 was $202.80 below the national figure of $1,258.10, about 16.1% lower. Its average expenditure was lower than every neighboring jurisdiction in the NAIC data and below the national average expenditure of $1,126.94.

Ordered from highest to lowest average expenditure, Virginia ranked 32nd of the 51 jurisdictions listed, which include Washington, D.C., according to the Insurance Information Institute's table of the NAIC data (opens in a new tab). The NAIC cautions against reading too much into state-to-state differences, because coverage choices, limits, deductibles, laws, traffic and demographics vary. Our articles on the average cost of car insurance in Maryland and the average cost of car insurance in DC cover those two neighbors.

What changed in Virginia on January 1, 2025

Virginia raised its minimum liability limits for policies effective on or after January 1, 2025. Under Va. Code § 46.2-472 (opens in a new tab) and the Virginia DMV's insurance requirements page (opens in a new tab), the limits are:

The 2022 averages above come from before the change, so they reflect the 30/60/20 floor. If your renewal moved from the old limits to the new ones, ask your agency how the required limit change affected your quoted premium. Our article on Virginia car insurance requirements covers the full set of rules, including uninsured motorist coverage.

Why your quote can differ from the average

Two Virginia drivers can get very different prices for the same car because insurers rate each policy on its own facts. The Virginia SCC's Teenager's Guide to Auto Insurance (opens in a new tab) lists driving record, age, sex, where the driver lives, and the vehicle's age and type, especially when collision and comprehensive are bought.

The SCC's Virginia Auto Insurance Consumer Guide (opens in a new tab) adds more:

• The vehicle's age and actual cash value.
• The deductibles you choose.
• Mileage and commuting distance.
• Pleasure-only use and carpooling.
• Accidents and violations.
• The driving records of people who live in your household.
• Approved driver education or defensive-driving courses.
• Vehicle safety and anti-theft features.
• Credit-based insurance scoring.

Deductibles apply to physical-damage coverage such as collision and comprehensive. Raising one can change the premium for that coverage, but it doesn't change Virginia's required liability limits. Location also matters. Territory is a rating factor, so a quote in Northern Virginia, Richmond, Hampton Roads or a rural county can differ for the same driver and car. To see what your area costs, ask for quotes at your own garaging address using the same coverage choices.

How Virginia insurers can use credit information

Insurers in Virginia may use credit information for rating or underwriting, with limits, according to the SCC's guide to credit scoring for home and auto insurance (opens in a new tab). Certain factors can't be used to evaluate credit information, including income, gender, address, ZIP code, ethnic group, race, color, religion, marital status, nationality, insurance inquiries, inquiries you didn't start, medical-industry accounts and information shown as disputed.

An insurer may not nonrenew a policy solely because of a credit report. If credit information leads to an adverse action, the insurer must give the required notice and either tell you the principal characteristics it used or tell you that you can ask for them. Our article on whether credit score affects car insurance explains credit-based insurance scores in general.

What a new or young driver does to the price

Adding a newly licensed driver can change a household's premium. Insurers may factor in the driving record of any driving-age person who lives in the insured household, according to the Virginia DMV (opens in a new tab). A company can't refuse coverage solely because an applicant is young, but it can charge based on the rating factors in its filed rules, according to the SCC's Teenager's Guide (opens in a new tab).

The SCC lists discounts and rating considerations that may apply:

• Good students, usually with a B average or above.
• Completing driver education or a defensive-driving course.
• Approved accident-prevention courses for drivers 55 and older.
• Multi-policy discounts.
• Anti-theft devices, airbags and automatic seat belts.
• Pleasure-only use, a short commute or carpooling.
• Driving fewer than 7,500 miles a year.
• No accidents or violations.

Which of these an insurer offers, and how much each one changes the price, varies by company. Ask each agency which discounts it applied and what documents it needs to apply them.

How tickets, accidents and DMV points affect your premium

Insurers can raise premiums for accidents where you, a household member or a customary driver of your car was wholly or partly at fault, and for convictions on an insured driver's record. The increase may apply for 36 months, according to the SCC's consumer guide (opens in a new tab).

DMV demerit points are a separate system. When a court reports a conviction, DMV posts it to your record and assigns demerit points based on the offense, and those points stay on the record for two years from the offense date, according to the DMV's page on moving violations and point assessments (opens in a new tab). The conviction itself can stay longer, depending on how serious it is. Insurance companies develop their own points or surcharges under their filed rating rules, separate from DMV's.

Before you shop, you can request your driving record from DMV (opens in a new tab) online, by mail with Form CRD-93 or at a customer service center. A Driver/Insurance record covers up to five years, and a Driver/Personal Use record covers up to eleven years. Knowing what's on your record helps you check whether a quote was rated on accurate information.

How to compare Virginia quotes fairly

Give every insurer or agency the same description of the drivers, vehicles, use and coverage you want, as the SCC's consumer guide (opens in a new tab) advises. Then compare the same items side by side:

• Drivers and household residents.
• Vehicles and how they're used.
• Liability limits.
• Optional coverages.
• Collision and comprehensive deductibles.
• Policy term.
• Payment schedule.
• Agency or membership fees.
• Discounts.

Ask whether each premium covers six months or a full year, whether installment or premium-finance charges apply, and whether the agent charges any added fees. A six-month price set beside a twelve-month price makes one quote look half as expensive as it is. The SCC's shopping tips (opens in a new tab) cover more questions to ask, and our article on how to switch car insurance explains timing a change so there's no gap.

If you finance your car, a policy the lender buys on its own, called force-placed coverage, generally protects the lender and doesn't satisfy DMV's minimum liability requirement, according to the SCC (opens in a new tab). Your own liability policy still has to be in force.

Before you share documents, look up the agent or agency in the SCC's Producer, Navigator and Company Search Engine (opens in a new tab). You can search by agent, agency, license number, NPN, location, insurance type or license type. To complain about an insurer or agent, use the SCC's insurance complaint portal (opens in a new tab) or its property and casualty complaint form. The Bureau of Insurance asks for supporting documents and gives you a complaint number after you submit.

What happens if your coverage lapses

A lapse costs more than the missed premium. If liability coverage on a registered vehicle ends or is canceled during the registration period, you must reinsure the vehicle, deactivate the license plates or permanently surrender them, according to the Virginia DMV (opens in a new tab). DMV verifies insurance electronically, and owners of uninsured vehicles have their driving and registration privileges suspended.

To be reinstated, the owner pays a $600 noncompliance fee, files an SR-22 certificate with DMV for three years and pays a reinstatement fee if one applies. Eligible owners can pay the fee over time through a payment plan. Paying a fee to drive uninsured is no longer an option, because Virginia ended the uninsured motor vehicle fee on July 1, 2024, according to the DMV (opens in a new tab).

Questions to ask an agent about price

• Is this premium for six months or twelve months?
• Are the limits and deductibles the same as in the other quotes I'm comparing?
• Which drivers and household residents are included?
• What vehicle use, mileage, commute and garaging address did you use?
• Which accidents, violations or driving-record entries affected the price?
• Was credit-based insurance scoring used?
• Which discounts were applied, and what documents do you need?
• How does the price change with a different deductible?
• What fees, installment charges, membership charges or premium-finance charges apply?
• Which coverages are required, which are optional, and what does each one cover?
• Does the quote reflect Virginia's 2025 liability limits?
• What happens if a payment is late or the policy is canceled?
• Is the agent or agency licensed for this line of insurance?
• Where can I check the insurer's financial-strength and complaint information?
• Can you give me the quote and its assumptions in writing?

For the insurer's complaint record, the NAIC Consumer Insurance Search (opens in a new tab) lets you look up companies. Riskado's directory lists insurance agencies across the US, including Virginia, by city and by category.

Frequently asked questions

How much is car insurance per month in Virginia?

Virginia's 2022 average expenditure of $949.48 a year works out to about $79.12 a month, and the combined average premium of $1,055.30 works out to about $87.94 a month, based on the NAIC data (opens in a new tab). Those are mathematical equivalents of annual averages. Your actual payment depends on your policy term, payment plan and any installment charges.

Is there a Virginia average for full coverage?

The closest NAIC figure is the combined average premium of $1,055.30 a year for a policy with liability, collision and comprehensive. "Full coverage" isn't a standard category in the NAIC data, so compare quotes built with the same limits and deductibles.

How long can an accident or ticket affect my Virginia premium?

Premium increases for at-fault accidents and convictions may apply for 36 months, according to the SCC (opens in a new tab). DMV demerit points are a separate system and stay on your record for two years from the offense date.

Can a Virginia insurer use my ZIP code to evaluate my credit?

No. ZIP code and address are among the factors an insurer can't use to evaluate credit information, according to the SCC's credit scoring guide (opens in a new tab). Where you live can still be a separate rating factor for the policy itself.

Turning the average into your own number

Start with your DMV driving record and a list of every driver and vehicle in your household. Decide which limits, optional coverages and deductibles you want quoted, then ask each agency for the same policy term and payment schedule, with every fee and discount in writing. Check the agency's license with the SCC before you send documents. Then set the quotes side by side, item by item, and use the statewide average only as a rough reference point.