Does Credit Score Affect Car Insurance: How Insurers Use It, Which States Limit It, and What You Can Do

Yes, credit information can affect car insurance in many states, but the practice is not universal. Insurers that use it generally rely on a credit-based insurance score, which differs from the credit score lenders use, according to the NAIC (opens in a new tab). The insurance score is designed to predict the likelihood of an insurance loss and can be weighed alongside driving history, claims history, vehicle information, location and other rating factors. State law decides what an insurer can do. Some states allow regulated use of credit information with disclosure and consumer protections, while others prohibit it or limit it sharply. If an insurer takes adverse action based partly on a credit report, federal law gives you notice and report-dispute rights.

Is an insurance score the same as your credit score?

No. A traditional credit score is designed mainly to predict whether a borrower will repay a loan. A credit-based insurance score is a number or rating built partly or entirely from credit-history information and designed to estimate the likelihood of an insurance loss, per the NAIC (opens in a new tab).

Scoring companies and insurers use different models and weights. As one example, a FICO insurance score draws on five categories: payment history at 40%, outstanding debt at 30%, credit history length at 15%, pursuit of new credit at 10% and credit mix at 5%, according to the NAIC's consumer explanation (opens in a new tab). Those percentages are one scoring company's general categories, and another model can weigh the same information differently.

Credit also plays a different job at different stages. Underwriting is the decision about whether to offer a policy and on what terms. Rating is the decision about what premium to charge and which tier you fall into. When you ask an insurer or agent about credit, ask which of those it touched.

Credit is one input among several. Claims history and driving record are separate rating factors, and a credit issue does not show up on either one.

Can credit affect your car insurance in your state?

It depends on where the vehicle is insured. California, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon and Utah are states with bans on certain uses, according to the NAIC (opens in a new tab), and each state's own regulator shows a different scope. The rules from state statutes and regulator pages:

• Massachusetts: private-passenger auto insurers cannot refuse to issue or renew a policy based on credit information, and they cannot file private-passenger auto rates based on it, under Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 175, § 4E (opens in a new tab).
• Maryland: credit can be used for a new auto policy under restrictions. It cannot raise a renewal premium, a credit-based surcharge cannot exceed 40%, and lack of credit history, credit inquiries and factors older than five years are off limits. You can request one credit recheck per policy period, according to the Maryland Insurance Administration (opens in a new tab).
• Oregon: credit history can be used with restrictions. A consumer can request rerating once a year, and the rerating cannot increase the premium, according to the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation (opens in a new tab) (April 4, 2024). ORS 746.650(5) and OAR 836-080-0438 set the notice requirements, and the statutes are in ORS chapter 746 (opens in a new tab).
• Connecticut: credit can be used in personal-risk insurance only under statutory conditions in Conn. Gen. Stat. § 38a-686 (opens in a new tab), and an insurer cannot decline, cancel or nonrenew a covered policy based solely on credit history, credit rating or lack of credit history under § 38a-688b (opens in a new tab).
• Nevada: many personal auto insurers use credit-based insurance scoring, and an insurer that does must update the score at the request of the policyholder or agent, according to the Nevada Division of Insurance (opens in a new tab).
• Michigan: insurance scores based wholly or partly on credit are subject to MCL 500.2111(4), and restrictions apply to auto rating factors, according to the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services (opens in a new tab). Michigan is not a total ban.
• Utah: insurers can use credit information and insurance scores, subject to applicable law and filed practices, according to the Utah Insurance Department (opens in a new tab). Utah is not a total ban.

Other states have their own rules, and statutes change. Confirm the rule for your vehicle's state with that state's insurance department before relying on a summary, this one included.

How much can credit matter?

No universal premium percentage applies to every driver, insurer or state, and credit does not move every premium by a set amount.

Some dated figures give context. FICO estimated that about 95% of auto insurers used credit-based insurance scores in states where the practice was legally allowed, according to NAIC material (opens in a new tab) updated March 19, 2026. That estimate measures how common the practice is, and it says nothing about what it does to any one premium. Maryland's 40% cap on credit-based surcharges is a legal limit, not an average effect.

The other state rules above set conditions rather than a percentage. The way to find out whether credit affected your quote is to ask the insurer.

What protections can state law add?

Where a state allows credit in auto insurance, its law can attach conditions. The state rules above show the common types:

• Filing and disclosure. The insurer files its credit program with the state regulator and tells applicants that credit may be used, as Connecticut requires.
• Renewal limits. In Maryland, credit cannot raise a renewal premium.
• Rechecks and rerating. Maryland allows one credit recheck per policy period, Oregon allows a rerate once a year that cannot increase the premium, and Nevada requires an insurer to update the score on request.
• Off-limits information. Maryland bars lack of credit history, credit inquiries and factors older than five years. Other states bar items such as a particular card type, total available credit or medical collection accounts.
• Notices. An adverse action based partly on a credit report must say so and explain your rights, under federal law and, in some states, state law as well.

Ask the insurer or agent which of these apply in the state where your vehicle is insured, and confirm with that state's insurance department (opens in a new tab).

An extraordinary life circumstance is an event that hurt your credit, such as catastrophic illness or injury, divorce, the death of a spouse, child or parent, involuntary unemployment lasting more than three consecutive months, identity theft, or a loss that makes the home uninhabitable. Some states let you ask an insurer to take such an event into account. In Connecticut, for example, the event must fall within the three years before you applied, and the insurer can ask for reasonable written documentation (Bulletin PC-69 (opens in a new tab)). To raise one, contact the insurer or agent and name the circumstance.

What happens after an adverse action?

If an insurer takes adverse action based partly or wholly on a consumer report, the notice must name the consumer reporting agency that supplied the report and give its contact information. The notice must also state that the agency did not make the decision, and it must explain your right to a free copy of the report and your right to dispute inaccurate or incomplete information, according to the CFPB (opens in a new tab) and the FTC's Fair Credit Reporting Act text (opens in a new tab).

The free report comes from the agency named in the notice, and you generally need to request it within 60 days of the notice, according to the FTC (opens in a new tab). You can also request reports from the three nationwide credit reporting companies through AnnualCreditReport.com (opens in a new tab).

What information can be used?

Payment history, outstanding debt, length of credit history, pursuit of new credit and credit mix are the categories commonly used in a FICO credit-based insurance score. Under the NAIC's consumer material (opens in a new tab), a credit-based insurance score cannot use:

• Race, color or national origin
• Religion
• Gender
• Marital status
• Age
• Income, occupation or employment history
• Location of residence
• Interest rate charged
• Child or family support obligations or rental agreements
• Certain account-review, employment and promotional inquiries
• Participation in credit counseling

State rules can add to that list, as the off-limits information described above shows.

What can you ask an agent?

Bring these to an agent or the insurer:

• Does this insurer use credit information for auto insurance in this state?
• Is credit used for eligibility, rate tier, premium, a discount or something else?
• Is the information from a credit report, an insurance score or both?
• Which consumer reporting agency supplied it?
• Did credit affect this quote or policy, and was the decision based on credit alone or with other factors?
• Which adverse-action notice applies, and how can I get the report or score-related information?
• Can I request a rerate or rescore, and when can credit be reviewed again?
• What documentation does an extraordinary life circumstance need?
• Does this state restrict credit use at renewal?
• What happens to the policy if a payment is missed or coverage lapses while this is being resolved?

What if your credit report is wrong, or a life event changed your credit?

Start with the report. Follow the CFPB's dispute steps (opens in a new tab):

1. Identify the inaccurate or incomplete item.
2. Dispute it with each reporting company that shows the error.
3. Dispute it with the company that supplied the information.
4. Explain what is wrong and why.
5. Include copies of supporting documents, never originals, and keep copies of everything you send.
6. Ask the insurer whether it will reconsider or rerate once the report is corrected.

The company that supplied the information generally must investigate and respond within 30 days, and the reporting company must investigate and report the result, per the CFPB. More on free reports is available from the FTC (opens in a new tab).

If a divorce, illness, job loss or identity theft hit your credit, ask about the extraordinary-life-circumstance process in your state. A corrected report or a documented life event can lead an insurer to reconsider, and what the insurer decides, including the premium, is its call.

Checklist after an adverse-action notice

• Read the notice and identify the reporting agency.
• Request the free report within 60 days if applicable.
• Check the report for inaccurate or incomplete information.
• Dispute errors with the reporting company and the information furnisher.
• Ask the insurer whether it will reconsider or rerate.
• Document any extraordinary life circumstance.
• Ask an agent how credit affected eligibility, tier or premium.
• Keep copies of notices, reports, disputes and responses.

Frequently asked questions

Do all car insurance companies check credit?

No. Use depends on state law, the insurer, the product and the insurer's filed rating plan. Ask whether credit is used for your quote, in your state.

Can an insurer use credit at renewal?

Rules vary by state. In Connecticut, updated credit information can be used at renewal only at the insured's request or when it reduces the premium, and in Maryland credit cannot raise a renewal premium.

Does getting an insurance quote hurt your credit?

Some states bar insurers from using credit inquiries, and rules differ by state, so ask the agent what kind of credit check the insurer runs.

Can an insurer cancel a policy because of credit?

Some states bar it. Massachusetts bars credit-based refusals to issue or renew private-passenger auto policies, and other states bar decisions based solely on credit. In every state, the rule is in that state's statute, so ask the agent which one applies.

Your next step

Take these questions to a licensed insurance agency and ask how credit is used for your vehicle in your state. You can find one in the Riskado insurance agency directory, and check the agent's license through your state's insurance department (opens in a new tab) first. If the answer affects your premium, ask for any notice you are owed and for your rerate options, and keep copies of everything.