It’s expensive to keep a car on the road. Between the cost of the vehicle itself, insurance, maintenance, repairs, registration and inspection fees, it can cost thousands of dollars a year. One variable that can make a difference of hundreds of dollars a year is car insurance. There are lots of factors that go into it; the car’s make and model, your age, your driving history, and more. But one of the most interesting factors is your ZIP code. Even within the Hudson Valley, car insurance rates can swing wildly in either direction if you’re in what insurance companies consider to be a riskier ZIP code.
How does your ZIP code affect your car insurance payment in the Hudson Valley? Let’s find out:
Hudson Valley Car Insurance Prices by ZIP Code (As of June 2021)
We used an insurance quoting website called The Zebra, which can rapidly produce auto insurance quotes from different companies. We used a hypothetical example of a 40 year old male, with decent credit, no accident history and driving a 2020 Ford Escape. The only variable was the driver’s ZIP code. We used the top two insurance quote results to generate the following monthly payment averages by town:
Dutchess County
| Beacon | $130 |
| Poughkeepsie | $127 |
| Hyde Park | $112 |
| Fishkill | $110 |
| Rhinebeck | $106 |
| Pawling | $100 |
| Pleasant Valley | $99 |
| La Grange | $98 |
| Wappingers | $98 |
| Amenia | $98 |
| East Fishkill | $94 |
| Beekman | $94 |
| Milan | $93 |
| Red Hook | $93 |
Ulster County
| Ellenville | $119 |
| New Paltz | $118 |
| Kingston | $115 |
| Hurley | $114 |
| Phoenicia | $113 |
| Lloyd | $112 |
| Saugerties | $111 |
| Modena | $105 |
| Shawangunk | $104 |
| Marlborough | $103 |
| Gardiner | $103 |
| Denning | $97 |
| Esopus | $95 |
| Shandaken | $94 |
| Olive | $92 |
| Wawarsing | $92 |
| Marbletown | $92 |
| Woodstock | $92 |
| Rosendale | $91 |
| Rochester | $91 |
Orange County
| Middletown | $136 |
| Newburgh | $133 |
| Warwick | $112 |
| Monroe | $108 |
| Kiryas Joel | $108 |
| New Windsor | $105 |
| Washingtonville | $105 |
| Montgomery | $105 |
It looks like car insurance is most expensive in more densely populated areas like cities and large towns in the Hudson Valley. The more spread out and rural a town is, the less expensive car insurance is; this can add up to an increase of close to $500 a year in insurance premiums when moving between a town like Red Hook to the City of Newburgh.
Why Car Insurance Matters for Personal Injury Protection
In New York State, regardless of what ZIP code you’re in, drivers are covered by what’s known as Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage. When you’re injured in a car accident, regardless of if you’re at fault or not, PIP coverage allows you to file what’s known as a “no-fault” claim.
A no-fault claim covers up to $50,000 in damages, such as medical, dental, hospital and rehabilitative costs. It may also cover lost wages up to either $2,000 a month or 80% of monthly earnings, for up to three years.
No-fault insurance does not cover damage to your car or to other people’s property, injuries to other drivers, commercial accidents, intentional accidents, injuries sustained while fleeing from a crime, or caused by an uninsured car.
Additionally, if your expenses sustained in an accident exceed $50,000, or your disability extends beyond the three-year coverage period, it may be prudent to consider filing a personal injury lawsuit against the at-fault driver. Contact us for a free personal injury consultation at our offices in Kingston, NY, Poughkeepsie or Newburgh to learn more about how you can obtain the maximum possible compensation for your injuries.