New York Drivers Pay Fourth-Highest Auto Insurance Costs in the Nation, Triple-I Finds

www.iii.org, Press Release, January 26, 2026

MALVERN, Pa., Jan. 26, 2026 — New York households paid an estimated $1,935 on average for personal auto insurance in 2024, the highest level on record for the state and the fourth-highest expenditure nationwide, according to the Insurance Information Institute’s (Triple-I’s) latest Outlook, New York Personal Auto Insurance Premium and Cost Drivers.

Triple-I estimates New Yorkers allocated 2.23% of median household income to personal auto insurance in 2024, up from $1,753 (2.15%) in 2023, when New York already ranked as the fourth least affordable state for auto insurance as a share of income.

Recent reform proposals, including strengthening insurer anti-fraud programs, limiting damages for individuals engaging in unlawful behavior or who are at fault in an accident, lowering the serious injury threshold, and leveraging technology, could make meaningful positive changes to the cost of insurance.

The issues brief compares New York’s personal auto insurance expenditures with national trends and identifies key cost drivers pushing premiums higher. Four of New York’s six major cost drivers rank among the most expensive in the country, contributing to sustained affordability challenges for drivers statewide.

“Auto insurance affordability is ultimately driven by the underlying costs,” said Michel Léonard, Ph.D., CBE, chief economist and data scientist at the Insurance Information Institute. “In New York, elevated repair costs, severe injury claims, high claims-handling expenses, and frequent accidents all combine to put persistent upward pressure on premiums. With personal auto insurance approaching $2,000 a year, New York remains one of the most expensive states in the nation to drive,” he said. “By tackling these cost drivers, New Yorkers could see meaningful steps toward improving long-term insurance affordability.” Continue article