The Best New Hampshire Auto Insurance
New Hampshire and Virginia are the only states that don’t require drivers to have auto insurance. If New Hampshire drivers choose to go without insurance, the state requires proof of “sufficient funds to meet New Hampshire Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Requirements in the event of an “at-fault” accident.” In other words: if you choose to go without insurance, get into an accident, and can’t pay for your share of the expenses out of pocket — and these expenses can often reach $50,000 or more — the state can suspend your license and registration. Virginians aren’t required to have auto insurance either, instead, they are given the option to pay the state $500 per year, but this does not cover any accident of any kind, the driver who caused the accident remains liable.
Some drivers, such as drivers with DWIs, are required to have auto insurance — though we recommend that all New Hampshire and Virginia drivers still carry an auto insurance policy to mitigate those high accident costs. We’ve done the work of researching the top providers in the state to help you find the best auto insurance company in New Hampshire.
How We Found the Best New Hampshire Auto Insurance Companies
We evaluated the biggest auto insurance providers in New Hampshire using the same methodology we developed for our review of nationwide auto insurance. We researched financial stability ratings to confirm that these insurers had the resources to pay out on customers’ claims. We also looked at customer service ratings to confirm that real-life consumers were happy with their service. We checked in on each insurer’s claims payment speed, compared the types of coverages each insurer offered, and looked at how many discounts were available — the more discounts, the more likely you’ll be able to save money on your auto insurance policy!
The 5 Best Auto Insurance Companies in New Hampshire
State Farm
New Hampshire Auto Insurance
State Farm was a top pick in our auto insurance, they were awarded an A++ financial stability rating from A.M. Best. Consumer Reports gave State Farm a “Very Good” for claims process and “Excellent” for claims payment speed, but J.D. Power only gave State Farm 3/5 for overall experience and claims experience.
State Farm provides all the most critical coverages – including rideshare coverage as an add-on to your personal insurance policy, rather than offering it as a separate policy. Since personal auto insurance doesn’t cover you when you use your car for commercial purposes, Uber and Lyft drivers should sign up for this essential coverage.
State Farm drivers can earn discounts if their car has airbags or anti-lock brakes, or if they complete safe driving programs. Drivers who want to earn even more discounts for their safe driving habits should sign up for State Farm’s Drive Safe & Save program: This program uses your phone or your OnStar device to track your driving in real time, and notes whether you indulge in dangerous driving maneuvers, such as rapid acceleration. Safe drivers can earn up to 50% off their premium!
Progressive
New Hampshire Auto Insurance
Like State Farm, Progressive also earned an honorable mention in our nationwide auto insurance review. Progressive’s financial stability rating isn’t quite as high as State Farm’s — A.M. Best gave Progressive an A+, not an A++, but this is still a great rating and no cause for concern. Its customer service ratings are on par with State Farm’s: 3/5 for both overall and claims experiences from J.D. Power, and a Very Good for claims process and an Excellent for claims payment speed from Consumer Reports.
Progressive also offers roughly the same amount of coverage options as State Farm, and you get a few unique coverage options, such as gap insurance (sometimes called loan/lease payoff insurance), which helps cover the remaining balance on your car loan if your car is stolen or totaled. Progressive also offers pet injury insurance, which helps pay for veterinary expenses if your pet is in your car during an accident — and you don’t have to pay extra for that one, because Progressive includes it as part of its collision insurance package.
Progressive offers discounts for being a homeowner, having continuous insurance, or starting the quote process online. You can also sign up with Progressive’s Snapshot program: like State Farm’s Drive Safe & Save, Snapshot tracks your driving and gives you a discount based on your driving habits. Proceed with caution, though — unlike Drive Safe & Save, you might actually see your premium increase if you engage in too many risky driving maneuvers while using Snapshot.
Allstate
New Hampshire Auto Insurance
Like State Farm and Progressive, Allstate also earned an honorable mention in our nationwide auto insurance review. Like Progressive, Allstate earned an A+ financial stability rating from A.M. Best; like Progressive and State Farm, Allstate earned 3/5 for overall experience and claims experience from J.D. Power and a Very Good for claims process and an Excellent for claims payment speed from Consumer Reports.
Allstate includes the most coverage options of any of the providers on our list, including rental reimbursement coverage, roadside assistance coverage, rideshare coverage for Uber and Lyft drivers, and property protection coverage in case you drive your car into your neighbor’s fence. (The coverage pays to rebuild the fence, not your car. You’d want collision coverage for that.) Allstate also offers Deductible Rewards coverage, which gives you $100 off your deductible for every year you drive accident-free, up to 5 years or $500.
Unfortunately, Allstate also offers the fewest discount options of any of our top providers, which means you might end up paying a little more for all that coverage. If you want to bring your premiums down, you can enroll in Allstate’s Drivewise program — like Snapshot and Drive Safe & Save, Drivewise tracks your driving and gives you a reduction on your premium; unlike Snapshot and Drive Safe & Save, Drivewise gives you that reduction as cash back every six months. You can earn up to 25% cash back — and if you complete safe driving challenges (“drive three consecutive days with no hard braking”) you’ll unlock Allstate Rewards points which can be redeemed towards purchases at major retailers, like Nike and Applebee’s.
Liberty Mutual
New Hampshire Auto Insurance
Liberty Mutual is the only provider on our list to not earn a special designation in our nationwide auto insurance review; with an A rating from A.M. Best, Liberty Mutual also received the lowest financial stability rating of any of our top providers. It also got the lowest customer service ratings: J.D. Power gave Liberty Mutual 3/5 for overall experience but only 2/5 for claims experience, and Consumer Reports gave Liberty Mutual a Very Good in both claims process and claims payment speed.
Liberty Mutual offers the same suite of coverage options as our other top providers, including a Deductible Fund program that’s similar to Allstate’s Deductible Rewards — and although Liberty Mutual doesn’t offer rideshare coverage, it does offer what it calls “teachers’ auto insurance,” which helps teachers pay for damages if their car is vandalized on school property or if educational materials are stolen from their vehicle. Liberty Mutual also offers a few unique discounts, including discounts for new grads, newly married couples, and retirees.
USAA
New Hampshire Auto Insurance
USAA provides many insurance services for military personnel and their immediate family, so while this option is not widely available, it’s certainly worth it to get a quote from USAA if you do qualify. Assigned a score of A++ by A.M.’s Financial Strength Rating and 5/5 stars (903/1,000) by J.D. Power’s Auto Claims Satisfaction study, USAA is among the best insurance providers in the space, and they are known for their customer-friendly service and quick pace of settling claims.
USAA’s only downfall is that their services are not available to everyone, only those with military affiliations: current military members, including active duty, Guard, Reserve, and Officer candidates (ROTS, OTS/OCS, and Academy), military vets and retirees who have served honorably, spouses of current former service members, and children of USAA members.
Guide to New Hampshire Auto Insurance
New Hampshire minimum liability
Although New Hampshire doesn’t require drivers to carry auto insurance, the state does have rules about the type of insurance you can buy. If you purchase an auto insurance policy in New Hampshire, it must include:
- $25,000 bodily injury coverage per person
- $50,000 bodily injury coverage per accident
- $25,000 property damage coverage per accident
This type of minimum coverage is often shortened to 25/50/25 — so if you see those numbers, that’s what they mean.
New Hampshire also requires drivers to carry at least $1,000 in medical payments coverage, which helps pay for medical payments resulting from an auto accident (regardless of who was at fault), as well as uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, which helps pay for damages caused by another driver with insufficient insurance.
However, we recommend going beyond the minimum coverages and carrying enough insurance to protect yourself from having to pay major accident-related expenses out of pocket. The best rule of thumb is to buy as much insurance as you can afford — because once you’re dealing with a totaled car or an extended hospital stay, you’re going to be glad you have that coverage. If you get in an accident with another driver and you don’t have enough insurance to cover your share of the expenses, you could potentially end up in an expensive lawsuit.
Buying insurance, even though you don’t technically have to, is the smart move in New Hampshire — and so is shopping around to find the best coverage at the best rate. Start with our review of the top auto insurance providers in New Hampshire, and request multiple quotes so you can compare options.
Check your credit report and driving record before applying
Before quoting you an insurance rate, insurers consider a number of factors including your credit history and your driving history. However, these records sometimes contain errors — and those errors could drive up your premium costs. Use annualcreditreport.com to check your credit report and visit the New Hampshire DMV website to request your driving record, and make sure both documents are accurate. If you find any errors, from an out-of-date address to a credit card debt that isn’t yours, take the time to correct them.
When requesting quotes, compare apples to apples.
When you start requesting insurance quotes online, try to request the exact same coverage from each insurer. Yes, you might be interested in Progressive’s gap insurance or State Farm’s rideshare insurance, but those options will still be available once you get to the point where you’re having conversations with an insurance agent. To find out which insurer offers the best rates for your situation, you’ll want to make your initial quote requests as similar as possible.
