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Tampa Bay Area Cities With The Highest Car Insurance Rates

Author Jen Glorioso

The price of car insurance in Florida is outrageous. In fact, rates have skyrocketed in 2024 and have no sign of going down any time soon. With these rates increasing, it may force you to look for a new policy. But your rates can factor based on which county you live in. For example, moving from Pinellas to Hillsborough County can cause your rates to go up a significant percentage. We did a deep dive even further to see which Tampa Bay area counties pay the most for car insurance.

Florida historically has had high rates due to natural causes like hurricanes and flooding. A recent report from Bankrate showed the annual average for car insurance rates across the country. And to nobody’s surprise, Florida was the second highest-paying state, behind Louisiana. Of course, your coverage can change over several factors: your age, location, the car you drive, accidents or DUIs on your record, a decrease in credit score, a recent speeding ticket, or a lapse in coverage.

According to the recent report from Bankrate, Florida drivers spend about 5.69% of their income on car insurance on average. The average annual premium is $3,945 (about $ 1,402 more than the national average). To break the price down by Tampa Bay area counties, we went to valuepenguin.com. They updated the cheapest and best car insurance quotes in Florida for January 2024. To find this info, Value Penguin collected thousands of rates from every ZIP code in Florida for the largest car insurance companies. Quotes are for a 30-year-old man with good credit who drives a 2015 Honda Civic EX.

What Are The Cheapest and Most Expensive Florida Cities For Car Insurance?

Santa Rosa Beach, a town in the Florida panhandle, is the cheapest city for car insurance in Florida, at $184 per month for full coverage. The most expensive city is Westview, which is just outside of Miami. The average rate is about $354 per month.

Here are the Tampa Bay Area Cities With The Highest Car Insurance Rates

  1. Egypt Lake-Leto – This Hillsborough County neighborhood spends $342 a month on car insurance.
  2. East Lake-Orient Park & Town n’ Country – This is one of the most expensive rates at $324/month.
  3. Tampa – Residents pay a pricey $318/month average.
  4. Carrollwood – The monthly average is $314. With how many accidents we see on Dale Mabry, that’s not surprising. Temple Terrace is right behind Carrollwood with a $312 monthly average.
  5. Brandon – The monthly average is $293.
  6. Citrus Park – Drivers are paying an average of $290/month.
  7. Holiday, Lutz, Seffner, Riverview, and Port Richey – Drivers also pay around $284-$287/month.
  8. Westchase – This Tampa neighborhood pays a monthly $279 for car insurance.
  9. Palm Harbor & St. Pete – A lot of Pinellas cities monthly average falls around $273.
  10. Safety Harbor, Madeira Beach, and St. Pete Beach – These were the cheapest Tampa Bay cities we found at $260-$265/month.

Jen was born and raised in the Tampa Bay area. She’s been with Beasley Media Group since 2022. In her spare time, you can find her at Tampa Bay Lightning games, Tampa Bay breweries, or the beach. Catch up on Jen’s content about the highest-rated restaurants/bars in Tampa, things-to-do around the area, and upcoming concerts.

Top 10 Vehicles Targeted For Catalytic Converter Theft In Florida

Here are the top 10 vehicles targeted for catalytic converter theft in Florida. Throughout the state of Florida there is a new theft epidemic on the rise and that is catalytic converters. To be honest, it makes sense as there are nearly 22 million people living in Florida. It shouldn’t come as a surprise since some of the models on this list are the most popular cars in the state, but what are Florida lawmakers doing to help curb this?

There is a new law being proposed in Florida that would make it a third degree felony to buy, possess or sell any stolen catalytic converters. Thieves can take the “cats” (catalytic converter) in about a minute and this bill will head to the House for a vote.

Carfax  released the list of the 10 top vehicles targeted for catalytic converter theft in Florida and all regions of the United States.

What makes catalytic converters a hot target?

Catalytic converters contain metals such as rhodium, palladium, and platinum which can be turned around and sold for thousands of dollars. To put this into perspective, currently (at the time of writing this) rhodium is selling for $4,200.00 and gold is selling for $1913.00. 

How can you tell if your catalytic converter has been stolen?

If someone does steal your catalytic converter, you’ll know immediately because it will be very loud! The catalytic converter passes air from the engine and out through the muffler. You may also experience darker exhaust and you will might a warning light on the dash telling you something isn’t right.

What can you do to prevent your catalytic converter from theft?

One of the best ways to keep you and your vehicle safe from thieves is to know your surroundings. Remember to park your vehicles in a well lit area especially if you have fleet vehicles for business. You can even install a catalytic converter anti theft device and if you want to take that extra step. Carfax suggests etching you VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) on the converter itself.

Now that we’ve given some background on what you can do to prevent your vehicles’ catalytic converters from theft, lets get into this list on the top 10 vehicles targeted for catalytic converter theft in Florida.

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