Gainsco vs. Mercury: Which Company is the Best Fit for You?

Quick Facts

• Based on national averages for insurance, Gainsco offers significantly cheaper rates than Mercury
• Gainsco has more affordable premiums for policyholders who haven't received any speeding tickets or been in a collision in the last few years
• Mercury may help you save more money -- they offer more discounts than GAINSCO

Gainsco or Mercury: Which Company has the Cheapest Car Insurance?

Are you in the market for a new insurance policy? With so many ads from all sorts of companies offering large savings, you're probably wondering exactly how much you might be able to save.

You might have narrowed your search down to Gainsco or Mercury as your top options, but which one will save you the most?

As you can see, Gainsco is quite a bit cheaper than Mercury, with prices averaging $205 a month compared to $295 with Mercury when looking at the national average rates for car insurance.

But Gainsco may not be the cheapest or best option for each driver out there. After all, insurance carriers can offer drastically different rates to every driver depending on rating factors like your driving record, your credit score, your age, or even where you call home (among other things). So, at the end of the day, premiums from each carrier will differ quite a bit from person to person.

Luckily, we've broken down average rates from both Gainsco and Mercury by a range of different rate factors, so read on to find out which company is the best for you.

Gainsco vs. Mercury: Average Car Insurance Rates by State

Gainsco and Mercury only compete against each other in Arizona, where Mercury offers the cheaper average premiums. Mercury drivers tend to pay about $46 per month less on average compared to drivers who use Gainsco for their car insurance.

But there's more to auto insurance than just your home state. As we mentioned above, there's a lot of things that go into how car insurance companies determine your rates. Continue reading to see how other variables will affect your rates.

Which is the Best Company For Young Drivers?

Teen drivers will almost always have the most expensive auto insurance prices of any other group of drivers. The reason is that teen drivers are statistically much more likely to cause collisions and other accidents that will result in an insurance claim.

That being said, that doesn't mean that teen drivers have to just accept sky-high insurance premiums. As you can see above, teens who use Gainsco save over 35% a month compared to those who use Mercury. It's worth noting that Mercury offers auto insurance in 11 different states compared to Gainsco's one, which can skew the average prices a bit, but the difference here is still considerable.

However, both carriers will offer you dramatically lower rates by the time drivers turn 25. For example, average prices for Gainsco policyholders lower around $300 and Mercury's rates drop almost $500 over that time.

Which is the Best Company for Retired Drivers?

When it comes to insurance, patience and experience pay off, with drivers around retirement age paying some of the lowest premiums you can find.

So, which carrier offers the best rates to retired drivers? Gainsco gets the edge, with premiums for drivers 65 and older $61 less expensive than the national average for Mercury.

Which is the Best Company for Married Drivers?

You may not be aware, but car insurance prices tend to be more affordable for married policyholders than they are for single policyholders. That's because policies for married drivers typically cover several vehicles, which lots of companies will give you a discount for.

For single drivers, the difference in average premiums between these two carriers is significant, with Gainsco prices coming in at a third less than Mercury's. For married couples, the advantage is clear again - Gainsco has the edge when it comes to average rates.

Gainsco or Mercury: Average Rates by Gender

Did you know women tend to pay less for insurance than men? That's because women are less likely to get into collisions and get tickets, which decreases the chances of filing a claim with insurance.

Men generally pay about $15 per month more than women with Gainsco, and around $14 more with Mercury.

Looking at the data for each company specifically, Gainsco comes out as the cheapest option for both genders, with average prices 30% less for men and 31% cheaper for women.

Gainsco vs. Mercury: Compare State Minimum vs. Full Coverage Rates

*State minimum value indicates liability-only policies at each state's minimum bodily injury and property damage (BI/PD) limits

**Full coverage indicates state minimum BI/PD limits with collision and comprehensive coverages added to policy.

It's no secret that car insurance can be a complicated subject for most people. Everyone needs auto insurance, but there are so many different coverages and limits that it can be hard to find the right policy for you.

The two most common policies end up falling into two different types of coverage -- liability coverage (which covers the other party's property damage and injuries if you cause an accident) and full coverage (which usually refers to having collision and comprehensive coverages in addition to liability coverage).

Looking specifically at state minimum liability limits, Gainsco has the significant edge, with average monthly rates coming in at $125. If you want a full coverage policy with the same state minimum limits, Gainsco again has the edge, with policies averaging about $285 a month to Mercury's $406.

Is Gainsco or Mercury Better for Drivers with Spotty Records?

It's no secret -- drivers with good records end up getting the best deals on their car insurance. But that's not to say you can't save money if you don't have the best driving record, either.

At-fault collisions and speeding tickets will most likely raise your premiums, but is Gainsco or Mercury cheaper for drivers with less-than-perfect records?

Which Company is Best for Drivers with Speeding Tickets?

Policyholders who use Gainsco for their insurance can normally expect their monthly bill to go up around 9% after getting a speeding ticket. Mercury policyholders can expect a bit more drastic of an increase of about 19%.

Even so, Gainsco has more affordable rates for drivers in both categories, offering prices that are $52 and $91 cheaper, respectively, compared to Mercury Insurance.

Which Company is Best for Drivers After an Accident?

Both companies will raise premiums pretty significantly if you get into an at-fault collision with Mercury climbing by around 32%. Gainsco has a less extreme climb, but you can still expect to pay nearly 20% more than you were prior to your first accident.

At the end of the day, drivers who use Gainsco end up with the cheaper prices after an accident, with average prices coming in at $227 compared to Mercury Insurance's $346.

Which Company is Best for Drivers with a DUI?

On average, a DUI offense is going to cost you much more than a single collision or ticket when it comes to your auto insurance bill. On average, Mercury will increase your rates about 22% after a DUI, while Gainsco's average premiums rise by just under 10%.

Gainsco has the overall most affordable prices for drivers with a DUI on their records at $203 a month, but it's worth noting that Mercury's average rates come from 11 states compared to just one for Gainsco, so the data may be skewed slightly.

How does Credit Score Impact Gainsco and Mercury Rates?

In many cases, your credit score can come into play when carriers calculate your monthly bill. This isn't true for everyone (for example, California and Hawaii are two states that ban the practice entirely), but it might come into play for quite a few drivers.

Insurance companies argue that those with good credit scores are more likely to pay their bills on time every month, which decreases the risk involved on their end, while the opposite is true for those with bad credit.

So, which carrier offers the lowest premiums for policyholders with poor, average, or good credit?

Which Company is Best for Drivers with Good Credit?

If you have great credit, Gainsco will generally reward you the most. For drivers with "excellent" credit scores, Gainsco comes in nearly NaN less expensive. Drivers with "good" credit scores normally save around 23% with Gainsco compared to average rates from Mercury.

Which Company is Best for Drivers with Bad Credit?

Gainsco typically offers lower premiums than Mercury when it comes to drivers with less-than-perfect credit. Drivers with "fair" credit pay about 32% per month less with Gainsco compared to Mercury, and those with "poor" scores typically save an average of around 50% monthly.

Is Gainsco or Mercury Better for Drivers who Work from Home or Have Short Commutes?

Did you know that the amount of time you spend in your car have a sizable impact on your monthly rates? Usually, those who drive fewer miles will end up with more affordable prices since there's less of a chance of causing a collision and filing an insurance claim.

In this case, neither Gainsco or Mercury report increasing premiums for drivers with higher annual mileage figures. Even so, Gainsco comes out as the most affordable for drivers at both intervals, whether they put 6,000 or 12,000 miles on their car annually, with average prices of $205 a month for both.

Gainsco or Mercury: Compare Rates for Urban, Suburban, and Rural Drivers

Where you live can have a substantial impact on your monthly car insurance cost. Typically, those who live in urban areas will pay more than policyholders in rural areas due to the number of vehicles that are on the roads where they live.

Gainsco boasts the lowest average prices for drivers in all types of areas, no matter if they're urban, suburban, or rural.

In urban areas, Gainsco's average rates are about $299 per month compared to Mercury's $401. Drivers in suburban ZIP codes pay a monthly premium of around $180 with Gainsco compared to $275 with Mercury. If you live in a rural area, you can expect to pay about $136 per month with Gainsco and $209 with Mercury.

Gainsco vs. Mercury Discounts

No matter why you might be in the market for a new auto insurance policy, you're always going to want to save as much money as you can. That's where insurance discounts comes into play.

The difficult part is finding all of the discounts you're eligible for, since it can feel sometimes like every carrier has different discounts and each one is advertised differently.

Luckily, we did the hard work for you and broke down all of the different discounts offered by both Gainsco and Mercury so that you can see which carrier can save you the most money each month.

Mercury blows Gainsco away when it comes to the sheer amount of discounts available, offering 27 different discounts to Gainsco's four.

Both carriers offer several of the same discounts -- like advance quote discounts, discounts for being a homeowner, and paid in full discounts -- but Mercury also offers discounts for ABS, anti-theft, continuous insurance, and more.

On the other hand, Gainsco has a proprietary discount of their own -- a renewal discounts.

Final Thoughts: Is Gainsco or Mercury Best for You?

So, we've broken down the average premiums for many of the factors auto insurance companies look at, and we've shown you all the discounts each company offers. But, at the end of the day, which carrier is the right one for you and your specific profile and needs?

Gainsco might be best for you if....

• You will be the only person on the car insurance policy.
• You're looking for the best rates on liability only coverage.
• You have a short drive to work everyday.

Mercury might be best for you if...

• You are considering moving to another state -- GAINSCO only offers policies to Arizona residents.
• You're looking for the company with the most discounts.

Hopefully, this guide has ben a valuable resource as you compare Gainsco and Mercury and that you can now make a more informed decision when it comes to your auto insurance.

But, at the end of the day, there's only one way to know for sure that you're getting the best possible deal on car insurance -- comparing quotes from multiple carriers, not just Gainsco and Mercury. Luckily, sites like Compare.com do all the hard work for you. Simply enter your ZIP code below and get free quotes from dozens of the top insurance companies in your area, all in just a few minutes.

Gainsco vs. Mercury FAQs

Is Gainsco or Mercury cheaper?

Gainsco is the less expensive of the two carriers when looking at national average premiums, with policies averaging $205 a month with Gainsco and $295 for Mercury. However, that doesn't mean Gainsco will be the most affordable carrier for each policyholder, since there are multiple different variables (things like age, driving record, gender, etc.) that play a role in how much you pay.

Who is better, Gainsco or Mercury?

Unfortunately, the real answer is "it depends.". No one company is necessarily "better" for every policyholder -- it all boils down to your unique auto insurance profile.

Why do Gainsco and Mercury offer me different rates?

Insurance companies use a lot of different factors when determining the prices they charge. Things such as your driving record, where you call home, gender, age, and sometimes even things like your credit score can all be taken into consideration. Both Gainsco and Mercury use different formulas, so it's likely they'll offer different premiums. The best way to determine which carrier is the lowest for you is by comparing personalized quotes from a bunch of different carriers.

How do I know if Gainsco or Mercury is right for me?

The only way to find the car insurance company that's right for you is by getting quotes from a handful of companies and finding the one best suited for your individual budget. Luckily, Compare.com makes it easy for you to do just that. Just enter your information once and you'll get quotes from dozens of your local top insurance carriers for free. With those, you can guarantee you're getting the best price. And maybe you'll find that the best carrier for you isn't Gainsco or Mercury at all, but another you hadn't even thought of!

Methodology

All of the data referenced in this article has been gathered in collaboration with Quadrant Information Services. We analyzed more than 2.5 million rows of carrier-reported data to calculate the average rates referenced above. All rates are based on an insurance profile of a single-vehicle policy for a driver that owns a 2016 Honda Accord. For more information on how we calculate rates, please reference our data methodology.