Preferred Mutual vs. Travelers: Which Company is the Best Fit for You?

Quick Facts

• Based on national averages for auto insurance, Travelers offers significantly less expensive rates than Preferred Mutual
• Travelers offers more affordable premiums for policyholders who live in suburban areas
• Travelers tends to be a much more affordable option for people who are single and purchasing insurance by yourself

Preferred Mutual vs. Travelers: 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 big discounts, you're probably wondering exactly how much you might be able to save.

You might be considering Preferred Mutual or Travelers for your next policy, but between the two, which carrier will offer you cheaper rates?

Looking at the national average rates for both companies, Preferred Mutual has average rates that are about 70% per month more expensive than those from Travelers.

Even so, that doesn't necessarily mean Travelers will be the less expensive option for every single driver. After all, auto insurance carriers can offer drastically different rates to each driver depending on rating factors like your credit score, your driving record, your age, or even where you call home (among other things), so prices could differ drastically from person to person.

Luckily, we've broken down average rates from both Preferred Mutual and Travelers by a bunch of different rate factors, so read on to find out which carrier is the best for you.

Preferred Mutual or Travelers: Average Car Insurance Rates by State

Preferred Mutual and Travelers only compete against each other in two states, with Preferred Mutual offering more affordable prices to the average driver in all of them. New York has the most noticable difference, where Travelers premiums are over 60% cheaper than car insurance prices at Preferred Mutual.

There are plenty of other factors that go into your insurance cost than just the state you live in. Continue reading to see how other factors will affect your rates.

Which is the Best Company For Young Drivers?

You might already know that teen drivers normally pay a lot more for auto insurance than any other group of drivers out there on the road. It's usually because young, inexperienced drivers are statistically much more likely to get into accidents since they have less experience on the roads.

But that doesn't mean that teen drivers have to just accept sky-high car insurance premiums. As you can see above, teens who use Travelers save more than $500 a month compared to those who use Preferred Mutual.

However, both companies will drop rates by the time you turn 25. Travelers offers the steepest reduction, with 25-year-olds paying less than a third of what 18-year-old drivers are charged. Preferred Mutual's average prices lower over 55% during that same period.

Which is the Best Company for Retired Drivers?

Drivers around retirement age generally enjoy some of the most affordable auto insurance premiums you can find. After all, they've likely been driving for quite some time, which typically decreases their chances of accidents and other infractions that can increase rates.

But who has the best premiums for retired drivers between Preferred Mutual and Travelers? Travelers gets the edge, with rates for drivers 65 and older more than 65% more affordable than the national average for Preferred Mutual.

Which is the Best Company for Married Drivers?

You may not be aware, but car insurance prices tend to be more expensive for those who are single than they are for married policyholders. This usually boils down to married couples having multiple cars on their policy -- something a lot of insurance carriers will reward with discounts.

When it comes to relationship status, Travelers is the clear winner for single drivers, with premiums around $425 per month cheaper than Preferred Mutual, on average. The advantage for married drivers with Travelers is also obvious, where drivers save over $300 a month.

Preferred Mutual vs. Travelers: Average Rates by Gender

Did you know women tend to pay less for car insurance than men? This is because men are more likely to get tickets and get into collisions, which increases the chances of an insurance claim.

Generally, men see rates about $15 per month higher with Preferred Mutual, and around $11 more with Travelers.

Looking at overall affordability, Travelers comes out as the cheapest option for both genders, with average prices $378 less for men and $373 cheaper for women.

Preferred Mutual or Travelers: 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.

For most people, insurance isn't the easiest topic to understand. There are so many different limits and coverages that it can make it pretty confusing to find the right policy.

The two most common policies that many drivers look at fall into two categories -- liability only (which provides property damage and bodily injury coverage for other drivers and their passengers if you cause an accident) and full coverage (which includes two additional coverages -- comprehensive and collision -- in addition to what you get with a liability policy).

If you're looking for state minimum limits for liability insurance, Travelers usually offers significantly less expensive premiums of $108 compared to Preferred Mutual's $234. When it comes to full coverage policies with similar limits, Travelers again has the edge, with policies about $500 a month cheaper than Preferred Mutual, on average.

Is Preferred Mutual or Travelers Better for Drivers with Spotty Records?

It's no big secret that drivers who are accident-free get better deals on their auto insurance. But even if you have a spotty record, you can still find plenty of ways to save some cash on your monthly bill.

Tickets and collisions will most likely raise your prices, but is Preferred Mutual or Travelers less expensive for drivers with less-than-ideal driving records?

Which Company is Best for Drivers with Speeding Tickets?

Preferred Mutual policyholders can expect their rates to go up an average of $3 per month if they get a ticket, while Travelers normally raises prices around $32 a month, on average.

That being said, Travelers has more affordable rates for drivers in both categories. Drivers with a clean record can save about $261 per month and drivers with a speeding ticket can save around $232 a month with Travelers.

Which Company is Best for Drivers After an Accident?

Preferred Mutual drivers who get in a collision can expect to see their premiums climb by over $95, while those who have insurance through Travelers will see about a $45 increase.

Overall, Travelers offers the lowest prices for drivers with an at-fault accident on their records, with monthly rates averaging $173 compared to Preferred Mutual's $486.

Which Company is Best for Drivers with a DUI?

If you get a DUI charge on your record, it's probably going to cost you more than a simple ticket or even an accident. For example, Preferred Mutual increases average premiums by over $500 per month -- that's over a 55% increase.

How does Credit Score Impact Preferred Mutual and Travelers Rates?

You may not realized it, but your credit score can come into play when companies calculate your monthly bill. This isn't always the case (Massachusetts, for example, has banned the use of credit score as a rating factor) but it does affect lots of policyholders out there.

Insurance carriers argue that those with poor credit scores are less likely to pay their bills on time every month, which increases the risk involved on their end, while the opposite is true for those with good credit.

So, which company offers the most affordable prices for drivers with poor, average, or good credit?

Which Company is Best for Drivers with Good Credit?

Which Company is Best for Drivers with Bad Credit?

Is Preferred Mutual or Travelers Better for Drivers who Work from Home or Have Short Commutes?

The amount of time you spend behind the wheel of your car plays a big role in your monthly premiums. Generally, the more miles you put on your vehicle, the more you can expect to pay for coverage.

Travelers tends to be the less expensive option for both drivers who put 6,000 miles on their vehicles each year, as well as those who average twice that figure. Preferred Mutual average rates for drivers with 6,000 annual miles come in around $377 more expensive than Travelers. Those who drive 12,000 miles annually can expect to pay about $374 more with Preferred Mutual over Travelers.

Preferred Mutual vs. Travelers: Compare Rates for Urban, Suburban, and Rural Drivers

We've already mentioned how your home state can play a role in how much you pay for auto insurance, but the type of area you live in can have a considerable impact as well. Typically, policyholders who live in less densely populated rural areas will pay quite a bit less than urban drivers because of the small number of cars that are on the roads in those areas.

Travelers tends to offer the cheapest prices for drivers in all areas, regardless of if they're urban, suburban, or rural.

Policyholders in rural ZIP codes see the lowest premiums from both companies, but Travelers comes out on top with average rates around $136 per month. Travelers also has more affordable average premiums for drivers in urban and suburban ZIP codes -- a 77% and 66% a month respective difference when compared to Preferred Mutual policyholders in similar areas.

Preferred Mutual vs. Travelers Discounts

You want to save as much money as possible, right? The best way to do that is by taking advantage of as many car insurance discounts as you can.

But where do you even start? With so many discounts out there, it may seem challenging to find all the of the ones you can take advantage of.

In the section below, we've compared all of the different discounts offered by Preferred Mutual and Travelers so that you can find the one that has the most discounts and, therefore, the biggest savings.

Travelers knocks Preferred Mutual out of the park when it comes to the sheer number of discounts available, offering 11 more discounts than Preferred Mutual.

A couple of those are overlapping for things like anti-theft discounts, DRL discounts, discounts for being a good driver, and mature driver discounts. Travelers also offers advance quote discounts, alternative fuel discounts, continuous insurance discounts, and more that Preferred Mutual does not.

On the flip side, Preferred Mutual has a unique discount of its own -- a annual mileage discounts.

Final Thoughts: Is Preferred Mutual or Travelers Best for You?

So, we've broken down the average rates for many of the variables insurance carriers look at, and walked through the different discounts each carrier offers, too. That's all well and good, but when it comes down to it, which insurance company is the right company for you and your specific driver profile?

Travelers might be best for you if....

• You have a clean driving record, free of accidents, tickets, or DUIs.
• Your credit score is high.
• Your neighborhood is in the suburbs.

Preferred Mutual might be best for you if...

• You have a more unique driver profile than those we mentioned above.

We hope this guide helps you get a good idea of the differences between Preferred Mutual and Travelers 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 a handful of companies, not just Preferred Mutual and Travelers. Luckily, Compare.com makes it easy for you to do just that. Simply enter your ZIP codes below and get free quotes from dozens of top auto insurance carriers in your area, all in just a few minutes.

Preferred Mutual vs. Travelers FAQs

Is Preferred Mutual or Travelers cheaper?

Looking just at the national average prices, Travelers is the cheaper of the two companies, offering average rates of $167 per month compared to $542 for Preferred Mutual. Even so, Travelers won't necessarily be the most affordable carrier for every policyholder, since there are multiple different factors that are considered when it comes to your car insurance bill.

Who is better, Preferred Mutual or Travelers?

Unfortunately, the real answer is "it depends.". One company is not "better" for each driver -- it all depends on the makeup of your unique insurance profile.

Why do Preferred Mutual and Travelers offer me different rates?

Auto insurance carriers take a look at several different variables when calculating the rates they charge drivers. Factors such as gender, your driving record, where you live, age, and sometimes even things like your credit score can all be taken into consideration. Both Preferred Mutual and Travelers use different formulas, so each one will most likely offer different prices. The only real way to see which carrier is the lowest for you is by comparing personalized quotes from many different companies.

How do I know if Preferred Mutual or Travelers is right for me?

The only way to find the car insurance company that's right for you is by getting quotes from multiple carriers and finding the one best suited for your individual budget. Luckily, sites like Compare.com make it easy for you to do just that. Just enter your area information and you'll get free quotes from dozens of the best insurance companies in your area. That way, you can guarantee you're getting the best price. And who knows, the best carrier for you might not be Preferred Mutual or Travelers at all!

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.