Sioux Falls is the largest city in South Dakota with about 155,000 residents; and the make up impacts the cost of Sioux Falls car insurance rates. With 56.3 square miles of land, there are a little over 2,700 people per square mile. Most people in Sioux Falls travel by vehicle because of the limited options for public transportation. The average commute time for travelers is about 16 minutes. Sioux Falls is one of the earliest settled cities in South Dakota with the first documented European settlers appearing in 1832. There were many Native Indians living in Sioux Falls; however, there was a peaceful relationship between the Indians and the settlers.

As the population in Sioux Falls grew, roads were developed and eventually the railroad made its way to Sioux Falls in the late 1800s, creating a boom in the entire state of South Dakota. In 1905, the first automobile appeared in Sioux Falls.

It was not long before the automobile was the primary source of transportation in Sioux Falls and round the rest of the state of South Dakota. As such laws were put into place to keep track of the vehicles owned by residents of South Dakota and state police officers were hired (called the courtesy patrol initial) to ensure that speed limit and driving laws were being followed.

The Secretary of State was responsible for the registration of vehicles until 1913 at which time a specialized department was created that still fell under the guise of the Secretary of State. The cost of registration was $1.00 but registration was not mandatory. In 1913, the fee was increased to $6.00 but reduced to $3.00 in 1915. Also in 1913, it became illegal to drive while under the influence of alcohol. In 1925 it became law for all drivers to title and register their vehicles and in 1932 the first laws were passed that required that drivers take financial responsibility for injuries, deaths and property damages for any accidents in which they were found at fault.

Sioux Falls Car Insurance Requirements

Now auto insurance is required in the entire State of South Dakota. The liability requirements are 25/50/25 and the UM requirements are 25/50. This is what you will see on most paperwork associated with your auto insurance. Liability means that you are liable for costs from an accident that you have caused. UM refers to Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage.

What these numbers means is that you are required to have $25,000 bodily injury for a single person in an accident, $50,000 bodily injury for everyone injured in an accident and $25,000 for any property damage incurred in the accident. Your UM requirements are $25,000 bodily injury for a single person and $50,000 for multiple persons. You are not required to carry UM property damage insurance in South Dakota.

In Sioux Falls, you are required to show your proof of insurance upon request. If you do not have proof of insurance, you can face a $100 fine, 30-days in jail, a one-year suspension of your driver’s license and the filing of an SR-22 form for three years. (SR-22 insurance forms show insurers that you are a ‘problem’ driver and will increase your insurance rates). You will also pay a reinstatement fee of $50 to $500 to get your license and registration reinstated.

The state average for auto insurance is $1,419 but the Sioux Falls average is nearly $1,600 annually while the national average is $1,794. Sioux Falls is higher than the rest of the state because they have the highest rate of accidents, car thefts and fatalities of any other city in the state.

Facts Determining Sioux Falls Car Insurance Rates

According to the South Dakota Department of Public Safety, there were 266 auto thefts in Sioux Falls. There were also 3,037 auto accidents, five of which were fatal. One thousand two hundred and sixteen accidents resulted in 1,623 injuries and 1,816 were property damage only accidents as well. Sixteen percent of the accidents caused incapacitating injuries and 35% caused injuries that were not incapacitating. Forty-nine percent of all accidents resulted in possible injuries.

Twenty-eight percent of accidents were caused by drivers under the age of 25 and all of the fatal accidents in Sioux Falls were caused by the same age group. Sixteen percent of those accidents were caused by underage drivers under the influence of alcohol.

These accidents, deaths and injuries have quite an economic impact in terms of cost. The Sioux Falls average cost for a fatal auto accident was $1,100,000 in 2008. The cost of an accident that caused incapacitating injuries was $65,000 on average per accident. Serious, non incapacitating injures averaged $61,000 each, and probable injuries averaged $11,900 per accident. Property damage only accidents averaged $8,000 each. In Sioux Falls, 16% of accidents caused incapacitating injuries, 35% caused non incapacitating injures and 49% caused possible injuries.

Saving Money on Sioux Falls Car Insurance

Saving money is important and there are things that you can do to improve your auto insurance rates and things that are out of your control. For example, the rates for female drivers are lower than male drivers. That is because statistically more accidents are caused by men than women. In Sioux Falls, nearly 60% of all accidents were caused by males. This is something that is out of your hands, as is your age (younger drivers cost more to insure than older drivers).

However, there are things that are under your control, although some things make take longer to achieve than others. For example, your credit score has an effect on the amount of auto insurance that you pay. Good credit, as far as the auto insurance company goes, means that you will pay your bills on time. As such, you will get a better rate if you have good credit. If you have bad credit, it is worth working on to get better rates.

Every auto insurance company offers different discounts, so it is important for you to check to see what you qualify for before you make your auto insurance purchase. Regardless, many discounts are common with insurance companies, such as combining policies, having multiple vehicles on the same policy, safe driver discounts, and limited driving discounts.

You may want to consider insurance companies that offer such services as accident forgiveness so that in the event you do cause an auto accident your rates will not go up if you have been accident free for an extended period of time.

Aside from discount choices, some of the other things that you might want to consider about an insurance company are their rates, length of time in business, their payment options, customer service reputation, percentage of claims paid out and their financial stability. All of this information is readily available online and will help you to make an educated choice about your auto insurance company.

Get Free Sioux Falls Car Insurance Quotes

Instead of investigating every insurance company that services Sioux Falls, however, you might want to simplify the process. By using our Sioux Falls auto insurance quote tool, you can first determine which insurance companies will offer you the best rates. With over two dozen auto insurance companies licensed to do business in South Dakota, it is important that you minimize your choices by cost. Once you have narrowed down your choices, it is time to do some research before you make your final choice.

Get started comparing free Sioux Falls car insurance quotes online now!