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See Pennsylvania car insurance costs for new and used cars by car values, coverage, and credit score. Find coverage for your needs.

Updated: June 3, 2026

Curious about car financing? See real Pennsylvania car loan rates shared by our community.

Pennsylvania’s 15/30/5 Rule: Liability

Pennsylvania requires every driver to carry liability insurance plus medical benefits. Here’s what your policy must include:

Liability Coverage (15/30/5):

• $15,000 for injuries to one person in an accident you cause.
• $30,000 for total injuries to all people in an accident you cause.
• $5,000 for property damage you cause (other vehicles, fences, buildings).

First Party Benefits / Medical Benefits:

• $5,000 minimum for your own medical expenses, regardless of who caused the accident.
• This functions like Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and makes Pennsylvania a “no-fault” state for medical bills.

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage:

• Insurers must offer UM/UIM coverage at 15/30 limits.
• You can reject this coverage in writing, but doing so leaves you exposed if an uninsured driver hits you.

The Tort Choice: Full Tort vs. Limited Tort

When you buy car insurance in Pennsylvania, you must choose between two options:

Full Tort: Keeps your full legal rights. If someone injures you in an accident, you can sue for pain and suffering, emotional distress, and other non-economic damages—regardless of how severe your injury is.

Limited Tort: Saves 15-20% on your premium but restricts your right to sue for pain and suffering unless you suffer a “serious injury” (death, permanent disfigurement, serious impairment of a bodily function). Economic damages like medical bills and lost wages are always recoverable.

MFP Tip: The premium difference between full tort and limited tort is often just $100-$200 per year—far less than most people assume. One serious accident where you can’t recover for ongoing pain could cost you tens of thousands. Most insurance professionals recommend full tort.

There are exceptions where limited tort drivers can still sue for pain and suffering: if the at-fault driver was drunk, if the other vehicle was registered out of state, if you were in a commercial vehicle, or if the other driver was uninsured.

Pennsylvania New Car Insurance Costs

Your new car premium depends on three main factors: your car’s value, how much coverage you choose, and your credit history. Your tort choice and where you live in Pennsylvania also play a role—Philadelphia drivers pay roughly 2.5x what drivers in rural areas like Lemont pay.

Car Value	Coverage	750+ (Excellent)	700–749 (Good)	650–699 (Fair)	600–649 (Below Fair)
Under $30K	Full	$180	$221	$245	$432
	Standard	$130	$161	$178	$313
	Liability only	$87	$107	$118	$208
$30K–$60K	Full	$212	$262	$289	$510
	Standard	$155	$191	$211	$372
	Liability only	$95	$116	$129	$227
Over $60K	Full	$262	$322	$357	$629
	Standard	$188	$232	$256	$452
	Liability only	$102	$126	$139	$246

Pennsylvania Used Car Insurance Costs

Your used car premium depends on three main factors: your car’s value, how much coverage you choose, and your credit history. Your tort choice and where you live in Pennsylvania also play a role.

Car Value	Coverage	750+ (Excellent)	700–749 (Good)	650–699 (Fair)	600–649 (Below Fair)
Under $15K	Full	$105	$129	$142	$251
	Standard	$88	$108	$120	$211
	Liability only	$60	$74	$82	$144
$15K–$25K	Full	$125	$155	$171	$301
	Standard	$105	$129	$142	$251
	Liability only	$69	$85	$94	$167
$25K–$40K	Full	$142	$175	$194	$342
	Standard	$119	$146	$162	$285
	Liability only	$75	$92	$102	$180
Over $40K	Full	$163	$201	$222	$392
	Standard	$135	$167	$185	$326
	Liability only	$83	$102	$113	$199

What Each Coverage Level Means

Full Coverage: Includes collision, comprehensive, and liability coverage. Typical limits are 100/300/100. This pays to repair or replace your car after accidents, theft, vandalism, deer collisions, hail, or floods. Required if you finance or lease.

Standard Coverage: Same protections as full coverage but with lower limits and higher deductibles. A good middle ground when your car has lost some value but still needs protection.

Liability Only: Meets Pennsylvania’s legal minimum (15/30/5 plus medical benefits). Covers damage you cause to others but nothing for your own vehicle. Best for older cars where the premium would exceed the car’s value—but think twice about dropping comprehensive in a state that leads the nation in deer collisions.

Your Credit Score Has a Major Impact on Your Rate

Pennsylvania allows insurers to use your credit history when setting rates. Drivers with excellent credit pay less; drivers with poor credit pay more. The gap can be $1,000+ per year.

Here’s how credit tiers affect Pennsylvania premiums:

• Excellent credit: Lowest rates available, typically around the state average or below.
• Good credit: About 10-15% above excellent credit rates.
• Fair credit: 25-40% higher than drivers with excellent credit.
• Poor credit: 50-80% higher—sometimes adding $1,500+ to your annual premium.

One thing Pennsylvania does differently: gender cannot be used as a rating factor. California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, and North Carolina share this rule. Your age, driving record, and location still matter, but your gender won’t affect your rate.

MFP Tip: If your credit has improved since you last shopped for insurance, get new quotes. Even moving from “fair” to “good” credit can knock $200-$400 off your annual premium.

How to Choose the Right Coverage

Financing or Leasing a New Car

If you finance or lease, your lender will require full coverage with collision and comprehensive. You don’t get a choice here—it’s written into your loan agreement. Most lenders also cap your deductible at $500 or $1,000.

New cars depreciate fast—often 20-30% in the first year. If you total a brand-new car, your insurance pays the current market value, not what you owe. That gap can leave you writing a check for thousands of dollars.

MFP Tip: Gap insurance covers the difference between what your car is worth and what you still owe. It costs $20-$40 per year when added to your policy—much cheaper than buying it through the dealer.

Buying a Used Car

With a used car, you have more flexibility. The key question: does it make sense to pay for collision and comprehensive coverage?

The 10% Rule: Add up your annual collision and comprehensive premiums. If that total exceeds 10% of your car’s current market value, consider dropping those coverages and keeping the money you’d save for repairs or a replacement.

Example: Your 2015 Ford F-150 is worth $18,000. If collision and comprehensive cost $1,500/year (about 8%), keeping those coverages makes sense. If your 2012 Civic is worth $8,000 and collision plus comprehensive runs $1,200/year (15%), you might be better off self-insuring.

Exception for Pennsylvania: Even on an older car, think hard before dropping comprehensive. Deer collisions average $4,300 in damage, and Pennsylvania has the highest deer collision rate in the nation. If you drive rural roads at dawn or dusk, comprehensive coverage could pay for itself with one claim.

$5,000 in Property Damage Won’t Replace a Bumper on a New Truck

Pennsylvania’s minimum limits were set decades ago and haven’t kept pace with today’s costs. Here’s where they fall short:

When You Damage Someone’s Property

Pennsylvania only requires $5,000 in property damage liability—the lowest or tied for lowest in the nation alongside California’s old minimums. The average new car costs over $48,000. A basic fender bender can easily exceed $10,000 in repairs.

If you rear-end a Ram 1500 and cause $15,000 in damage, your insurance pays $5,000. You owe the remaining $10,000 out of pocket.

If You Injure Someone

The $15,000 per-person bodily injury limit disappears fast when someone needs surgery, hospitalization, or long-term rehabilitation. A broken leg requiring surgery can easily hit $50,000-$100,000. Spinal injuries or traumatic brain injuries can run into hundreds of thousands.

If your $15,000 limit doesn’t cover the injured person’s damages, they can sue you personally for the difference.

When an Uninsured Driver Hits You

About 6-8% of Pennsylvania drivers don’t have insurance—below the national average of 14%, but still a real risk. That’s roughly one in fifteen drivers. If one of them hits you and you rejected UM/UIM coverage, you have no safety net beyond your own medical benefits coverage.

Even worse, many insured Pennsylvania drivers carry only the minimums. If someone with 15/30 coverage hits you and causes $100,000 in medical bills, you’re stuck with the $85,000 difference unless you have underinsured motorist coverage.

MFP Tip: Raising your liability limits from 15/30/5 to 100/300/100 typically costs only $150-$300 more per year. That small increase protects your savings, your home, and your future wages from a lawsuit.

What Shapes Pennsylvania Rates

Pennsylvania’s Choice No-Fault System

Pennsylvania is one of only a few “choice no-fault” states. Your medical benefits coverage pays your bills regardless of fault, but you decide whether to keep full lawsuit rights (full tort) or accept restrictions in exchange for lower premiums (limited tort).

This choice affects your premium directly. Limited tort policies cost 15-20% less. But if you’re injured and can’t prove your injury meets the “serious injury” threshold, you could lose thousands in pain and suffering compensation you’d otherwise receive.

Deer Collisions: A Pennsylvania Reality

Pennsylvania leads the nation in deer-vehicle collision claims with approximately 148,000 per year. State Farm data shows Pennsylvanians have about a 1-in-59 chance of hitting an animal while driving—the second or third highest odds in the country depending on the year.

Key facts about deer collisions in Pennsylvania:

• Average claim cost: $4,300-$5,600 depending on the source.
• Peak season: October through December (deer mating season).
• Peak hours: Dawn and dusk when deer are most active.
• Under Pennsylvania law, deer collisions are not-at-fault accidents—insurers cannot surcharge your premium for filing a claim.

Deer collisions are covered under comprehensive insurance, not collision. If you swerve to avoid a deer and hit a tree, that’s a collision claim—and could raise your rates.

High-Rate Areas

Philadelphia dominates the expensive end of Pennsylvania insurance. Drivers in the city can pay $237/month or more for full coverage, compared to $93/month in rural areas like Lemont. Factors include:

• Higher population density and accident frequency.
• Elevated vehicle theft and vandalism rates.
• More uninsured drivers in urban areas.
• Higher medical costs in the Philadelphia metro.

Pittsburgh also runs above the state average, though not as high as Philadelphia. Rural central Pennsylvania and areas like State College tend to have the lowest rates in the state.

Ways to Lower Your Pennsylvania Car Insurance Costs

Bundle your policies. Combining auto and renters or homeowners insurance with the same company often saves 10-25%.

Choose full tort carefully. Limited tort saves 15-20%, but the premium difference is often smaller than people expect—sometimes just $100-$200/year. Weigh the savings against the risk of losing your right to sue for pain and suffering.

Stack your UM/UIM coverage. Pennsylvania allows you to “stack” uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage across multiple vehicles on your policy. If you have three cars with $100,000 UM limits each, you could collect up to $300,000 if hit by an uninsured driver. Stacking costs more but increases your protection.

Try a safe-driver tracking program. Many insurers offer discounts of 10-30% if you let them monitor your driving habits through an app. Good scores for smooth braking, steady speeds, and limited nighttime driving translate to savings.

Compare quotes from at least five insurers. Rates vary widely. Erie Insurance (headquartered in Pennsylvania) often offers competitive rates for PA drivers, but national carriers may beat them depending on your profile.

Raise your deductible. Increasing your deductible from $500 to $1,000 can cut your collision and comprehensive premiums by 15-25%. Just make sure you have that amount available in case of a claim.

Check for all available discounts. Ask about discounts for good students, low mileage, anti-theft devices, paying in full, paperless billing, defensive driving courses, and being claims-free for multiple years.

MFP Tip: Pennsylvania has a Point System Improvement Course that can remove points from your license and may help lower your rates. Check with your insurer to see if completing a defensive driving course qualifies you for a discount.

Buying a Car in Pennsylvania? Here’s What to Do

Get Insurance Before You Drive

You must have Pennsylvania car insurance before you can legally drive or register a vehicle. Your insurer will provide an Insurance ID card—keep it in your car at all times. A copy of your policy’s declarations page or a signed letter from your carrier also works as proof.

If you’re buying from a dealer, they may handle temporary registration. For private-party purchases, you’ll need to visit PennDOT.

Registration Requirements

Pennsylvania participates in the Insurance Verification Program (IVP), which electronically verifies your coverage. If your insurance lapses, the state will know—and penalties include fines, registration suspension, and possible license suspension.

Bring to PennDOT:

• Your Insurance ID card or proof of coverage.
• Title or proof of ownership signed over to you.
• Completed vehicle registration application.
• Valid Pennsylvania driver’s license or other proof of identity.
• Payment for registration fees and sales tax (6% state tax plus potential local taxes).

If you’re moving to Pennsylvania from another state, you must register your vehicle and obtain Pennsylvania insurance once you establish residency.

Keep Your Coverage Current

If your insurance lapses, your insurer must notify PennDOT. Consequences include suspended registration, potential license suspension, and civil penalties. The state’s electronic verification system catches gaps quickly.

Review your coverage annually. As your car ages and loses value, you may want to adjust deductibles or reconsider collision coverage. Major life changes—moving, getting married, adding teen drivers—all affect rates too. And don’t forget to revisit your tort choice if your financial situation changes.

End Note

Pennsylvania gives you more control over your car insurance than most states. The tort choice, the option to reject UM/UIM coverage, and the ability to stack coverage across multiple vehicles all put decisions in your hands. That flexibility is valuable—but only if you understand what you’re choosing.

The state’s minimums are dangerously low. $5,000 in property damage coverage won’t fix a modern car’s bumper, let alone replace one. And the tort choice that saves you $150/year could cost you $50,000+ in an accident where you can’t prove “serious injury.”

Factor in Pennsylvania’s unique risks—the highest deer collision rate in the nation, harsh winters, and significant rate differences between Philadelphia and rural areas—and it’s clear that cookie-cutter coverage won’t work here. Build a policy around your actual driving patterns, your car’s value, and the financial protection you’d need after a serious crash.