Gen Y, Gen Z and Subprimers Shop Most for Auto Insurance

Young generations and subprime consumers led an increase in the number of personal auto-insurance shoppers, according to TransUnion’s Auto Insurance Shopping Index released today.

The report says 21.7% of consumers shopped for such insurance in 2018, up 20% from the previous year.

Millennials (born between 1980 and 1994) and Generation Z (born as early as 1995) made up 39% of auto-insurance shoppers last year, up from 35%. The two age groups shopped 44% more than their elders, Gen X, Baby Boomers and the Silent Generation.

The research also indicates subprime consumers remained active auto-insurance shoppers in this year's first quarter. Last year, subprime consumers were 68% more likely than prime consumers to shop for vehicle insurance, says credit-tracker TransUnion.

The rate at which they shopped was nearly twice as much, on average, when compared with prime or above-credit consumers during the same period. 

Subprime people shop more for auto insurance in part because “they pay more for it,” David Drotos, TransUnion’s vice president-insurance solutions, tells Wards.

On reason low-credit-score consumers pay more for auto insurance is that they file more vehicle-related claims, Drotos says, citing industry statistics. In this and other cases, “credit scores are a barometer of human behavior.”

The boost in auto insurance activity is tied to insurers spending more on advertising, he says.

An Auto Insurance Report says the insurance segment’s 2018 ad spending was at $7.5 billion, a record, compared with $6.6 billion in 2017 when auto-insurance shopping was less active.