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Teslas can be more expensive to insure than other cars, although it can depend on factors that include the state you live in, the model, your age, and your driving history.
The average national cost of car insurance for a state minimum policy in the US is $627 annually, but insuring your Tesla can be more expensive compared with other cars. That's because they're produced using expensive materials and tech, which means it can be costly to repair them. Also, those repairs have to be performed by technicians with extra levels of training and experience.
Tesla batteries have a life expectancy of nearly 200,000 miles in the US. Batteries for all four models are covered for up to eight years under Tesla's warranty.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said third-party insurance companies' premiums were "unreasonably high" and that his company was squeezing those providers by offering its own insurance through Tesla, which was cheaper. As it happens, though, it's often not cheaper at all.
Tesla launched its insurance services in 2019. It lets vehicle owners get insurance directly from the EV maker itself, although it's only available in 12 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Virginia.
Drivers, including non-Tesla owners, ironically, can purchase a Tesla insurance policy through the Tesla app. Its website details how you can get insured in "as little as one minute" via its app.
Customers in 11 states can also opt in to getting real-time driving-based insurance. This means your premium can be cheaper if you're a safer driver. The higher your Safety Score is, the lower your premium can be. That offer is not available in Tesla's original homestate of California — Tesla headquarters are now in Texas, and the company might move all production there, too.
The Tesla Model 3 costs, on average, $3,200 a year, and the Tesla Model Y can average around $2,800 a year, data shows.
The Tesla Model X and Tesla Model S cost more to insure, at averages of $4,254 and $4,780, respectively. The Cybertruck can cost nearly $5,000.
This works out to monthly payments, on average, of $267 for Model 3, $233 for Model Y, $354 for Model X, $398 for Model S, and $416 for a Cybertruck.
These are staggering costs compared to what you'd pay to insure most other vehicles out there, but in the event your Tesla is badly damaged, you'll certainly be glad you have the coverage.
