{"id":2289,"date":"2013-11-11T17:38:18","date_gmt":"2013-11-11T22:38:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.roadtrafficsigns.com\/blog\/?p=2289"},"modified":"2026-03-11T08:37:52","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T12:37:52","slug":"car-color-insurance-safety","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.roadtrafficsigns.com/blog\/car-color-insurance-safety\/","title":{"rendered":"How your car’s color affects your insurance – and safety"},"content":{"rendered":"

Car convention has long dictated that insurance rates are higher for red cars; and, at first blush, the urban legend seems to make good sense. After all, aren\u2019t flashy red Corvettes are more likely to draw attention, and therefore the eye of traffic cops? And aren\u2019t cherry red roadsters are easier to see, and thus avoid, in dangerous nighttime driving scenarios?<\/p>\n

Insurance companies are quick to point out that the expensive red car insurance tale is a mythic one. Online car insurance company Esurance states plainly, \u201cWhile the color of your car can reflect your personal taste, it will not have a direct impact on your car insurance rate.\u201d Yet the myth is repeated extensively; in one 2011 survey<\/a>, 29% of those surveyed believed that red cars are pricier to insure.<\/p>\n

\"antique<\/a>

Believe it or not, this is what a car that’s painted for safety looks like. From DVS1mn.<\/p><\/div>\n

What does <\/i>have an impact on your insurance rate? Your driving record, claims history, credit history (in certain states), and the make, model and year of your car are all factors that come into play when car insurance companies set out to assign your rate, according to Esurance.<\/p>\n

Insurance myths aside, is there a relationship between car color or design, and accident rate? A 2007 study<\/a> led by Australia\u2019s Monash University found that white cars had the lowest crash risk. Cars painted with colors low on the \u201cvisibility index\u201d — specifically, black, blue, grey, green, red and silver — had higher crash risk than white cars; this is especially true, the study suggested, during daylight, where crash risk was higher for those colors.The same study suggested that a car’s color is also related to crash severity. In other words, lower-visibility colors have a higher likelihood of more severe crashes.<\/p>\n

Further research suggests<\/a> that black cars are the most dangerous, as they tend to be blend into the background or traffic; during daylight, black cars were found to be up to 12% more likely to be in crashes than white cars. During dawn and dusk, they were 47% more likely to be involved in crashes Grey and silver cars were the next most dangerous, then red and blue. The study also suggests that it\u2019s possible (though not proven) that orange cars are even safer than white ones.<\/p>\n

\"Red<\/a>

Contrary to popular belief, this car’s driver doesn’t pay any more for insurance just because it’s a snazzy, red 1979 Ford Fairlane Futura. From DVS1mn.<\/p><\/div>\n

Still, other factors are more important than car color alone: light conditions and the type of car exert a more significant impact on crash risk than car color alone. Color can play a role in accidents, but not necessarily a major one. As Dr. Stuart Newstead told the Daily Mail, \u201cWhilst campaigns to modify vehicle color choice could alter the crash risk for the fleet, color is a much less influential crash risk modifier than behavioral traits such as drink-driving, and speeding.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re choosing a car color, you can\u2019t go wrong with white: In addition to being one of the safest colors, it was also recently named as the world\u2019s favorite car color choice for the third year running, according to the CS Monitor<\/a>. PPG Industries, a major auto paint company, found that in North America, white led with 21%, followed by black at 19%, gray at 17%, and silver at 15%. And at least in this case, the old saw holds true: Sports cars, according to PPG, are usually red or blue, while minivans are more likely to be gold or beige.<\/p>\n

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