Insurance cost is not solely due to likelihood of having an accident. The thing that matters is likelihood of causing financial loss/gain for the insurance comp

Insurance cost is not solely due to likelihood of having an accident. The thing that matters is likelihood of causing financial loss/gain for the insurance company. If low-income people are not more likely to cause financial loss, then competition for customers would make the insurance cost equal. Some reasons why this is not so: Bad credit and the likelihood of an accident are correlated because both are affected by risk-taking behavior. People with high income are far less likely to make insurance claims for minor damage. They know that the deductible would prevent recovering most of the cost, and that the insurance cost would increase enough to offset what little was recovered. The claim payment is not worth the ongoing expense of higher premiums. People with low income are less likely to fund minor repairs without an insurance claim; they need the money to make repairs. There is a fraud problem. I've seen this in person, getting advice from a heroin dealer who lived next door. I damaged my car. He said I should just report that I found it that way, parked on the street.