Cheap Car Insurance in Manchester, New Hampshire

Find cheap car insurance in Manchester, the largest city in New Hampshire. Manchester lies along the banks of the Merrimack River that divides its east and west sections. It is the home of Segway, Inc. which makes the popular two-wheeled electric vehicles invented by Dean Kamen. An estimated 110,506 residents live within Manchester’s 35 square miles. The winters can be tough here: Manchester gets about 60 inches of snowfall in one winter, with about 5 hours of light each day.

More than 8,000 students attend its 11 colleges and universities. Manchester’s famous natives include comics Adam Sandler and Seth Meyers.

Driving Conditions in Manchester

Interstate 93 runs through the city, with Interstate 293 splitting off from it just north of town and rejoining it to the south. The Everett Turnpike runs north-south through Manchester, providing direct access to Nashua to the south. I-93 takes drivers directly into Boston, Mass., about 50 miles southeast. The drive to Boston takes about an hour on a good day, more when there is congestion.

At about 23 minutes, Manchester residents have a shorter commute than the U.S. average of about 26 minutes. About 11 percent of residents carpool, while nearly 4 percent work from home. Traffic information, road work alerts and real-time reports and maps can be accessed at newengland511.org .

Unique Laws in Manchester

Beginning in 2016, New Hampshire residents convicted of sexual assault while hunting, fishing or trapping will not only face prison time, but will also have his or her fish and game license revoked.

Another recent law bans using a radio controlled drone to monitor or interfere with any hunting, fishing or trapping activities.

A group of lawmakers recently organized a contest for school children to find New Hampshire’s oddest – and dumbest — law, and then repeal it. Consequently, HB 1383 was drafted to repeal the “nocturnal seaweed collection ban,” which prohibited collecting seaweed after dark. The law had reportedly been part of a set of seaweed protection regulations.

Manchester Crime Statistics

Data compiled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for 2016 reports 742 violent crimes that year in Manchester, five of which were murder or manslaughter. The local violent crime rate of 672 offenses per 100,000 residents is above the national average of 386 offenses per 100,000 people.

The property crime rate in Manchester was 2,727 offenses per 100,000 residents, slightly above the U.S. average of 2,451 incidents per 100,000 residents. Within the city, 146 vehicles were stolen in 2016, FBI data shows, a rate of 132 incidents per 100,000 residents. The national average is 236 incidents per 100,000 people.

Manchester Safety Requirements

Oddly enough, those 18 and older in New Hampshire don’t need to worry about getting fined for safety belts. The state doesn’t have a primary or a secondary seat belt law for adults. It does, however, have a primary child passenger safety law that covers all passengers and teen-aged drivers under 18. New Hampshire in 2015 enacted a hands-free law banning use of any device capable of sending or receiving messages while driving.

Manchester Impaired Driving Laws

Like most states, the legal limit in New Hampshire is a BAC of .08. And like most other states, the BAC limit is lower for drivers under 21 – a limit of .02 – and those operating commercial vehicles – a threshold of .04. An impaired driving charge in New Hampshire is known as a DWI, or driving while intoxicated. A first offense is a Class B misdemeanor that results in a license revocation of between 90 days and two years, a minimum $500 fine and a requirement to complete an intervention program for impaired drivers. Counseling and random drug and alcohol tests also may be ordered by the court. A second offense results in 37 days imprisonment, a $750 fine, license revocation for a minimum of two years and required attendance at a seven-day multiple offender program. Prior DWIs stay on your record for 10 years. Regardless of your driving history, you can find cheap car insurance in Manchester by calling to compare policies and rates.