Mississippi leads way in drivers ' misery index'

By Paul A. Eisenstein, the Detroit Bureau
It is to feel just miserable, if it wide the tank with fuel prices again on a fast rise over time to fill parts of the country. And car insurance costs have become fast, also will.

But vary how much you can pay heavily depending on where you live. A gallon of regular unleaded, that cost is $3.16 in South Carolina this week more in Illinois goes for a dollar, according to the latest tracking information.

Combining gas and insurance and drivers in some States can costs index as much as $2,000 more than their cohorts driving in other parts of the country, according to the new automotive misery.

Measured another way, these personal transport costs alone ranging from less than 5 percent of the income of the average motorist after more than 11 percent, according to research by CarInsurance.com.

Gas and insurance damage in New Hampshire, according to the index, on average $2.932, at least a year, or 4.4 percent of the typical household income. Alaska, Connecticut, Colorado, and Washington rounded the top five, with their misery index at or below 5 percent.

At the other end of the scale, with misery is index of 11.6 percent. Drivers in that State not only are some of the highest insurance and gas costs-at $4.277 every - but have lower income to cover the costs.

The insurance costs alone a year ranging from Maine in an average $889 $2.589 in Louisiana. $1.479 Was found, the national average, CarInsurance.com.

The site even more looked at insurance and found that they vary down to postcode level. In a part of the Bayou State, drivers are only $1.874 have to shell out. Elsewhere however that almost to $3.530 doubled.

A variety of factors influence the gas and insurance costs. States rather closer to ports and refineries and usually cheaper fuel benefit Gulf and East Coast. Generally higher costs in the Midwest have spiked in recent months due to the pipeline and refinery problems.

As for insurance, prices can be affected, whether a State is more urban or rural and as many miles drivers tend to drive. Drivers tend to be in Wyoming, 44th on the misery index, more than 20,000 miles per year, compared to the national average of 14.133 pm.

Missippi, that the misery index exceeded, is a rural state, but "People drive many,", said CarInsurance editor of Toups. "It has also the highest percentage of uninsured motorists, car insurance so much power more expensive."