Your Raise Is Finally Beating Car Insurance Costs

Episode 110 of Wages and Prices dives into a slice of the household budget that has been grinding on drivers for years: auto insurance. Lucas and Luna unpack fresh data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showing that average hourly earnings have grown faster than motor vehicle insurance premiums over the past twelve months—a reversal of the trend that held through much of 2022 and 2023. Using the latest CPI print (May 2026) and average hourly earnings figures (June 2026), they calculate the real purchasing power gain for the typical worker. Luna brings in a specific example from the show's listener mailbag: a rideshare driver in Phoenix whose premium dropped 8 percent after shopping around, thanks in part to state-level regulatory changes. Lucas links the trend to broader disinflation in services and notes that while the headline feels good, the devil is in the deductible. The conversation stays grounded in one number: the 4.9 percent year-over-year rise in average hourly earnings versus the 3.2 percent rise in auto insurance costs. No fluff, just a concrete win for workers' wallets. #WagesAndPrices #FexingoBusiness #Economics #BusinessPodcast #CarInsurance #AutoInsurance #CostOfLiving #PurchasingPower #WageGrowth #CPI #Inflation #RealEarnings #WorkerPay #InsurancePremiums #Disinflation #Phoenix #Rideshare #ConsumerSpending Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo