About how much is car insurance in Japan?

Question:

Wondering for future reference when I work there as an ALT in 2 years. I already have a drivers license here in the US and I know its good for 1 year in Japan then must be switched before the year is up (not sure if it'll cost anything to switch)...

So about how much is insurance and is it necessary to have by law? I'll be 22, drove for 4 years. Thanks!!!

Answer:

If you talk about car insurance in Japan, there are 2 types. Mandatory insurance and voluntary insurance.

Mandatory insurance is an insurance offered by government and not so expensive like about 24,000 yen for 2 years. But you MUST pay this to own and drive a car in Japan. This is required. This is "necessary by law."

But most people also have a voluntary insurance because the mandatory insurance has only minimum coverage.

And the cost of voluntary insurance varies so much. It depends on many factors, like your age, your past history, what kind of coverage you want.

It's between 20,000-200,000 yen for 1 year.