A new study shows that New Jersey has kept its place as having the 3rd most expensive car insurance in the nation.

According to data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, car insurance will cost $1,218 in New Jersey this year.

Deana Lykins, president of the Insurance Council of New Jersey, says rising costs for personal injury protection are to blame. "We have been spending a $1.23 for every $1.00 that we get in premium on PIP and that has been happening over the last decade...and so that inability to manage those costs are being seen through premium increases."

She says the state's rates were driven down after a series of reforms in 2003 brought more car insurers to the state and more competition, but now carriers are starting to feel the effect of these medical costs and are passing them onto you. "Some of the companies were kind of swallowing the losses in order to keep policyholders, but now they are no longer able to keep up with that any longer."

Lykins says there are some pending regulations in front of the state Department of Banking and Insurance, "We hope they will help...but we don't feel they are a solution."

She says policyholders are starting to feel the effect of higher medical costs and fraud. "There is a huge insurance fraud problem in New Jersey and until we get that under control with effective cost containment within PIP, we will constantly be fighting this battle."

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