Progressive Insurance
The Progressive Corporation is one of the largest providers of car insurance in the United States. Along with cars, it also insures motorbikes, boats, RVs and commercial vehicles. Progressive also deals in home insurance through other select companies. Progressive has spread its roots internationally too by starting to offer car insurance in Australia. It was co-founded in 1937 by Jack Green and Joseph M. Lewis, and is based out of Mayfield Village, Ohio. Progressive crossed the $1 billion mark in terms of written premiums in 1987. In 2016, that number crossed the $20 billion mark. Progressive is well known in the insurance sector for its innovative offerings. I was the first insurance company to come up with its own website and later invited customers to buy insurance from that website. It also pioneered the use of mobile browsers and smartphone apps for rating and managing policies. Progressive was also the first insurance company to offer 24/7 claims reporting.
Progressive has a unique tool which has immensely helped its customers to find the policies tailored to their needs. Progressive has termed this tool as ‘Name your Price’. They also have an online quotation generation tool which would give the customer a price quote along with the price quotes of a few of its competitors. Progressive also has numerous integrated discounts on offer such as multi-car and safe driver discounts. They have made it easy to create a custom package with just the right amount of coverage and a premium that works the best for the customers.
Though Progressive Insurance is known for its constant barrage of advertisements they boast of a solid base of customers who are quite happy with their products and services. In its 2016 Progressive review, J.D. Power ranked Progressive as average in overall satisfaction. A.M. Best gives Progressive an A+ for financial stability and strength.
Amica Mutual Insurance Company
Amica was founded in 1907 by A.T. Vigneron and to begin with started offering auto, fire and theft insurance. Since then, Amica has diversified their offerings to auto, home and life insurance, along with owning a number of subsidiary insurance companies. It is the one of the oldest mutual insurer of automobiles in the United States of America. In 1941, Amica Mututal Insurance Company opened its first branch office for the public at Boston, Massachusetts. It now has 44 locations throughout USA. The company added to their bouquet of offerings, homeowners’ insurance in 1956, and then later went on to add marine and umbrella insurance. In 2007, Amica celebrated its 100th year in business.
If you are bewildered over the inclusion of Amica in this list, it is because Amica Mutual Insurance does certainly lack the name recognition that most of the other companies in this list boast of. It is also not the largest company around, but Amica finds itself at the very top when it comes to customer satisfaction, according to J.D. Power’s satisfaction survey, scoring perfect scores of 5 out of 5 in four out of seven categories.
Amica Mutual Insurance also has in their offerings, one of the most extensive menu of vehicle and driver coverage as well as prices near or at the bottom for comparable policies. And since Amica Mutual Insurance is a mutual insurance company, it does not have shareholders looking for dividends as premium surpluses are shared with the policyholders. It is worth noting though that Amica’s mobile app offering is not as robust as other companies in the list just in case that’s a deal-breaker for you.
American Family Insurance
The insurance company founded in 1927 in Madison, Winsconsin started out as an auto insurer for farmers called Farmers Mutual Insurance Company. Today it’s the ninth largest auto insurer in the United States and the fourth largest in property & casualty insurance. It is better known by its abbreviation AmFam and is essentially a private mutual company offering insurance and financial products. That means in addition to auto, customers can get home, boat, condo, ranch along with investment and retirement policies. It has 12 subsidiaries and operates in 19 states- Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin.
The auto insurance agent network of AmFam is over 3500. Although its coverage is limited in terms of geography (only 19 states) and its website is not very easy to navigate, still it rates high in terms of customer service post sales and protection offered. The comapany provides multiple discounts when opting for an umbrella coverage , multiple cars, good driving record and high safety features of the vehicle like the air bag discount as well as good student discount It also has an easy claim filing process, in fact both J.D. Power and Consumer Reports give it excellent ranking for claim satisfaction of customers.
An interesting feature from AMFam is the Teen Safe Driver Program which gives parents or guardians the facility to review the teen’s video on the road through a drive cam along with a professional driving coach for the teen, moreover, there are no charges for enrollment into this program. Although it’s a comparatively smaller company compared to others, it is a good option to switch when all the bigger players provide very similar quotes.
Travelers Insurance
Originally formed by the merger of 1853 founded Saint Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Co. from St. Paul, Minnesota, and Travelers founded in 1864 in Hartford Connecticut, The Travelers Companies Inc. today is the second largest American commercial casual property insurer as well as the third largest personal insurance writer. The company is not far behind as well as auto insurance is concerned. It ranks at the tenth position in the US auto insurance market. It has its headquarters in New York City along with offices in Hartford and St.Paul due to its former constituent companies. It operates in three primary sectors – Personal (includes auto), Business and Specialty & Bond Insurance. Apart from the US, Travelers business pans through the UK, Canada, Ireland, Singapore, China, and Brazil.
Travelers has a network of more than 13000 agents spread across the US geography providing a personalized experience to the customers. It provided competitive offers where one can club their home, car and other insurance packages. The company has multiple car insurance coverages including Liability, Collision, Comprehensive, Personal Injury Protection, Insured/Uninsured motorist and Medical Coverage. The company claims that one can save more than 13% on the amount on bundling the auto policies with other insurance.
In July 2017, Travelers launched IntelliDrive, a smartphone app which enables customers to have an increased understanding of their driving habits which in turn enables to get the appropriate auto insurance quote based on the driving behavior. JD Power review for the company gives it average customer satisfaction and A.M. Best gave it a superior financial strength ranking. Its website has been rated as easy to use by customers. The company has been especially recommended for young drivers who often get high quotes due to lack of experience.
The Hartford
The Hartford is one of the oldest insurance companies around as it was founded way back in 1810 at Hartford, Connecticut when a group of local merchants gathered in an inn at Hartford and established the Hartford Fire Insurance Company with a working capital of US $15,000. The company has been able to survive a few of the deadliest tragedies in the history of United States of America. A huge fire had burnt to ruins, New York’s financial district in 1835. The Hartford’s then president, Eliphalet Terry, used his personal wealth to cover all of the company’s damage claims. Other such catastrophic events in the history of the Hartford include the huge fire in Chicago in 1871 and the earthquake and fire in San Francisco in 1906.
The Hartford, despite being one of the oldest insurance companies around, still offers some of the best technology in the insurance space. They boast of a very slick and fast website where the customers can shop or even apply for a new insurance policy. The customers also have a 24X7 access to agents, both on call as well as online. Their best features include:
1. Multiple policy discounts
2. Top ratings for claims management
3. Guaranteed renewals of your policy as long as you can drive
With more than 200 years of operations, The Hartford has built an outstanding reputation for customer service and claims processing through the years. Even today, the company is still receiving high marks from companies like J.D. Power. In its 2015 Auto Claims Satisfaction study, The Hartford received excellent marks (4/5 or 5/5) in every category except for service interaction.
Liberty Mutual Insurance
Liberty Mutual Insurance is an American insurer which has managed to establish its presence throughout the world. It is also the fourth-largest property and casualty insurer in the United States of America. It is also the 76th richest organization on the Fortune 100 list of largest corporations in the United States based on 2013 revenue. Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, it employs more than 50,000 people at upwards of 900 locations throughout the world. As of December 31, 2016, Liberty Mutual Insurance had $121.7 billion in consolidated assets, $102.5 billion in consolidated liabilities, and $38.3 billion in annual consolidated revenue. Founded in 1912, Liberty Mutual Insurance insures more than 1.5 million vehicles each year and has some of the top customer service ratings.
Policies by Liberty Mutual Insurance can be expensive if the customer is purchasing a single policy. Liberty Mutual includes a few outstanding value-added extras in its auto policies, which makes it a great option if one is looking for such benefits. A few of these benefits are:
Accident forgiveness: The insurance renewal rates would not shoot up when the customer is involved in his/her first accident.
New car replacement: If the customer totals the car when it is less than a year old and has run for fewer than 15,000 miles, Liberty Mutual will reimburse the cost of a new car and just the depreciated value.
Better car replacement: The customer will be reimbursed for a car that is one model year newer and 15,000 fewer miles than the totalled car.
24 hours claim service
A 2016 Liberty Mutual Review by J.D. Power ranked the company as average in overall customer satisfaction. A.M Best gives it an excellent rating based on the company’s financial strength.
Allstate Corporation
The Allstate Corporation is the second largest personal lines insurer in the United States of America behind State Farm and the largest organization which is publicly held. Along with USA, the company also has personal lines insurance operations in Canada. Allstate was founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co. which used to sell tires, but was spun off in 1993.
The story behind the inception of Allstate Insurance Company is quite intriguing. The idea for Allstate Insurance Company came during a bridge game on a commuter train in 1930, when insurance broker Carl L. Odell proposed to Sears Chairman General, Robert E. Wood, his neighbor, the idea of selling auto insurance by direct mail. The idea appealed to Wood a lot, so much so that he passed the proposal to the Sears board of directors, who approved it. Allstate Insurance Company, then named after the Sears’ tire brand, went into business on April 17, 1931, offering auto insurance by direct mail and through the Sears Tire catalog.
Allstate deals in the higher price spectrum but still has a plethora of discounts that aid in shaving off anywhere from 20 to 30% off the premiums such as a premier discount that rewards you for driving for three years without accidents or violations with a 22% discount. Allstate Insurance also offers a huge assortment of services ranging from home and auto insurance to life insurance, annuities and mutual funds. Allstate Insurance has everything for everybody in the world of user experience as it not only has brick and mortar stores at a majority of the locations but also boasts of a user friendly website which helps the customers to access information at their convenience.
USAA
USAA was founded in 1922 in San Antonio, Texas, by a group of 25 U.S. Army officers when they decided to insure each other’s vehicles. Not in their wildest dreams, they would have thought that their tiny company would have millions of members in the future. They had to form this organization because they were not able to get insurance as the army officers were considered a risk-prone group by the insurers. USAA has since diversified to offer banking and insurance services to past and present members of the Armed Forces, officers and enlisted, along with their immediate families. USAA stands for United Services Automobile Association.
USAA’s auto policies exist exclusively for armed forces families only and include add-ons like discounted long-term auto insurance. But to be eligible to buy a USAA insurance, a customer needs to qualify according to USAA’s criteria, which include being one of the following:
Active Military: A member of the Air Force, Navy, Army, Coast Guard or Marines
In the review of USAA insurance, A.M. Best had granted A++ to USAA for financial strength. This insurer has also constantly earned a high score for customer satisfaction. USAA received extremely high marks from J.D. Power’s Claims Satisfaction Survey, including 5/5 in overall customer satisfaction. In addition, USAA customers were extremely satisfied with their final settlement after an accident, which is one of the most important indicators or a high-quality insurance company.
Geico
The Government Employees Insurance Company (GEICO) is an auto insurance company which is headquartered in Chevy Chase, Maryland. It is the second largest auto insurer in the United States of America, trailing after State Farm. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, the international conglomerate helmed by Warren Buffet. In 2017, Geico provided coverage for more than 24 million motor vehicles owned by more than 15 million policyholders. GEICO writes private passenger automobile insurance in all 50 U.S. states along with the District of Columbia. GEICO sells its policies through all media possible, the local agents called GEICO Field Representatives, over the phone directly to the customer, and through their website. GEICO was founded in 1936 by Leo Goodwin Sr. and his wife Lillian Goodwin to provide auto insurance directly to federal government employees and their families.
Since 1925, Goodwin had worked for USAA, an insurer which specialized in insuring only military personnel. He then decided to start his own company after rising in the army as far as a civilian could go in USAA’s military-dominated hierarchy. Based on Goodwin’s experience at USAA, GEICO’s original business model was predicated on the assumption that federal employees as a group would constitute a less risky and more financially stable pool of insureds, as opposed to the general public. Despite the presence of the word “government” in its name, GEICO has always been a private corporation not affiliated with any government organization.
Geico is best suited for customers who prefer managing their accounts online rather than walking into a physical office every time he/she wants to renew his/her policy. Geico also offers very simple to understand and simple to operate online applications along with account management tools for the end customers. It also boasts of having the best rates on auto insurance. A few other features that make Geico stand out include optional coverage types such as mechanical breakdown, emergency roadside assistance and rental reimbursement. During a 2016 Geico review, J.D. Power ranked Geico as average in overall satisfaction. Both A.M Best and Standard & Poor’s rate Geico highly for its financial strength.
State Farm
State Farm is USA’ largest automobile insurance company and was founded in 1922 by retired farmer George J. Mecherle as a mutual automobile insurance company owned by its policyholders. To begin with, State Farm used to specialize in auto insurance for farmers, but later diversified its operations to other types of insurance as well, like homeowners and life insurance, and then to banking and financial services. State Farm is ranked 33rd in the 2017 Fortune 500, which lists American companies by revenue.
State Farm Insurance has a chequered history of financial steadiness and customer satisfaction. State Farm has physical offices and agents dispersed throughout the country and has the reputation for offering individual attention to all its customers which remains unparalleled in the insurance space and can never be matched by online only insurance companies. Despite having a physical presence throughout the country, State Farm has a slick mobile app as well to serve those customers who do not wish to step into a physical store or are looking for just an online quote. It is also renowned for offering comprehensive discounts to its customers.
State Farm has more than 18% of the market share which makes it the largest automobile and home insurer in the U.S. It has upwards of 19,000 agents spread across its nationwide network and an expansive list of more than 100 services. State Farm offers multiple discounts on auto insurance, including:
1. Accident-free discounts
2. Anti-theft
3. Defensive driving course
4. Drive Safe and Save
5. Having a homeowners policy
During a 2016 State Farm review, J.D. Power ranked State Farm as above average in overall satisfaction. A.M. Best ranks it as superior in financial strength. On the downside, the customer has to go through a State Farm agent to get a policy, and the agents don’t offer any information about competitors who may provide policies with more favourable terms.
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