My son just turned 16, and I was shocked by how much our current insurance, Allstate, wants to cover him. I can get Progressive, for my wife, myself, and my son, for less than Allstate wants for my son. Coverage limits are actually higher with Progressive as well.
We’ve been with Allstate for like 12 years, and I haven’t done my due diligence in looking at competitors. Is there something I could be missing?
Yes, a lot of money in your Pocket. I have been with progressive a while now, and keep looking and never can find anyone cheaper. Most importantly we have had to make a few claims and it went smoothly.
Most importantly we have had to make a few claims and it went smoothly.
This is the key. You can go with the cheapest company but it’s not worth it if you can’t get a claim approved. For what’s it’s worth I gave progressive and my rate is fine, but I’ve never had to file a claim.
We switched to Progressive a couple years ago when both of my sons (16 and 18 years old) started driving. Saved a bunch of money.
My older son just got an Audi Q5 with APR stage 2 tuning and replaced the top pulley on the supercharger to boost it up to 450 hp. Only increased our premium by $133.
I switched to Geico a few years ago and I was shocked at how much cheaper it was than my existing insurance (Travelers). When my daughter got her license and was added to the insurance I had been warned by a bunch of friends that I could expect my insurance to go up by about $2000, but I was pleasantly surprised it was only about a $750 increase (on a $1500 policy - 2 cars). Of course, a couple months after she got her license she totaled my car (her fault) so my rates took a big hit, and then adding a car when she got her own caused a further jump. I got quotes from Progressive, State Farm, and Liberty Mutual and Geico is still cheaper by a fair bit. They were also very easy to deal with for my daughter’s accident.
we were with Progressive before my kids started driving 7 years ago. Looked for better options but stayed with them. Rates as good as anyone and apparently we get some perks for being with them so long. Only claim has been when someone drove into my wife’s Jeep - and they handled it really well.
i expected the rates to have come down a bit more than they have - my son is 23 now and my daughter is 21. i get that they are still young drivers, but it isn’t that much less expensive than when they were 16 and 18 despite being older, having passed their license 7 and 5 years ago, and neither having a claim in that time.
Went to an independent agent a about 6-7 years ago. Took off ~$1k from State farm on home and auto. Agent basically said the insurance companies plan on you not shopping around every few years. He ended up hooking us up with a regional insurance company that he himself uses as well.
He explained to use there are a ton of insurance companies out there that are just as good as progressive, state farm, etc. that don’t market as much, spend money on commercials etc.
Granted I have not filed a claim on anything in 10 years, but I have been very happy.
I have been with Progressive for like 20 years, and as soon as my current policy expires (Sept), they will never get another dime from me. I had never filed a claim in all that 20 years until a few months ago, and I was amazed at how poorly the entire process went. Really, really poor communication. They refused to come do the initial inspection of the vehicle until we took it to the shop, then when we did schedule a time for them to go see it at the shop they no-call / no-showed, ultimately showed up a few days later. The very first communication I received from them, before they ever inspected the vehicle, was a “reservation of rights” notification, which is basically the first legal step in them disputing all or part of the claim. Ever bit of the process was a battle, except with no communication there isn’t really anyone to battle, they just do what they do and you accept it basically. They also just did stupid nickel and dime bullshit… For example, my driver-side door was damaged, and as part of that damage the window would no longer operate because the switch was busted or came unwired or something. Fixing that issue, although it undeniably happened during the accident, was not covered as the switch had apparently outlasted it’s Progressive-defined useful life.
After taking my premiums for 20 years they showed zero interest in covering their end of the bargain or making sure I was alright. It was so bad the shop gave me $50 off of my $500 deductible even though none of the issues were their fault whatsoever. And this was a pretty simple fender bender, I can only imagine how things would go with any medical issues, lawsuits, etc… I don’t know where we will go next, likely USAA as we have some other insurance with them and they seem better. In the past Progressive was so much cheaper we stuck with them though. Now I guess I know why…
Find yourself an independent agent and have them find a good option for you.
I am one myself, and while I do write some policies with Progressive, they are one of my last choices and I only use them if the situation/savings calls for it. Essentially I can’t trust them as much to take care of my clients the way I would want them to be taken care of, but if it saves a ton of money, we will make sure the coverage is there and go with it. Independents can write with Progressive so no reason not to have an independent work on finding a good solution for you.
As far as coverage, be careful thinking that the coverage is the same or better than what you have. Geico is famous for doing everything they can to fool people into thinking the limits are as good or better, when in reality they are far from it. I had a client shop Geico online and told me the limits were the same as what we had for him and the cost was much cheaper. After I reviewed the quote with him, we found that indeed the very first limit on the page was the same, then the rest were much lower or non-existent. UM, UIM were at state minimums, no medical payments, higher deductibles, etc. Then we looked at the payment page and they had structured the schedule to look like it was cheaper over the year, but once you dug into the details, it was actually more expensive than what he was paying and the limits were garbage. Needless to say he will never look at Geico again. They recently got in trouble with the courts around here for selling underinsured limits at state min limits thus not providing any coverage at all while making clients think they had coverage.
…Lots of good info from AAARon on the fine print of coverages etc.
Used to work closely w/actuaries and data folks a couple of roles ago. There’s a ton of considerations and subtleties that go into actuarial pricing other than the change of your 16year old being added to your policy and how that determines your new rate.
e.g. Good drivers subsidize poor drivers - meaning the company can “overprice” you a good driver relative to your risk, so that they can “underprice” someone else (poor driver) relative to their risk. Overall they get 2 consumers paying them premiums. Repeat many times over at different price/tier risks. Company doing this well make them very profitable. Your 16 year old may move your risk profile very differently at one company vs. another (depending who else they’re insuring). And another nuance is the how expensive it is to fix the insured car (even for a simple repair). As cars get more sophisticated, that drives your premiums up… Replacing your vehicle w/a “safer” one doesn’t mean it’ll lowers your costs from an actuarial pricing perspective if the new vehicle is more costly to repair anyway. Then there’s credit scores too, etc. etc.
Best advice is to read the fine print carefully, shop around, and/or work through an independent agent to do this for you.
I have been with Progressive for like 20 years, and as soon as my current policy expires (Sept), they will never get another dime from me. I had never filed a claim in all that 20 years until a few months ago, and I was amazed at how poorly the entire process went. Really, really poor communication. They refused to come do the initial inspection of the vehicle until we took it to the shop, then when we did schedule a time for them to go see it at the shop they no-call / no-showed, ultimately showed up a few days later. The very first communication I received from them, before they ever inspected the vehicle, was a “reservation of rights” notification, which is basically the first legal step in them disputing all or part of the claim. Ever bit of the process was a battle, except with no communication there isn’t really anyone to battle, they just do what they do and you accept it basically. They also just did stupid nickel and dime bullshit… For example, my driver-side door was damaged, and as part of that damage the window would no longer operate because the switch was busted or came unwired or something. Fixing that issue, although it undeniably happened during the accident, was not covered as the switch had apparently outlasted it’s Progressive-defined useful life.
After taking my premiums for 20 years they showed zero interest in covering their end of the bargain or making sure I was alright. It was so bad the shop gave me $50 off of my $500 deductible even though none of the issues were their fault whatsoever. And this was a pretty simple fender bender, I can only imagine how things would go with any medical issues, lawsuits, etc… I don’t know where we will go next, likely USAA as we have some other insurance with them and they seem better. In the past Progressive was so much cheaper we stuck with them though. Now I guess I know why…
I have USAA for all my insurance. USAA may not be the cheapest overall but they don’t try to nickel and dime you to death if you have an issue. They are a very customer friendly and oriented business given their roots in having military as their primary customer base.
That stated, my auto insurance doubled when we added my newly licensed son to our policy earlier this year.
I have USAA for all my insurance. USAA may not be the cheapest overall but they don’t try to nickel and dime you to death if you have an issue. They are a very customer friendly and oriented business given their roots in having military as their primary customer base.
That stated, my auto insurance doubled when we added my newly licensed son to our policy earlier this year.
I’ve had the same experience with USAA. I’ve been with them around 28 years and claims have been great.
It did take my breath away when we added my son 2 years ago but that seems par for the course.
I have been with Progressive for like 20 years, and as soon as my current policy expires (Sept), they will never get another dime from me. I had never filed a claim in all that 20 years until a few months ago, and I was amazed at how poorly the entire process went. Really, really poor communication. They refused to come do the initial inspection of the vehicle until we took it to the shop, then when we did schedule a time for them to go see it at the shop they no-call / no-showed, ultimately showed up a few days later. The very first communication I received from them, before they ever inspected the vehicle, was a “reservation of rights” notification, which is basically the first legal step in them disputing all or part of the claim. Ever bit of the process was a battle, except with no communication there isn’t really anyone to battle, they just do what they do and you accept it basically. They also just did stupid nickel and dime bullshit… For example, my driver-side door was damaged, and as part of that damage the window would no longer operate because the switch was busted or came unwired or something. Fixing that issue, although it undeniably happened during the accident, was not covered as the switch had apparently outlasted it’s Progressive-defined useful life.
After taking my premiums for 20 years they showed zero interest in covering their end of the bargain or making sure I was alright. It was so bad the shop gave me $50 off of my $500 deductible even though none of the issues were their fault whatsoever. And this was a pretty simple fender bender, I can only imagine how things would go with any medical issues, lawsuits, etc… I don’t know where we will go next, likely USAA as we have some other insurance with them and they seem better. In the past Progressive was so much cheaper we stuck with them though. Now I guess I know why…
I have USAA for all my insurance. USAA may not be the cheapest overall but they don’t try to nickel and dime you to death if you have an issue. They are a very customer friendly and oriented business given their roots in having military as their primary customer base.
That stated, my auto insurance doubled when we added my newly licensed son to our policy earlier this year.
Good to hear, thanks!
DO NOT add your youthful driver to your policy or insurance, unless - you are purchasing a vehicle in their name, in which it will be titled in their name and registered in their name. If you are buying them a car that is in your name or they are an occasional driver of your car don’t add them. AS the actuary said, the insurance company is attempting to get the rate commensurate with the risk so in most states, it is simply a function of underwriting and not coverage. In most states, any permissive user is covered unless specifically excluded by endorsement or policy language. Now if Junior gets in an accident and they are reported as a driver, they will ask for the information to properly rate them on the policy. But until then, save your money.
It’s not only a state-to-state thing it’s also an insurance carrier-to-insurance carrier thing.
Same experience with USAA here. I’m more than happy with them, especially claims. I’m dealing with a storm claim on the house right now.
My son is 18 with two speeding tickets so his rate is through the roof. Doubtful he could afford insurance if not for our USAA policy.
I have been with Progressive for like 20 years, and as soon as my current policy expires (Sept), they will never get another dime from me. I had never filed a claim in all that 20 years until a few months ago, and I was amazed at how poorly the entire process went. Really, really poor communication. They refused to come do the initial inspection of the vehicle until we took it to the shop, then when we did schedule a time for them to go see it at the shop they no-call / no-showed, ultimately showed up a few days later. The very first communication I received from them, before they ever inspected the vehicle, was a “reservation of rights” notification, which is basically the first legal step in them disputing all or part of the claim. Ever bit of the process was a battle, except with no communication there isn’t really anyone to battle, they just do what they do and you accept it basically. They also just did stupid nickel and dime bullshit… For example, my driver-side door was damaged, and as part of that damage the window would no longer operate because the switch was busted or came unwired or something. Fixing that issue, although it undeniably happened during the accident, was not covered as the switch had apparently outlasted it’s Progressive-defined useful life.
After taking my premiums for 20 years they showed zero interest in covering their end of the bargain or making sure I was alright. It was so bad the shop gave me $50 off of my $500 deductible even though none of the issues were their fault whatsoever. And this was a pretty simple fender bender, I can only imagine how things would go with any medical issues, lawsuits, etc… I don’t know where we will go next, likely USAA as we have some other insurance with them and they seem better. In the past Progressive was so much cheaper we stuck with them though. Now I guess I know why…
Bummer on your experience, like I said the 2 we had were handled quickly and fairly. But ANYONE who qualifies for USAA should go there. Never heard complaints, and those who can say its cheaper than anyplace they look.
DO NOT add your youthful driver to your policy or insurance, unless - you are purchasing a vehicle in their name, in which it will be titled in their name and registered in their name. If you are buying them a car that is in your name or they are an occasional driver of your car don’t add them. AS the actuary said, the insurance company is attempting to get the rate commensurate with the risk so in most states, it is simply a function of underwriting and not coverage. In most states, any permissive user is covered unless specifically excluded by endorsement or policy language. Now if Junior gets in an accident and they are reported as a driver, they will ask for the information to properly rate them on the policy. But until then, save your money.
You get the award for the dumbest advice on the internet for the day.
how much did your monthly bill go up after the claim? Daughter bumped into a car yesterday in a parking lot and trying to figure out if I should just pay cash… Yay me!
I think the increase was about $750 on the total policy cost
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