Prius Insurance

We have Geico. Comprehensive- No Deductible, Collision - $500 Deductible, Emergency Roadside Service - No Deductible, Mechanical Breakdown Insurance - $250.00 Deductible. Six Months $411.00 Been a Geico customer for many years. Great folks to work with. They have always been good to me. And I don't have the best past driving record. Just speeding violations. None since we have owned the Prius though. Did some shopping around and this was the best price compared to State Farm, AllState, Progressive. And none of them could offer the same coverage.

 

I am also with GEICO, which is the least expensive by several hundred dollars in my area.

While no other companies besides Travelers have the official "hybrid" discount, the Travelers discount was only 10% on SOME coverages in SOME states, and they didn't release that info publicly with the press release, so its probably really tiny in reality. The best way to get discounts on your insurance is to ask your company which discounts are available and how to get them. You could be eligible for certain defensive driving courses depending on your age, if you have kids, make sure you're getting your Good Student Discount, and some companies offer discounts for certain organization affiliations.

--
Hillary

 

Looking only at annual premium costs is being penny wise and pound foolish. Choose the lowest cost insurer and then see how they pay out (or don't!) when you make a claim!

Go to your local library and have the librarian show you the latest annual report from your State Insurance Commissioner to see how many complaints were filed against each insurer in your area recently. If you do so, you will likely fiind that USAA and AMICA have the lowest reported problem levels. You can also research insurers in a back edition of Consumer Reports. There I recall reading there that USAA and Amica were the best to deal with (USAA you have to have a military connection I believe).

I used to be with State Farm but like one of the posters above, I found that in recent years their claims processing left a lot to be desired - i.e. they refused to pay out. There was a major lawsuit against them a year or two ago about this. I switched to Amica and found that they were willing to match State Farm's premium charges to get my business. You may want to ask whoever you choose to do so as well.

Insurance rates vary drastically from one region and zip code to another, and probably every one of us has selected different coverage options, so comparing rates on this forum probably won't do you a lot of good.

Don't skimp on your insurance unless you don't mind it not being there in sufficient amounts when you need it most.

(No, I am not an insurance agent and have no connection to any insurance company.)

 

State Farm is simply the best! We have them for insurance, and also retirement accounts.

A few years back we were sued after selling a house. State Farm was there for us on our side with their lawyers. We also hired our own lawyer. We settled out of court for us with the buyer. We only had to pay $2000 for our own lawyer plus $2000 out of our own pocket on a settlement of around $35,000 (of which 2 insurance companies, a realtor, and an inspector also shared).

They never raised our rates. It could have been much worse.

Also, last year my agent called when I changed my last name to tell me that if both of our cars were myself and my partner's name, we could get a multi-car discount. This saved us a couple hundred per year.

This agent retired and our new agent is even better. He asked us to meet with him several times and has gone over everything we have with them to make sure we are properly covered in the event of a personal disaster. We ended up lowering coverage in some areas and raising in others. In the end, we are saving a little on insurance rates and have coverage that is more appropriate to our risk. We are also going to invest in some more of their retirement and life insurance funds. There's never any pressure to do anything and he encourages to take some time to think over his proposals.

State Farm is the best and I appreciate the service that I've received from them. Our agent not only knows his insurance, but he is a great financial advisor and retirement planner as well. The agents and people I have worked with here truly seem to care about their customers.

Andy

 

State Farm is the very best! As far as I know, they dont have a hybrid discount yet, but I am sure they will to compete with the companies that are offering this discount. I worked for State Farm as an agent for over 30 years and I am confident that they still have the customers best interest at heart. They also have the lowest rate for us 95 % of the time. My 06 Prius is on the way, barcelona red. Trading in my 05 red. B)

 

keep in mind your state regulates a lot of the insurance discounts.

because my insurance is in NC, i am not eligible for the good student discount, the hybrid discount, the lower deductible for good driving record, etc, etc, etc. the insurance commission here is nuts.

 

While you'll hear both the very good and the very bad about State Farm, I can testify that they've been great to me. They cut a (larger than expected) check for my totalled car within two days (not a scratch on her - I took her for a swim in a retention pond)

They did charge me an accident surcharge for the next three years, but it was minimal - something like $27 every 6 months. I was very happy when it dropped off anyway =) They also reduced my husbands costs (AIG--->State Farm) from $190 to less than $100, although part of that was going from a 23 year old single male to a 23 year old married male.

On the Prius, I just (yeah, I'm that bad) got my insurance updated - my cost will go up $49 or so every six months - something like a 12% increase. I'm thrilled - the car is worth nearly 10 times as much, and I'm only paying $8 more a month. Three cheers for my Prius!

 

I have State Farm. I'm glad they stuck with me because when I first started driving, I had a slew of accidents (mostly minor) that were all my fault, that happened in quick succession of each other, and they could've dropped my policy easily. Cue to the present and my monthly premiums have gone way down, and I've added the Prius to my policy and my premium went up by ~$19/month, which isn't too bad considering that I was expecting the worst (the worst being $100 or more per month).

27 year old female/30 year old male, married, I have 0 accidents/0 tickets in the last 5 years, he has no accidents/1 ticket in the last 5 years.

I've been nothing but happy with State Farm over the years, have had nothing but positive contact with my former agent and my current agent (we switched to my husband's longtime agent when we got married because he was childhood friends with the guy's son, etc).

 

Primium amount is 2% of the story, Whether or not they'll pay is 98% of the story. State Farm has always been great with me. I've had a roll-over (many years ago, in a CJ-5 Jeep) and several fender-benders. I assert that none of them was my fault, but they could have disputed that. They never did. They always paid. All I had to do was pick a body shop of my own choosing and pay the deductible. The shop billed State Farm and they paid. No hassles.

A cheaper company that does not pay saves you nothing. Unless you drive a junker and only want liability to satisfy the law.

It's State Farm for me, all the way. Now that I own a house I have my house insurance with them and my umbrella policy as well.

 

Currently Geico with a multi-car discount at $268 for 6 mo. $500 deduct. on collision and comp.

 

I pay a little over $100 per month for $1000 deductible on comp/collision in a very high accident area with Geico. $50K/$100K bodily injury plus $100,000 property damage.

If I switched to State Farm I could save almost $30 per month if I were willing to up my deductible on my *paid off* :lol: 2005 Prius to $2000.

 

Be careful about both of those.. I took progressive for a while and within a year my rates went up 3 times for no reason..nothing changed.. no accidents, no additions no nothing!.. they get you in with low rates and then raise them..... they are banking that you have no choice because your high risk and you won't leave them...
Well I wasn't and I did!

Geico I was considering back then when I moved from progressive and I did a simple search on google for geico.... I found tons of hits about unhappy people because they will not pay if something happens barring a court order or act of congress.
I started asking around at work and it was confirmed.
I hear they are great until they have to pay!

 

I have Ameriprise-(Formerly Amex). I pay $375.00 for 6 mos. on the Prius with fair coverage. I have not been able to find a better rate. We have 3 vehicles to insure.

 

Playing the "let's keep switching insurance carriers game" is such a hassle. Find a carrier and stick - otherwise you'll continually be moving back and forth every 2-3 years.

Is the effort and time researching new prices and "discounts" really worth the $300 it will save you voer the course of a year?

Personally, we have all our vehicles, home, jewelry, etc all through a single carrier. We get multi-line discounts, plus the customer service and history benefits with being with the same agent for many years.

 

Robert, thats good that you've done good so far, but I want to ask you if you have ever submitted a claim with them?
I hear they are great until you want some money from them. Have they proved otherwise to you?.. if not, beware and do a search on google... I was considering them and I founds tons of disgrunted frustrated clients that Geico shined on and screwed over. Maybe they are better to you?