GEICO’s motto, “15 minutes or more can save you 15% on car insurance” is a catchy way of helping consumers remember what they stand for. GEICO, or Government Employees Insurance Company, was originally created to serve government workers, members of the armed services, and their families. Founded in 1936, this company saw many movements and changes with the founder and his wife moving to Washington, D.C. to better serve and understand how to create policies that were relevant to a high number of federal employees. It should be noted that GEICO is not a government organization but rather a private corporation. One of the biggest moves came in 1996 when Berkshire Hathaway (Warren Buffet’s company) bought GEICO. Since the acquisition, GEICO has become the second largest automobile insurer in the United States.
Our Rating
Pros
Super fast claim processing
Easy to navigate quote process
No agent or middleman to deal with
Satisfaction Rating
Claims Rating
Shopping Rating
Offerings Rating
Stability Rating
What does GEICO offer?
GEICO is on the lower end of the cost scale, providing several discounts and affordable policies. The coverage GEICO offers include:
Repairs: If your vehicle breaks down and is less than 15 months old and has less than 15,000 miles on it, all repairs will be covered for a deductible. This coverage can be renewed for up to 7 years or 100,000 miles, whichever comes first.
Roadside Assistance: For less than $20, you can add roadside assistance to your coverage. This will cover fees if you need a car towed, have a flat tire, are locked out of your car, etc.
Roadside Assistance: For less than $20, you can add roadside assistance to your coverage. This will cover fees if you need a car towed, have a flat tire, are locked out of your car, etc.
Ridesharing coverage: If you’re an Uber or Lyft driver, you can merge options so that you always have coverage for your vehicle, whether you’re using it for personal or business actions.
Bodily Injury Liability: Coverage if there are injuries to the other party, including coverage for fatalities and for lawsuits. Note that this is for injury to people and not towards vehicles.
Medical Assistance: Coverage for injured drivers and/or passengers. Interestingly, you may also be covered if you are a pedestrian.
Uninsured Motorist Coverage:This will cover injuries sustained by getting hit by an uninsured driver. This also applies to a hit and run driver, depending on your state.
Comprehensive Physical Damage Coverage: This convenient addition covers various types of damages to your car, including theft, flood, fire, etc. It is recommended to pay a high deductible on these if you want to keep premiums low.
Collision Coverage: Your car is covered if you get hit or hit another vehicle or object. Again, GEICO recommends paying a large deductible to keep a low premium or forgoing this option altogether if you own an older vehicle (due to coverage only applying to the cash value of the car).
Property Damage Liability: This covers damages to property and potential lawsuits for compensation. If you have a high impact vehicle, this may be a worthy investment.
Customer Satisfaction
In a J.D. Power 2017 Insurance Shopping Study, consumers rated GEICO as average. The rating factors included:
GEICO Website Rating
This is based on how consumers were able to interact digitally with GEICO and get information.
Call Center Representative Rating
Consumers rated their phone experience connecting with an agent.
Local Agent Rating
This is based on how consumers were assisted when working with an office close to their location.
Pricing Rating
This is based on prices of coverage in relation to policy.
Policy Offerings Rating
Based on needs being met, coverage options, and ease of acquiring a policy.
Overall Satisfaction Rating
Based on how consumers felt about the experience overall.
J.D. Power also conducted a U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study survey (2017). It was concluded that GEICO “Better Than Most” or above average. Factors included:
First Notice of Loss (FNOL) Rating
This is based on initial process of reporting the claim.
Claim Servicing Rating
How insurers felt about the person handling their claim.
Estimation Process Rating
How clients felt in regards to the estimates they were given and what they thought would be a reasonable amount.
Repair Process Rating
How policyholders felt when using the repair process, including what was covered and length of time.
Rental Experience Rating
The ease and ability of using a rental vehicle was ranking highly by consumers.
Settlement Rating
How fair consumers felt the settlement was in regards to their case.
Overall Satisfaction Rating
Consumers felt pretty confident with GEICO overall.
While GEICO may need to improve their communication and information for consumers looking to learn more about GEICO’s automobile insurance, their actual service scored quite high. Aside from the repair process, everything else ranked above average.
Claims Process
GEICO wants their policyholders to get through the process quickly and with minimal stress. They even work to get your claim resolved within 48 hours! To achieve that, they:
Offer the ability to file the claim either by phone or internet, 24/7. If the vehicle is drivable, they can see you within 24 hours. If it is not, they will send an adjuster out to the location.
They are open to you choosing a repair center of your choice but encourage using their Auto Repair Xpress program that contains pre-approved centers that will work faster and with less back and forth. If you use one of these centers, GEICO will back it up with a lifetime guarantee on the service.
The inspection will take about half an hour, after which you will be given an estimate. If you have rental reimbursement insurance, you will be eligible for a rental vehicle while you wait on your vehicle’s repair.
GEICO will send you a check after they complete the process. The repair should be covered but the deductible will not.
If a claim is made against you, they will investigate but assure you that they’ll be on your side no matter what.
If there should be a lawsuit, GEICO will provide legal defense and advice for you.
Company Stability
GEICO is available in all 50 states and is one of the top insurance companies. They spent over $1 billion in advertising in the early 2010’s and have become well-known due to their catchphrases and characters (ex. “So easy, a caveman could do it”; GEICO gecko, GEICO “wheeee” pig, etc.). Additionally, being part of the Berkshire Hathaway group, that earned $223.60 billion in revenue in 2016, has over $620 billion in assets, and is the 7th largest company in the S&P 500 Index, leaves GEICO (and hopefully consumers) in good hands.
Value for Price
GEICO is also a direct-to-consumer company, meaning they don’t employ an additional agent, or middleman, to exchange communication between the consumer and the company. This gives GEICO the ability to keep costs down. GEICO also is excellent at rewarding drivers that don’t have collisions on their records. They keep the prices quite low, especially when compared to other automobile insurers. They also offer plenty of discounts and incentives.
Who is this best for?
GEICO is one of the more affordable automobile insurance companies and is particularly beneficial for drivers with clean records. It’s also great for consumers who prefer to compare and do business online rather than having to work with agents.
GEICO provides discounts for many different circumstances. This includes discounts for safety features like airbags and antilock brakes, good student discounts, multi-car discounts, new car discounts, and even electronic payment discounts. If you’re been free of accidents for the last 5 years or more, you’re also entitled to a discount. If you take defensive driving or have daytime running lights, you’re also eligible for a discount.
Because GEICO was created with federal workers in mind, federal employees and military (active or not) get additional discounts. However, you must be a GS-7 or higher to get the higher discount. Also, if you’re a member of certain alumni associations or federal groups, you can receive a discount.
What to look out for
Remember that GEICO doesn’t have agents or a middleman to work with. If you want personalized services, you may have difficulty. Additionally, if you’ve been involved in an accident in the past three years, you will have to pay a high price. Claims aren’t handled all too well due to not having an agent to look at for you. Additionally, GEICO doesn’t offer GAP insurance which is extremely useful if you’ve got a new car or a large automobile loan. Some coverage incentives aren’t offered or are extremely limited in certain places. Be sure to consider that and consider how many GEICO repair service options are in your area.
Conclusion
Some of the options mentioned are not available in all markets. As with anything, the best way to be certain that you’re getting the most value is to analyze what is important to you and weigh your options. GEICO is definitely one of the cheaper insurance companies and really can get you 15% off or more on car insurance within 15 minutes. If you like your quote, you have the option of buying it the same day. As always, check what is and isn’t offered to you in your state. If you have a record or want to always have a direct relationship with an agent, GEICO may not be the best option. However, if you have a clear driving history and don’t mind using the internet for most of the business, GEICO is definitely a must try.
