- Car Insurance
Esurance is one of the biggest providers of auto insurance in the United States, offering cheap insurance policies for drivers in most states. But how does this company perform with regards to services and prices? In this Esurance insurance review, we aim to find out.
Find your best rate on Car Insurance!
Attention: Still Open During the Financial Crisis…
Tip: Act now to see if you qualify for lower rates!
Compare free personalized quotes from the nation’s top providers.
What is Esurance?
Esurance was founded in 1999. It positioned itself as a direct-to-consumer insurer and was one of the first insurance companies to do this. Within a year, it was offering policies to people across 24 states and was then acquired by the White Mountains Insurance Group.
A decade later, Esurance was purchased by Allstate in a deal worth $1 billion and from there the brand continued to grow. Today, Esurance is available in 43 states and continues to offer direct insurance products. This means that you don’t need to go through an agent or use the telephone and can simply apply through www.Esurance.com.
Esurance Coverage Options
In addition to all the usual coverage options, including liability coverage, collision coverage, and comprehensive insurance, Esurance offers the following features:
Rental Coverage from CarMatch
If you have comprehensive coverage and collision coverage and your car is undergoing lengthy repairs or has been stolen, Esurance’s CarMatch service will provide you with a rental car for up to 6 weeks or to the value of $3,000.
CarMatch will keep you on the road and ensure your life isn’t ground to a screeching halt just because you no longer have access to your car.
Gap Insurance
Gap insurance is often required if your car is financed as it will ensure the entirety of the balance is paid if the car is totaled.
If you purchase your car for $30,000 worth of finance and then total it in 2 years, the insurer will typically pay the value of the car at the time it is destroyed. By that time, the value could have dropped by as much as 25% (new cars depreciate rapidly in the first few years) and thanks to the added interest, the balance may be much higher than its value at the time of the accident.
Gap insurance will cover the remainder and ensure you’re not left to foot the bill by yourself. With Esurance gap insurance, up to 25% of the car’s value will be covered, which should be enough to bridge the gap.
Roadside Assistance
Esurance policyholders can add roadside assistance for a small cost. If they breakdown by the side of the road, they will be covered for services such as tire changes and towing, although this cover has a limit of $75 and every call for roadside assistance is considered an insurance claim.
Drivesense
Drivesense is a mobile app that’s offered in most (but not all) states. It tracks driving habits and allows Esurance to paint an accurate picture of your behavior, including your speed and the time of day that you drive.
By agreeing to this app, you can get an immediate discount on your auto insurance policy. The underwriters will then use the data to tweak your premiums. If you’re a safe driver, you don’t spend a lot of time behind the wheel, and you don’t drive quickly, the Drivesense app is a great way to guarantee low premiums.
Other Types of Insurance
Esurance offers homeowners insurance policies in thirty-one states, with a further twelve states offered home insurance through one of Esurance’s many partners. These policies are comprehensive and cover many of the same things found with other major insurance providers. Esurance also offers a few things not found elsewhere, including additional water damage coverage.
Some of the additional features and discounts offered by Esurance home insurance policies include:
- Save money if you have safety features fitted, including smoke detectors and alarms.
- Spend less if you have a new home.
- Choose to add identity theft protection to your policy.
- Get cover if you own a house that has been extended.
- Your first claim will not increase your rates or cause you to lose a no claims discount.
Average Cost of Esurance Across the United States
Esurance insurance rates are generally amongst the top 10 cheapest rates in any given state. In our research, we found that Esurance generally lagged behind the likes of GEICO and, in many other states, Safeco and State Farm, but the rates were consistently cheap enough to warrant including them in your comparison shopping.
To give you an idea of how much Esurance customers can expect to pay, take a look at the following average quotes.
- Alabama: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $700; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,400.
- Alaska: Esurance car insurance is not offered in this state.
- Arizona: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $700; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,500.
- Arkansas: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $600; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,500.
- California: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $700; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,900.
- Colorado: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $650; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,000.
- Connecticut: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $800; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,750.
- Delaware: Esurance car insurance is not offered in this state.
- Florida: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $1,300; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $3,000.
- Georgia: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $900; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $2,500.
- Hawaii: Esurance car insurance is not offered in this state.
- Idaho: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $400; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,000.
- Illinois: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $600; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,100.
- Indiana: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $450; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $900.
- Iowa: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $350; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,500.
- Kansas: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $500; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,400.
- Kentucky: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $950; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $2,000.
- Louisiana: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $1,100; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $3,000.
- Maine: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $350; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $850.
- Maryland: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $1,000; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage $1,900.
- Massachusetts: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $500; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,200.
- Michigan: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $1,000; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $2,000.
- Minnesota: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $700; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,300
- Mississippi: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $550; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,600.
- Missouri: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $650; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,500.
- Montana: Esurance car insurance is not offered in this state.
- Nebraska: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $550; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,250.
- Nevada: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $850; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $2,200.
- New Hampshire: Esurance car insurance is not offered in this state.
- New Jersey: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $1,000; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,800.
- New Mexico: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $650; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,650.
- New York: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $1,300; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $2,300.
- North Carolina: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $400; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,050.
- North Dakota: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $350; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,150.
- Ohio: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $400; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,000.
- Oklahoma: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $700; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,500.
- Oregon: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $750; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,400.
- Pennsylvania: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $550; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,350.
- Rhode Island: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $900; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $2,300.
- South Carolina: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $650; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,550.
- South Dakota: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $400; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage $1,450.
- Tennessee: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $450; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,300.
- Texas: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $900; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,700.
- Utah: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $550; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,300.
- Vermont: Esurance car insurance is not offered in this state.
- Virginia: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $500; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,300.
- Washington: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $750; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,500.
- West Virginia: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $750; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $1,550.
- Wisconsin: Average Cost of Minimum Insurance Coverage = $350; Average Cost of Full Insurance Coverage = $950.
- Wyoming: Esurance car insurance is not offered in this state.
Esurance Car Insurance Discounts
Discounts are offered by most car insurance companies and are a great way to bring those rates down and save a few bucks on your premiums. Esurance, like all good auto insurance companies, offers a wide spectrum of car insurance discounts, including:
- Safety Discounts: If you have anti-theft and safety devices installed in your vehicle, you can save a substantial amount on your car insurance policy. Such features include airbags, anti-lock brakes, car alarms, and tracking devices.
- Bundling: Also known as a multi-policy discount, this is provided to policyholders who purchase homeowners insurance and car insurance together.
- Good Student Discount: Maintain at least a B average to collect on this student-centric car insurance discount.
- AutoPay: By selecting AutoPay, going paperless and paying upfront, you could shave a few percent off the total cost of your premiums.
- Multi-Car: If you have several drivers and vehicles in your household, add them to the same policy and you will save a huge amount of money compared to purchasing those policies separately.
- Good Driver Discount: If you have no traffic violations or claims, you will be offered much lower rates in general.
- Homeowners Discount: Homeowners and married policyholders will pay less than single renters.
- Driver Course Discounts: Complete a driver safety course or defensive driving course to save on your Esurance policy.
Esurance Expert and Customer Reviews
Esurance has a poor score for claims satisfaction, with JD Power giving it a Below Average score overall. It also has a higher rate of complaints than many of its competitors, despite the fact that it scores surprisingly well for customer satisfaction.
It seems, therefore, that the majority of customers are very happy with the process of applying for auto insurance, as well as the low cost of these policies. But as soon as they need to make a claim, Esurance drops well below the average satisfaction rates and there are a few red flags.
Although this is a concern, there’s nothing to suggest that Esurance is not paying out the amounts that it should. Instead, the majority of the complaints concern minor delays. Esurance also has a high financial strength rating from companies like AM Best, which is not surprising when you consider the reputation of its parent company.
Esurance Auto Insurance Review: Summary
Esurance is not as old as the likes of GEICO and State Farm and it also falls a little short in terms of the benefits and products it provides, with most of the additional options provided by partners.
However, if you’re looking for a low-cost direct insurance provider that doesn’t require you to go through insurance agents and streamlines the application process, look no further.
Source: pocketyourdollars.com