Progressive offers insurance for auto, home, renters, and life insurance through 3rd parties. However, they are most well known for their auto insurance. Progressive is the 4th largest auto insurance provider. They have been in business since 1937. Progressive serves 50 states.
Progressive ranked 18th out of 25 auto insurers in NerdWallet’s ranking of the best car insurance companies with a rating of 4 out of 5 stars. NerdWallet’s rating is a score based on two things. The first is J.D. Power’s ratings for auto insurance claims satisfaction and customer service. The second is consumer complaints against the insurer about auto insurance, based on data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
Features Specific to Progressive
Roadside Assistance: Pays for help if you run out of gas or in case of a breakdown, flat tire, dead battery, or keys locked in your car.
Gap insurance: Progressive pays up to 25% above the value of your car if it’s totaled, to cover a loan or lease balance.
Custom parts and equipment value: They pay to fix or replace custom accessories you add to your car.
Pet injury protection: This is included if you buy collision coverage. They pay veterinarian bills if your pet is injured in a car accident.
Website
Progressive’s website includes an insurance quote tool and a portal where customers can pay bills and see claim statuses. Additional features include:
- Name Your Price Tool: Designed to help you find a policy to fit your budget. Note that a lower price will come with a trade-off in coverage.
- A Comparison Feature: Will show you competitor rates alongside Progressive’s quote for the same policy options.
- Auto Financing Resources: Allows you to get an auto loan quote or refinancing quote from Capital One, a Progressive partner.
Pros
Low rates. Progressive is known for its affordable auto insurance.
Discounts. They offer discounts for Automatic Bill Pay, Continuous Insurance,
Good Student, Homeowner, Minor Child Driver, Multi-Car,
Multi-Policy, Online Purchase, Pay in Full, Safe Driver, and for Signing
Documents Online.
Name Your Price tool
Gap coverage
Custom equipment coverage
Pet injury coverage
Cons
Customer Service – They scored below average in the 2016 J.D. Power customer satisfaction survey.
Rates can increase at renewal – Based on driving data from their Snapshot program.
May not have a local agent – Very small agent network.
What Other People Are Saying
Most of the customer comments that I’ve found about Progressive have been negative. Keep in mind that people often only leave feedback when they have a complaint. I picked one quote from both the positive and negative that I felt represented what others were also saying.
There were some positive experiences out there such as this man’s experience,
“I’ve been a customer and shareholder with Progressive for about 2 years, and I honestly have 0 complaints. I’ve noticed there are a lot of complaints about the company, especially from people in California, but I don’t see it. Yes, my rates went up when I got a ticket, but that’s to be expected when talking about how insurance companies assume risks.”
And sadly, there were a lot of negative experiences such as this woman’s experience,
“I was in an accident 10/28, never filed a claim ever before. Progressive is denying my claims. Denying treatment denying an MRI. I was in a T bone accident that was NOT my fault the other driver made a left at a yellow blinking light and hit me when I was going straight. Orthopedic Doctor wants an MRI and wants to treat my neck for whiplash. Progressive wants to be conservative and denies treatment. Not renewing with them. They make it impossible to get medical care after an accident. Questioning me about cars that I haven’t driven or owned in 5+ years.”
Cost and Process to Join
Progressive offers some of the lowest auto insurance rates on the market. To consider joining Progressive, you can get a Progressive auto insurance quote and purchase your policy online in a short amount of time. You will need to answer a few basic questions about yourself and your vehicle. Then you will receive a quote to customize. If you change your coverage limits, it will tell you how much that will raise or lower your premium cost.
A cool feature for those on a budget is the Name Your Price tool that Progressive has. The program allows you to decide how much you want to pay for auto insurance and shows you the type of coverage that you’ll buy. This is a great tool to utilize for those on a budget.
Customer Support
Progressive is not known for great customer service. Unfortunately, this is the price that you pay for getting low rates. I’m basing this off of a J.D. Power’s customer satisfaction survey and from customer’s who commented on their experiences. This may also have a lot to do with them having a lower number of employees than some of the other big name auto insurers. Progressive has a very small agent network.
My Conclusion
Progressive Auto Insurance offers some of the lowest rates out there for auto insurance. This is a good insurance choice for first-time drivers and those on a budget. They offer discounts for Automatic Bill Pay, Continuous Insurance, Good Student, Homeowner, Minor Child Driver, Multi-Car, Multi-Policy, Online Purchase, Pay in Full, Safe Driver, and for Signing Documents Online.
Progressive has some useful online features such as the name your price tool. Also, their website is easy to navigate. However, low rates and nice online features do come with a price. And that price is not the best customer service. You also may not have a local agent that you can call for help. Because Progressive has a very small agent network, customers have had less than positive experiences with getting the help that they need. If you are looking for some of the lowest rates out there and don’t mind risking bad customer service, you may want to give Progressive a try.
For more reviews and information, check out our list of the Top Auto Insurance Companies of 2018.
