Metromile Insurance Review
Metromile is relatively new to the insurance industry scene, and as a result, Metromile insurance reviews are harder to come by than reviews for some of its major competitors.
The company was founded in 2011 and is known for its pay-per-mile insurance policies and smart driving app that monitors vehicle health, optimizes trips, and even guides drivers back to their vehicles using GPS technology.
Find out how Metromile compares to some of the best insurance providers.
Metromiles’s policyholders can choose the best coverage for their needs by creating a policy from available options.
Here are some of the coverages offered by Metromile insurance:
- Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury: This pays for the medical expenses of the insured driver and any passengers involved in a collision with an at-fault uninsured driver.
- Property Damage Liability: Drivers who are involved in a collision that damages property other than their own are covered by this policy.
- Comprehensive Coverage: If a vehicle is stolen or damaged by something other than a collision, such as acts of nature or vandalism, comprehensive coverage takes care of damages or a vehicle replacement.
- Bodily Injury Liability: If a person other than the insured driver is injured or killed in a collision, bodily injury liability coverage pays for medical or funeral expenses, including costs incurred as a result of emotional distress caused by bodily injury. This coverage also helps to pay for legal fees if an insured driver is sued after a collision.
Metromile Claims Satisfaction
After creating a policy with a Metromile representative, policyholders usually don’t have much contact with the insurance provider.
Aside from the occasional call or visit to a representative to make minor policy changes, the bulk of interaction is through the claims process. This is why Metromile insurance ratings often weigh heavily on claims satisfaction.
When market research agencies such as J.D. Power and Consumer Reports rank insurance providers, they use unique criteria along with three key performance indicators to determine claims satisfaction: communication, ease of service interaction, and timeliness.
The J.D. Power 2017 U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study is one of the most reliable insurance ranking studies available, however, Metromile isn’t included in this study. The Better Business Bureau publishes Metromile insurance reviews from customers that show a moderate level of satisfaction with the claims process.
Although these reviews appear to indicate a simple claims process that satisfies customers, complaints show that the company has an issue with paying out claims in a timely fashion.
Overall Customer Satisfaction
Although the claims process is important, it’s not the only thing analyzed when companies like J.D. Power formulate insurance reviews. All interaction between the customer and the company are considered, including how the company responds to customers’ questions and the process they use for handling complaints.
The J.D. Power shopping study provides customers with insurance ratings that pertain to overall customer satisfaction across major insurance providers. This study is regarded as one of the most comprehensive and reliable databases of insurance company reviews, but, unfortunately, Metromile isn’t included. When it comes to satisfaction reviews, the Better Business Bureau’s Metromile insurance ratings show an overall satisfaction rating of 4 out of 5 stars based on 138 customer reviews.
Most of these reviews indicate that customers are satisfied with the service and rates provided by Metromile, as well as the convenient smart driving app. The majority of complaints pertain to the claims process, particularly the speed with which the company processes and pays out claims. The state of Pennsylvania indexes complaint and claims data from all major insurance providers to create a complaint ratio for each company. The study shows that Metromile has received a total of five justified complaints in 2017 and has a complaint ratio of 3.78.
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners also tracks complaints and Metromile’s (NAIC #16187) closed complaint ratio is 1.4 for private passenger vehicles, thanks to seven complaints during 2017. The national median is 1.00 leaving Metromile 40 percent over average.
Pricing at Metromile
Any car insurance policy price depends on a number of factors, including the age, gender, and driving history of the policyholder, geographic location, and the make and model of the vehicle.
For comparison purposes, the following scenario is used to in these Metromile insurance reviews:
- Single Male (licensed 9 to 15 years): One car (Toyota Camry), no violations, driving 12,600 to 15,000 miles a year, and living in San Francisco County, California
In this scenario, Metromile comes out on the lower end of the spectrum with a quote of $659. This price is even lower than USAA ($782) and significantly lower than Safeco at $1,065 and Esurance at $1,182.
Changing the scenario slightly also changes the pricing. If this single male drives the same vehicle in the same geographic location with no violations but has been driving 16 to 40 years, Metromile’s quote drops to $607. In this scenario, AAA is slightly lower at $603 but several of the larger companies continue to reside above the $1,000 mark such as Farmers, Nationwide, and Allstate.
Financial Strength
When searching for Metromile insurance ratings and reviews, as with any insurance provider, it’s important to consider the company’s financial strength. If a large disaster occurred that resulted in many claims being processed at once, customers need to know that their insurance provider has the finances available to pay out every claim that’s made.
The Insurance Information Institute helps consumers understand how financial ratings are issued from independent agencies and what the scores mean. If customers have difficulty locating financial strength ratings online for themselves, having a third party review Metromile’s financial statements is a good idea, and the NAIC provides an overview of each company’s financial information.
After reading this Metromile insurance review, you should have a good understanding of how the company compares to its major competitors and feel confident in choosing an insurance provider that meets your specific needs.