Does Costco Actually Have Good Deals on Auto Insurance?

Costco Auto Insurance is offered to all of its members the opportunity to purchase a competitive auto insurance plan through Connect – powered by American Family Insurance. With additional benefits extended to their Executive and Gold Star members, it sounds enticing. But, as with many things available at Costco, you should ask yourself – Does Costco actually have good deals on auto insurance?

Let’s break it down into individual parts and see how it stacks up against the competition. You can also read our in-depth review here.

Costco Deals – Discounts and Benefits – Pros

Let’s start with the pros. Connect offers Costco members an overall Costco affinity discount, meaning the insurance policies as a whole are discounted just because you buy through Costco. A current customer reported that their savings covered their membership fee and then some, and another stated that they pay half what they paid on their previous policy (more on cost below).

For those holding an Executive Costco membership, Connect extends a few extra perks. A Glass Repair Deductible Waiver will, as it states, waive the deductible if your windshield can be repaired rather than needing to be replaced. You’ll get roadside assistance 24/7, up to $75 per occurrence. And finally, lifetime renewability, allowing you to renew your policy even if you have an accident or claim, though exclusions apply. It does not cover “major violations”, and is not available in Maryland or Michigan. You also won’t be covered if you purchase an uninsurable vehicle.

In general, Connect offers some great benefits. You can choose any body shop you’d like for repairs, manage your policy yourself online, and they also offer Accident Travel Expense Coverage – which covers you in the event you get in an accident while traveling. 

Costco offers quite a few deals on ways to lower your premiums. The following are standard and feature discounts offered by Connect:

• Multiple Policy 
• Good Student 
• Good Driver (California only)
• Premier Safety 
• Defensive Driver 
• Vehicle Safety Features 
• Garaging 
• Education 
• Student Away 
• Multi-car 
• Multi-product 
• Tenure 

Disadvantages Of Costco Car Insurance – Cons

While it’s certainly easier to find the features and benefits of specific policies, we dug deeper to find the drawbacks and possible deal-breakers. 

The question of, ‘Does Costco actually have good deals on auto insurance?’ does have its pros and cons.

Costco offers auto insurance by way of a third party, Connect, which makes it a little more work than just getting information through Costco itself. It also means you will have varying levels of customer service. This includes hours of customer service that are very limited, which you might not have had if you bought direct. Costco lists it’s call center hours as Monday – Friday 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time, 9:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Saturday, and no hours on Sunday, as they are closed. A far cry from the 24/7 that many other companies offer.

We also found that, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, the complaint index was 4.02 for 2019 (the most recent year data is available). This means that they had 4x more complaints than the national average.

Are There Deals On Costco Car Insurance Coverage Options?

Costco, through Connect, offers the standard coverage you see with most major competitors. However, there are really good deals on their standard coverage options you should consider taking advantage of with your Costco membership. 

Liability Coverage

This covers bodily injury, in the event that you injure someone else and are at fault. It also covers property damage, which covers the damage that your vehicle causes to another vehicle or property.

Medical Coverage

This covers Medical Expense and Personal Injury Protection. In the event of an auto accident, the cost of all necessary medical expenses are covered, no matter who is at fault. Anyone occupying your vehicle is covered. It also covers anyone injured or killed in an accident in your vehicle, or pedestrians.

Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage

This covers yourself and your vehicle in an accident that is deemed not your fault, and the other driver either does not have insurance or their insurance doesn’t cover all of the damage.

Vehicle Coverage

Connect offers both Collision and Comprehensive vehicle coverage. With Collision, your vehicle is covered for damage caused by a collision with another vehicle or object, whether you’re at fault or not. If you choose Comprehensive, you’re covered for damage to your vehicle that you have no control over, such as break-ins, animal strikes, or natural disasters.

Optional Additional Coverage

Costco offers a few options for additional coverage. These include:

• Accident Travel Expense Coverage
• Gap Insurance
• New Car Replacement Coverage
• Rental Car Insurance
• Roadside Assistance and Towing
• Stolen Key Coverage

Cost Of Costco Auto Insurance

According to the Costco Auto Insurance website, the average customer who “switched and saved”, saved an average of $607.57 in the first year. This claim seemed to stack up with our customer research, with the majority of people finding their insurance premium was cut in half.

This fact seems to answer the question we have all been asking, ‘Does Costco actually have good deals on auto insurance?’ It looks like the answer is a resounding, Yes!

Let’s take a look at the average annual premiums from Connect through Costco and some of their competitors.

Nationwide – $1,476

State Farm – $1,480

Allstate – $2,022

Geico – $1,494

Farmers – $2,790

Costco – $1,068

Connect also boasts a financial strength score of Superior, according to the S&P Insurer Financial Strength Rating System. This means you can rest assured that it can pay out its claims

 

Key Takeaway 

Of course, shopping around for the best rates and company for you is always the “best” choice, on average, Costco Auto Insurance seems like a good deal. It includes some good benefits over the average insurance company, you’ll likely save quite a bit on your policy while still maintaining comprehensive coverage options. Though the complaint index is high and customer service might be irritating, overall this is a great option for Costco members to explore.