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Elephant Insurance is a consumer-direct auto provider headquartered in Richmond, Virginia in 2009. It is part of the Admiral Group plc, a leading car insurer based in the U.K. with over 6 million customers across the globe.

Elephant is known for car insurance in the U.S., but also offers homeowners, renters, condo, motorcycle, life, and umbrella insurance products.  

To purchase car insurance coverage from Elephant Insurance, you have to live in the following states: Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. You can purchase Elephant insurance online or over the phone.

When researching car insurance companies and comparing quotes, it’s important to review a company’s financial ratings. The better its financial strength, the easier you’ll be able to have your claims paid on time and in full.

Elephant Insurance has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, which is the highest rating it offers. Neither Elephant or its parent company Admiral Group have a rating with AM Best, Moody’s, or Standard & Poor’s. Elephant is also not rated on any of the J.D. Power studies.

The lack of ratings are discouraging and don’t paint the best picture for the most important part of owning car insurance – a company’s ability to pay claims. Also discouraging is Elephant’s high complaint index with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. The national average is 1.00 while Elephant Insurance’s rating index is 3.36. This means consumers are more than three times likely to make a complaint against the company than expected in the market.

Elephant Auto Insurance Company Overview

elephant auto insurance logo

Elephant Insurance is a consumer-focused direct insurer, providing customers with access to all the information they need to make the best decision.

Elephant Auto was founded in 2009 and is a subsidiary of Admiral Group plc, a Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 company and one of the leading auto insurers for over 6 million drivers.

Is Elephant Car Insurance Company Financially Stable?

Many consumers forget to consider how a company’s financial strength and stability impact its ability to pay existing and new claims.

However, it’s a vital part of an auto insurer’s reliability. Otherwise, there’s no telling whether an insurer has the ability to pay its outstanding obligations.

The Insurance Information Institute provides important information on how to research Elephant Auto insurance reviews from five independent companies.

A.M. Best doesn’t rate Elephant Auto insurance or its Admiral Group parent.

However, Moody’s Investors Services gives Elephant (via the Admiral Group) an A1, with a stable ranking. It’s also possible to obtain financial statement information from the NAIC website so an independent third party can review them for stability.

Make sure to pay close attention to its nearest competitors and the top insurers in your market to get the best insurance for your vehicle.

 

What Does Elephant Auto Insurance Cover?

To find out how much car insurance costs, consumers should take the time to understand the different types of possible coverage offered by Elephant Auto:

  • Collector Car Insurance: Collector car insurance is protection for vehicles used in car shows, selective afternoon drives, and other special events. It’s definitely not meant for your primary vehicle. Antique, limited-edition, exotic, or military-grade vehicles can all be classified as collector cars.
  • Emergency Road Service Coverage: This protection is for problems that are not typically covered by your auto insurance, such as a dead battery, towing not related to an accident, being locked out of your car, a flat tire, and running out of gas.
  • Medical Payments Coverage: This optional coverage pays medical expenses related to an automobile accident. It’s subject to the terms, limits, and conditions of your policy.
  • Bodily Injury Liability: This pays for injuries and death that may occur because of an accident caused by you or another person driving your car.
  • Property Damage Liability: This coverage reimburses others for damage to another vehicle or property such as utility poles or fences in an at-fault accident.
  • Collision: This optional coverage pays for damage to your car because of a collision with another vehicle or other object in an accident you cause. Collision policies also protect you from damage caused by driving incidents that are not accident-related, such as pothole damage.
  • Comprehensive: This policy option takes care of theft and damage due to a non-collision event, including most natural hazards.

How To File A Claim

After you sign up for a policy with an Elephant Auto representative, you might not deal with the company again for weeks or months, until you’re faced with a considerable life change, such as needing to add another driver, new car, additional car, or teen drivers to your policy, or you may call or email the company regarding occasional billing questions.

Otherwise, most drivers won’t speak with an Elephant representative unless they have to file a claim. We, therefore, found that Elephant Auto insurance reviews put a lot of emphasis on how the insurer deals with customers and their claims.

Market research firms such as J.D. Power rank insurers based on many factors, including three key performance indicators used by most rating firms that evaluate the claims process. These KPIs are communication, ease of service interaction, and timeliness of responses.

Though Elephant Auto is not included in the J.D. Powers ratings, consumers looking into the company should consider these elements, and try to parse out this information when they read reviews.

Elephant Auto Insurance makes it easy to file claims online 24/7. You can choose from filing a glass only claim or any other claim. Once you enter the details about the accident, you can track the claim as it progresses by logging into your online account.

To file a claim over the phone, you can call 844-937-5353 between the hours of 8am to 8pm Monday through Friday and Saturday 9am to 5:30 pm EST. If you need to speak to a representative about an existing claim, available hours are only 8am to 5pm Monday through Friday.

Elephant Auto Insurance Customer Reviews

Elephant Auto insurance reviews by customers are available on Yelp and via the Better Business Bureau (BBB).

The BBB profile shows that Elephant Insurance is accredited by the organization, and the company received an A+ from consumers, based on 123 reviews placed in the last 3 years. Yelp shows little enthusiasm for the company due to 67 complaints filed since 2015.

Surprisingly, Consumers Advocate gives Elephant Insurance 4.5 out of 5 stars after 16 customer reviews, though the website does note the lack of financial ratings and high complaint ratio makes it come not highly recommended. Reading through the reviews paints a different picture than the high star rating leads you to believe about the auto insurer.

Overall Elephant Customer Satisfaction Review

When drivers are looking for a new auto insurance company, one of the things they should consider is how satisfied current customers are with their coverage.

Every interaction the company has with its clients impacts the overall customer satisfaction rating, whether online, in person and direct mail contacts.

How Elephant manages complaints largely determines how the customer views the company and ultimately, whether they’re willing to recommend the insurer to a friend or family member.

In the J.D. Power shopping study, Elephant Auto insurance ratings are not available, but many other companies are ranked for their performance in these categories: Policy Offerings, Price, Billing Process, Interaction, and Claims.

The National Association of Insurance Commission shows a very high complaint ratio of 2.79 based on an average of 1, with 55 complaints filed against Elephant Auto (NAIC #13688) in 2017.

How Much Does Elephant Auto Insurance Cost?

All car insurance policy prices depend on several factors such as the driver’s age, gender, driving history, geographic location, and the make and model of their car.

It can be helpful to look at different driver scenarios, if only for comparison purposes, and to get a better idea of what your car insurance rate might look like.

The Maryland Insurance Administration has created a guide to allow drivers to compare insurance rates for several companies based on scenarios. (For more information, read our “Cheap Car Insurance in Maryland“).

  1. Scenario One: Young single male, age 23, rents an apartment, drives a 2009 Honda CR-V, and drives 15,000 miles annually, with no accidents or violations in the past three years, no credit history (where applicable), no companion policy discount, and full coverage
  • Scenario Two: Young single female, age 23, rents an apartment, drives a 2009 Jeep Liberty Limited, and drives 15,000 miles annually, with one speeding ticket 19 months ago for traveling 10 miles over the speed limit, no credit history (where applicable), and no companion policy discount

For scenario one, Elephant insurance charges an annual premium of $2,829 in Allegany County, while Geico costs $992. The highest premium for this scenario is by Foremost Insurance Co at $5,753, while the lowest is by Meridian Security Insurance Co at $891.

In Allegany County, Elephant insurance charges an annual premium of $3,738 for scenario two. The highest premium for this scenario is by National General Assurance Co. at $5,546, while the lowest is by Geico at $1,116.

ELEPHANT CAR INSURANCE FAQS

Is elephant insurance non standard?

Elephant insurance is considered a non standard company, which means its rates are most competitive with drivers who have trouble finding insurance with other auto companies. High-risk drivers with tickets and accidents, young teens, and those with poor credit may find competitive rates with Elephant compared to standard car insurance companies like Allstate, Farmers, State Farm and Erie.

How to cancel elephant insurance?

According to the Elephant website, if you want to cancel your car insurance coverage, call them directly at 877-321-2095. An agent will answer the call to process your cancellation. Be aware that some online reviews mention difficulty in cancelling and there may be fees assessed for cancelling before the term is over.

How do I contact elephant insurance?

You can get a quote or file a claim online anytime. There are several phone numbers for Elephant depending on the department you need:

Alternatives to Elephant Car Insurance

If you’re not satisfied with what Elephant Insurance has to offer, these companies provide great auto insurance alternatives: