Nationwide Car Insurance Rates vs. Competitors
Forbes Advisor included Nationwide in our list of best car insurance companies. See how their costs compare to other companies:
Nationwide Car Insurance Cost Comparison for Good Drivers
Nationwide’s car insurance rates for good drivers are fairly cheap. Its average rate for good drivers is well below the national average of $2,026 per year.
Nationwide Car Insurance Cost Comparison for Drivers With a Speeding Ticket
Nationwide has some of the cheapest car insurance costs for drivers with a speeding ticket. A traffic ticket can raise your rates, so it’s vital to shop around for car insurance quotes to find the companies that offer you a good price.
Nationwide Car Insurance Cost Comparison for Drivers Who Caused an Accident With Injury
Nationwide’s car insurance costs are competitive when it comes to drivers who caused an accident with an injury to someone else. Its rates are about $672 cheaper than the national average of $3,009 per year.
Nationwide Car Insurance Cost Comparison for Drivers With a DUI
The national average car insurance cost for drivers with a DUI conviction is $3,363 a year. Nationwide’s auto insurance rates are a bit below the national average, coming in at $3,083, making it competitive but not cheap for drivers with a DUI.
Nationwide Car Insurance Cost Comparison for Drivers With Poor Credit
Nationwide offers the cheapest auto insurance rates for drivers with poor credit among the companies we analyzed. Its rates are nearly $1,800 per year cheaper than the national annual average of $3,847 for drivers with poor credit.
Auto insurance companies say that a person’s credit correlates with the chances someone will make a future insurance claim. This correlation leads to higher rates. All states except California, Hawaii, Massachusetts and Michigan allow car insurance companies to use a credit history when deciding rates.
Nationwide Car Insurance Cost Comparison for Adding a Teen Driver
Nationwide has the lowest average car insurance cost by far to add a teen driver among the top insurers we analyzed.
You can expect to pay thousands more for car insurance when adding a 16-year-old driver to your policy. Our analysis of large insurers found that the national average cost to add a teen driver is $2,359 a year.
Nationwide Car Insurance Cost Comparison for Young Drivers Ages 18 to 25
Nationwide’s car insurance prices are decent for drivers between ages 18 and 25. Its cost is over $600 below the national average of $3,113 a year among the large companies we analyzed.
The costs below are for young drivers who purchase their own auto insurance policies. Young adult drivers can usually reduce costs by remaining on a parent’s policy for as long as possible.
Nationwide Car Insurance Cost Comparison for Senior Drivers Ages 65 to 80
Nationwide’s auto insurance prices for drivers 65 to 80 are cheaper than other large insurers. The national average is $2,150 a year, based on our analysis of top car insurance companies. Nationwide’s rates for senior drivers are around $750 a year below the average.
Auto Insurance Complaints Against Nationwide
Nationwide has a low level of auto insurance complaints and is on par with many large insurers, based on complaints made to state insurance departments across the country. Nationwide complaints are also below the industry average.
Nationwide’s auto insurance complaints are related to claim delays, unsatisfactory claim settlement offers and claim denials.
Nationwide’s Grade from Collision Repair Professionals: C
In a survey of collision repair professionals by CRASH Network, Nationwide was given a C grade.
The opinions of collision repair professionals are valuable because they see which insurers encourage the use of lower-quality repair parts, whether insurers support recommended repair procedures and which insurers have claims processes that result in quick and acceptable claims for drivers.
Does Nationwide Offer Accident Forgiveness?
Yes, Nationwide provides accident forgiveness insurance as an optional add-on. With accident forgiveness, Nationwide doesn’t increase your car insurance rates after your first at-fault accident. The company doesn’t offer accident forgiveness in every state and there’s a cost associated with adding the feature to your insurance, but you may find it’s worth the added cost if you’re worried about future rate increases after an accident.
Does Nationwide Offer New Car Replacement?
Yes, Nationwide has new car replacement coverage, which you can add to your policy in some states. This coverage replaces a totaled vehicle with the same make and model if your car is less than three years old.
Does Nationwide Offer Gap Insurance?
Yes, Nationwide offers loan/lease or gap insurance. Gap insurance bridges the gap between the actual cash value (ACV) of your vehicle and how much you owe on the vehicle if it’s totaled. It’s an optional coverage you may want if you buy a new vehicle and have a large car loan.
Does Nationwide Offer a Diminishing Deductible?
Yes, Nationwide has a diminishing deductible option, called Vanishing Deductible. The optional Vanishing Deductible program decreases your comprehensive and/or collision deductible by $100 for every year of safe driving. The maximum deductible is $500.
So, if you have a $500 deductible and achieve five years of claims-free coverage, your deductible would drop to $0 with this feature. If you wind up getting in an accident and have a Vanishing Deductible, your deductible reward would reset to $100 off—rather than return to the deductible when you started.
Does Nationwide Offer SR-22s?
Yes, Nationwide offers SR-22 insurance, which is a certificate sometimes required by states. An SR-22 form confirms to the state that you have adequate car insurance coverage.
Drivers who may need to get an SR-22 certificate from their insurance company include those convicted of DUIs or who drove with a suspended license. If your state requires you to get an SR-22, you would notify the insurance company and request the certificate.
Does Nationwide Offer Usage-Based Insurance?
Yes, Nationwide provides a usage-based insurance program called SmartRide, which the company says can lead to a discount of up to 40%.
A SmartRide app on your phone monitors your driving habits and lets you track your progress. For four to six months, SmartRide checks your miles driven, braking habits, fast acceleration and nighttime driving. Nationwide applies a discount at your next policy renewal, which the company warns can be zero but the optional program can’t increase your premiums. There is no cost to join SmartRide.
Does Nationwide Offer Pay-Per-Mile Insurance?
Yes, Nationwide offers a pay-per-mile car insurance option called SmartMiles, a pay-per-mile program that can save you money if you don’t drive often. You get the same coverage found in standard Nationwide policies, but your costs are partially based on your actual mileage. The cost of a SmartMiles policy varies based on how many miles you drive in a month.
SmartMiles membership includes a safe driving discount of up to 10%, awarded upon renewal of your policy. The program isn’t available in all states.
Nationwide’s Auto Insurance Discounts
Nationwide Insurance offers a wide range of discounts for auto insurance customers, such as:
- Accident-free discount. If you have an accident-free driving record, you’re eligible for a discount.
- Anti-theft discount. If you have an anti-theft device in your car, you may qualify for a discount.
- Automatic payments discount. This discount applies if you sign up to pay your auto insurance premium with automatic deductions from your bank account.
- Defensive driving discount. You may be eligible for a discount if you finish a state-approved driver’s safety class. In some instances, this is available only to customers age 55 or older.
- Good student discount. A discount if you have a young driver ages 16 to 24 who has a “B” average or better in high school or college.
- Multi-policy discount. Bundling your car insurance with a homeowners insurance policy from Nationwide.
- Paperless discount. A price break for receiving your insurance bills and documents electronically.
- Safe driver discount. Nationwide customers with five years or more of good driving, with no tickets, no violations and no accidents, are eligible for a discount.
About Nationwide Insurance
Nationwide has grown into one of the world’s biggest insurance and financial services companies after starting as a small mutual auto insurance company in 1926. It is now a Fortune 100 company that offers a wide range of insurance products for various vehicles, property and business needs. Nationwide is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.
What States Does Nationwide Car Insurance Operate In?
Nationwide car insurance is available in 46 states and Washington, D.C. It is not available in Alaska, Hawaii, Louisiana or Massachusetts.
Other Types of Insurance From Nationwide
Nationwide sells other types of insurance beyond car insurance, including:
- ATV insurance
- Boat insurance
- Golf cart insurance
- Motorcycle insurance
- Scooter insurance
- Snowmobile insurance
- RV insurance
- Watercraft insurance
- Homeowners insurance
- Condo insurance
- Renters insurance
- Umbrella insurance
- Life insurance
- Pet insurance
- Travel insurance
- Farm insurance
- Business insurance
- Commercial auto insurance
- Fleet insurance
- Workers compensation insurance
Methodology
To identify the best car insurance companies we evaluated each company based on its average rates for a variety of drivers, the coverage options offered, complaints against the company and collision repair grades from auto body professionals.
Auto insurance rates (50% of score): We used data from Quadrant Information Services to find average rates from each company for good drivers, drivers who have caused an accident, drivers with a speeding ticket, drivers with a DUI, drivers with poor credit, drivers caught without insurance, adding a teen driver, senior drivers and young drivers.
Unless otherwise noted, rates are based on a 40-year-old female driver with a Toyota RAV4 and coverage of:
- $100,000 for injuries to one person, $300,000 for injuries per accident and $100,000 of property damage (known as 100/300/100).
- Uninsured motorist coverage of 100/300.
- Collision and comprehensive insurance with a $500 deductible.
Car insurance coverage options (25% of score): Any auto insurance company can provide the basics of liability insurance, collision and comprehensive coverage and other standard offerings. But it’s also important to have access to additional coverage types that can provide greater protection or cost savings. In this category we gave points to companies that offer accident forgiveness, new car replacement, vanishing deductibles, usage-based or pay-per-mile insurance and SR-22s.
Complaints (20% of score): We used complaint data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Each state’s department of insurance is in charge of logging and monitoring complaints against companies operating in their states. Most auto insurance complaints center on claims, including unsatisfactory settlements, delays, and denials. The industry complaint average is 1.00, so companies with a ratio below 1.00 have lower levels of complaints.
Collision repair (5% of score): We incorporated grades of insurance companies from collision repair professionals. We used data provided by CRASH Network, a weekly newsletter covering the collision repair and auto insurance market segments. CRASH Network’s Insurer Report Card used grades from more than 1,100 collision repair professionals to gauge auto insurers on the quality of their collision claims service.
