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finder.com’s rating: 4.0 / 5.0
★★★★★
Included free
Roadside assistance
New car protection
Accident forgiveness
| States served | Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia |
|---|---|
| Roadside assistance | Included free |
| Pay schedule | 6 months, monthly |
| Claims methods | online |
| New car protection | No |
| Accident forgiveness | Yes |
| Anti-theft device discount | Yes |
|---|---|
| Bundling discount | Yes |
| Defensive driving discount | Yes |
| Good student discount | No |
| Loyalty discount | Yes |
| Homeowner discount | Yes |
| Military discount | No |
| Safety device discount | Yes |
| Special employment discount | No |
| Usage-based discount | No |
| Other discounts |
| Rideshare coverage | No |
|---|---|
| SR-22 coverage |
Yes |
| Temporary & short term coverage | Yes |
Review by
Kelly Waggoner is editor-in-chief of Finder US. She's worked with publishers, magazines and nonprofits throughout New York City, including ghostwriting a how-to on copyediting for the Dummies series. Between projects, she toys with words, flips through style guides and fantasizes about the serial comma's world domination.
This startup may reward your good driving behaviors with lower rates than you’ll find elsewhere. Root’s premise is that good drivers shouldn’t have to pay more for car insurance.
First, you’ll prove your driving skills with a test drive with an app that monitors a few weeks of your actual driving on the road. Then you’ll get a rate that’s based on how much and how well you drive. Unlike traditional insurers,
Root’s prices are heavily weighted based on your test drive, instead of focusing on factors like your credit score, age, gender, location and other demographics that most drivers can’t help. Safe drivers stand to save the most, as long as you’re comfortable leaving the app on while you’re driving.
Yes, Root Insurance is a legitimate insurance company accredited by the BBB and backed by state insurance funds, just like big national insurers. Root’s a startup company founded in 2015.
The company’s not out to scam drivers or pull a bait and switch with low rates you can’t actually qualify for. You won’t get personalized support from an agent, but you can call customer support almost any time, and the easy claims process is all done online.
Like many usage-based or telematics insurers, Root’s innovative app determines your rates based on how you actually drive. Using your smartphone’s accelerometer and GPS, the Root app can determine your speed, mileage, hours driven, braking distance and more. That means you won’t pay a higher rate just because you’re under 25 or live in a risky city for driving, for example, which most insurers consider to be big factors in deciding your rates.
Safe, low-mileage drivers often report in customer reviews that they save a lot of money by switching to Root. Drivers who can’t get good rates with other insurance companies are also good candidates for Root, including high risk drivers, young drivers and drivers with sports cars. All you have to do is prove how well you drive to get a good rate.
Root believes your car insurance rate should be based primarily on your actual driving. Your test drive is the largest factor that Root considers when putting together your policy and price, except in California where telematics-based rates are illegal. But, to a lesser extent, Root also considers your driving record, general demographics and your overall credit history — factors more traditional insurers use too.
If your driving doesn’t meet Root’s requirements, Root won’t offer a price or let you open a policy. You won’t be able to retake your test drive to sign up for a policy, which could be a letdown if you don’t have another car insurance option lined up.
Yes, Root offers flexible options depending on whether you’re currently insured or need same-day coverage. To get insured from day one, you’ll get a temporary 60-day policy and rate. After your 30-day test drive, you’ll see your final rate and have 30 days to decide whether to sign up.
If you’re already insured and are still considering options, stick with your current insurer until after you’ve completed your test drive and gotten your final quote. Then you can decide whether to make the switch. You can even cancel your current insurance and let your lender know you’ve switched through the Root app.
You’ll typically complete your test drive in two to four weeks. You can check on the time left on your test drive in the app. Some drivers reported getting a quote after only a week or two, though the average is three weeks, depending on how much you drive.
The app also allows you to see how limits can affect your monthly rate, which comes in handy when narrowing down the coverage you want at a rate that fits your budget. Many drivers who switch to Root report that they can increase their limits for less than the cost of their current insurance, according to several Reddit threads. The only caveat: Root currently doesn’t offer gap insurance, which protects you if your car is totaled and your claim check is less than the amount left on your car loan.
Yes, you can get full coverage policies through Root. Full coverage policies typically include liability plus collision and comprehensive coverage. Keep in mind full coverage policies don’t actually include every kind of coverage; you’ll typically pay extra for coverage like rental car reimbursement.
For qualifying customers, Root Insurance offers a string of discounts and rewards, but they’re baked into your final rate. Root’s whole premise is rewarding good drivers with low rates. And so it doesn’t offer the discounts that mainstream car insurance providers do, like those for good students. You can get a few discounts if you qualify:
Overall, customer have good things to say about their experience with Root Insurance, especially the rates they’ve gotten with this startup — a few saying they’ve saved over $100 a month. Negative reviews focus on inaccurate driving scores on the test drive and billing issues.
At the time of writing, Root earns 4.1 out of 5 stars on the Better Business Bureau (BBB), where it’s accredited since January 2017. A good sign of solid support: Root reps have so far replied to every negative complaint on the site.
If you’re not able to get the help you need through the app’s support menu, you have options to speak with a representative, depending on your needs:
Root can even help you cancel your old insurance policy. There’s an option from the app to start the process of canceling your current policy without a single phone call.
Root Insurance claims its the first insurer founded on “the relentless pursuit of fairness.” Since 2015, its mission has been setting up good drivers with the affordable coverage they’ve earned. Everything from signup to claims is conveniently handled through the app. No insurance agents or storefronts necessary.
Based in Ohio, CEO Alexander Timm has worked in insurance since the tender age of 14, giving him lots of time to see the industry’s negative side. He started Root to fix all that, designing a unique smartphone app that eliminates the need for a network of agents or storefronts.
The company is available in over 20 states and plans to put that money toward a nationwide rollout by 2019. And Root has already expanded its availability to several more states since launch. The company’s finances are not currently rated by AM Best, though it did have a B++ rating from 2011 through 2014.
Root’s not the only usage-based insurance company out there. Other drivers have saved up to 40% on rates using telematics tools from national providers, like Progressive Snapshot, Allstate DriveWise, Liberty Mutual RightTrack or Nationwide SmartRide. Consider all your options before deciding on the best one for you.
Choose from a long list of discounts and coverage for almost any driver.
★★★★★ — Excellent
★★★★★ — Good
★★★★★ — Average
★★★★★ — Subpar
★★★★★ — Poor
Our insurance team analyzes car insurance providers to help you choose the best car insurance for you. We rank insurers from one to five stars based on key factors including customer satisfaction, policy options, price, billing, claims, and support. We create these rankings to help you narrow down an insurance provider that best suits your budget and coverage needs.
