The General vs. Geico

Car insurance is an agreement in which an insurance provider agrees to reimburse you for costs associated with a car accident. The agreement will have predetermined limits on the types of misfortune it will cover you for and will have clearly defined dollar limits on the amount of your reimbursement. In return for this coverage, you will need to make monthly payments called a premium.

The potential cost to life and property from a serious accident can be substantial and that is why virtually every state in the union requires any motorist to carry car insurance in order to legally drive within their borders. State governments, in the form of Insurance Commissions oversee and regulate the insurance industry within their state by, among other things, defining minimum amounts of coverage any policy must have before being allowed in its market.

The federal government contributes by providing general oversight and recommendations to state commissions. Taken together, this government oversight works to ensure that consumers are treated fairly and that insurance providers have the wherewithal to pay out on claims and reimbursements to their customers.

The premiums you can expect to pay for even basic car insurance coverage is not set in stone and will vary according to a host of variables. First, virtually every company will provide a broad variety of coverage options over and above general liability insurance. You can opt for collision insurance, temporary replacement vehicle insurance, roadside assistance coverage, and many others. You can usually choose a level of deductibles you’re comfortable paying (a deductible is the amount of money you must first pay out of your own pocket before the insurance company starts to reimburse you).

Your premiums will also be determined by a variety of personal factors such as your place of residence, the length of time of your driving experience, the type of car you drive and other factors.

In such a complicated environment, it would be understandable if you were uncertain about whether you were getting a good deal on your automobile insurance. We strongly urge you get no-cost quotes from insurance providers and see for yourself which solution is the most economical for you and your family.

All About The General

The General was founded in 1963 and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. From their inception they have focused on providing car insurance to the states they operate in. In particular, they tend to focus their efforts on providing car insurance coverage to motorists who may not have a perfect driving record and may have difficulties getting coverage from other providers.

As of 2012, The company is now a subsidiary of the American Family Insurance company, sometimes known as AmFam. They are included on the Fortune 500 list of largest companies and in recent years have reported revenue of almost $10 billion and net income of around $300 million.

In recent years their advertising campaigns have included famed National Basketball Association legend Shaquille O’Neal

The General Discounts and Savings

The first thing you should know is that The General operates in most, but not all, of the fifty state in America. So, you should definitely check whether they are licensed to operate in your particular state.

As noted, The General has historically specialized in trying to provide coverage to motorists who don’t necessarily have a perfect driving record. But rest assured, they do provide a discount for folks with a history of safe driving. The General can also provide you with a range of options to help lower your premiums. For example, you can get a discount if you can pay your yearly premium in full rather than in monthly installments. They also provide discounts for things such as Defensive Driving Course attendance, for those with good credit, for good students and for insuring multiple vehicles with them, among others.

Since car insurance is regulated at the state level, not all discounts nay be available at the exact same rate in all locales, so you should do your research to see if The General is the best fit for your car insurance needs.

Discounts

All About Geico

In 1936 an entrepreneurial couple, Leo and Lillian Goodwin, cam up with a business plan for a new insurance entrant into the burgeoning market for car insurance. In Depression era America, there weren’t many market segments in the nation’s economy with steady incomes and relative job security. But the Goodwins realized that government workers were the stable middle class segment that could fuel their business vision. Since these workers had employment in a time of such uncertainty, they would surely be a less risky pool of customers for the insurance products.

The company, formally known as the Government Employees Insurance Company, soon moved to Washington, D.C. and never looked back. GEICO was prosperous and caught the eye of the young Warren Buffet in the 1950’s after hearing one of his business professors mention it. Years later, Buffet brought GEICO into his vast Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate. In recent years the company has reported about $25 billion in annual revenue and they claim to insure somewhere around 24 million vehicles.

Geico Discounts & Savings

GEICO will offer drivers who have 5 years of continuous accident-free driving a pretty nice discount on their premiums. Rest assured, they have discounts for the rest of us, too. You can get multivehicle discounts and price breaks for being a good student.

If you are a government worker or in the armed services you should definitely check GEICO to see how much they will discount you for your service. Deployed service personnel get an even bigger discount.

As mentioned, insurance companies are primarily regulated at the state level, so the amount and availability of discounts can vary from state to state.

Comparing car insurance rates

These are two financially stable insurance providers that will both offer most motorists a discounted policy of some level. But because your personal profile details also determine your rates, it hard to say for sure who could offer you’re a more economical insurance policy. The best way to answer that question is to get a free price quote from both of them and compare. General.com is the best way to get easy to use, easy to understand free price quotes. Go online and use our tool. You’re only a few clicks away from being a smart consumer.