Customers often ask if “other” carriers can compete with Geico in Miami Florida.  The question alone is indicative of how successful Geico’s advertising has been over the past several years.  It is indicative of the questioner believing that Geico is the best and or only market for auto insurance.  The buying public have developed impressions on the macro marketplace from a micro perspective lens, their own experience.

Let’s discuss some of the specifics of the marketplace to find out more.

There are a multitude of insurance carriers who compete with Geico daily.  Let’s start by getting one thing straight.  EVERY carrier including Geico is in the business of taking rate (Charging More) where they can.  The competing carriers include well known national auto insurance carriers such as Progressive, Travelers, Safeco, Metlife, National General, Kemper, Chubb, ACE, & more.

Smaller regional carriers vary based upon your location.  In Miami Florida that might be Windhaven, Mercury & the like.

Once we are discussing price, the proposed premium is not necessarily the final price.  Some of the major carriers offer opportunities for discounts that are not typically found with Geico.  For example, Progressive, Travelers, & Safeco offer paid in full discounts that can add up to 25% of the total premium.

Additionally, Progressive & Safeco offer a Safe Driving Device (That gets installed in the glovebox of your car for 60-90 days) that monitors driving habits that can further decrease the premium by as much as an additional 30%.  These discounts are obviously given to drivers that exhibit safe driving habits.  Finally, Travelers, Safeco, Metlife, National General, and others offer annual policy terms.

So your rates are locked in for a year (it can be canceled within the policy terms with no cancellation charges), and should one have an accident or ticket, the carrier cannot increase the rates until the contract expires which is by definition further away.

Auto insurance carriers are not in the business of divulging their underwriting models; however, it has been reported that Geico gas over forty different underwriting tiers.  So based upon underlying risk variables (like age, sex, zip code, vehicle, driving history, etc…) your policy may be on the cheap end of those forty plus tiers, while someone else’s characteristics may be on the other end of the spectrum.

In short, there are scenarios and accounts every day where another carrier can wipe the floor with Geico.  The reverse is true as well.  The devil is in the details & the details need to be analyzed.  Geico is a super well capitalized Warren Buffett owned company that has simplified the car insurance buying process.

In doing so, they pushed the industry to be customer centric in bringing on new customers.  However, it is not the be all or end all when marketing auto insurance in Miami Florida or other communities.  Having a qualified independent agent who is protecting your exposures & contemplating your coverage needs is a service Geico does not offer; and it might be the most important thing you need when buying insurance.