Our experts choose the best products and services to help make smart decisions with your money (here's how). In some cases, we receive a commission from our partners; however, our opinions are our own. Terms apply to offers listed on this page.

Progressive Insurance Pros and Cons

ProsCons
  • National presence

  • Low rates

  • Discounts for bundling insurance products

  • Easy to obtain rates

     
  • Not ranked high in customer satisfaction across the board  

Progressive Auto Insurance Review

Progressive Auto Insurance has been around since 1937. It ranked #17 out of 18 for auto claims satisfaction in J.D. Power's auto claims satisfaction survey. Progressive is available nationwide.

Progressive Auto Insurance offers "Name Your Price" insurance options (pick a premium you want to pay, and it will show you options in your budget) and "Snapshot" safe driver programs. The carrier also has discounts for bundling auto and home insurance and good student drivers.

Most insurers offer four primary coverages: comprehensive, collision, liability (required by most states), and full coverage. Your lender may require comprehensive and collision coverage if you lease and finance your car. We've outlined the differences between the various coverage types in the table below:

DamageComprehensiveCollisionLiabilityFull
TheftYesNoNoYes
VandalismYesNoNoYes
FireYesNoNoYes
Natural disasterYesNoNoYes
Falling objects (tree)YesNoNoYes
Animal damageYesNoNoYes
Collision/accidentNoYesNoYes
RolloverNoYesNoYes
Bodily injury/medical billsNoNoYesYes
Physical damageNoNoYesYes
Property damageNoNoYesYes
Uninsured motoristNoNoYesYes

Progressive auto insurance quotes 

Progressive has some of the lowest rates across the board. Young drivers and drivers with no accident or traffic violation can expect to save on their policy with Progressive.

We gathered quotes for 30-year-old and 18-year-old males and females living in Illinois with a 2018 Honda Civic Ex. Your rate will vary based on your age, location, driving history, coverage type, coverage amount, and other factors.

Driver profileProgressive annual premium GEICO annual premiumLiberty Mutual annual premium
30-year-old male, no accident, minimum coverage$514$490$588
30-year-old male, no accident, full coverage$788$928$1,448
30-year-old female, no accident, minimum coverage$285$493$557
30-year-old female, no accident, full coverage$547$906$1,258
18-year-old male, no accident, minimum coverage$1,228$1,010$1,820
18-year-old male, no accident, full coverage$2,434$1,889$5,379
18-year-old female, no accident, minimum coverage$605$882$1,419
18-year-old female, no accident, minimum coverage$1,267$1,641$4,057

Below are the coverage amounts we used to determine Progressive's auto insurance rates:

Type of coverageMinimum coverageFull coverage
Bodily injury liability $25,000/$50,000$50,000/$100,000
Uninsured motorist$20,000$25,000
Underinsured motoristNot included$50,000/$100,000
Medical paymentsNot included$1,000 
ComprehensiveNot included$1,000 
CollisionNot included$1,000 

Progressive discounts for all insurance products

  • Multi-policy discounts — Receive a discount if you bundle two or more policies, like auto and home insurance.
  • Continuous insurance discount — Get a discount if you've been insured with any insurance company every year. 
  • Paperless discount — Get a discount when you enroll in e-billing and e-delivery of documents.
  • Automatic payments — Receive a discount when you enroll for automatic payments of your premiums (cannot be used with the pay in full discount). 
  • Pay in full discount — Earn a discount for paying your policy in full upfront. 
  • Online quote discount — Receive a discount for obtaining a quote online before starting a policy. 

Progressive auto insurance features and discounts

  • Name Your Price — Name your premium price and see coverages in your budget.
  • Snapshot — A telematics-based program that personalizes your rate based on your actual driving.
  • Good student discount — Receive a discount if your student maintains a B or better.
  • Deductible savings bank — For each policy period without an accident or violation, reduce $50 from your comprehensive or collision deductible.
  • Accident forgiveness — Progressive has "small accident forgiveness" and "large accident forgiveness" programs.

Visit Progressive's auto insurance website to learn more.

Progressive Homeowners Insurance Review

Progressive Homeowners Insurance ranks #12 out of 21 in J.D. Power's homeowners insurance customer satisfaction survey

Progressive Homeowners Insurance offers homeowners, condo, renters, and mobile home insurance. It also offers flood insurance and home warranties. It gives discounts for home security systems, automatic sprinkler systems, bundling your auto and homeowners insurance, and a new home. 

To obtain quotes from Progressive Homeowners Insurance, you must have your home's structure, exterior, interior, utilities, and personal information on hand. 

Homeowners insurance protects your dwelling, protects your personal belongings, and offers personal liability coverage for injuries that occur on your property. The table below includes coverages provided by standard homeowners insurance but will vary depending on your provider. 

CoverageIncluded with homeowners insurance?
Dwelling/structureYes
Personal liabilityYes
Personal belongingsYes
Loss of Use (additional living expenses)Yes
High-end electronics/special jewelryLimited, requires add-on*
Equipment breakdownYes
Electrical outageYes*
Service linesYes*
Cyber liabilityYes*
Water damageYes
FloodNo**
Wind or hailYes, but not high winds***
EarthquakeNo*
PetsYes*

*Available as add-on coverage if not part of policy

**Flood insurance is available through the NFIP and approved insurers

***If you live in hurricane or tornado areas, additional windstorm rider may be required

Progressive homeowners insurance discounts

  • Flood insurance — Separate optional coverage for homeowners who live in flood zones.
  • Home warranty — Optional coverage that repairs or replaces home appliances.
  • Safety and alarm discount — Receive a discount for burglar and fire alarms as well as safety features like automatic sprinklers, security systems, and cameras.
  • New home discount — Earn a home insurance discount if you're purchasing a new home or switching from a current renters insurance policy. 
  • New home construction discount — If you are building a new home, you can earn a discount.

Visit Progressive's homeowners insurance website to learn more.

Progressive Renters Insurance Review

Progressive Renters  ranks #8 out of 9 in J.D. Power's renters insurance customer satisfaction survey. While it does rank in customer satisfaction, Progressive ranks quite low compared to the segment average. 

Progressive Renters offers discounts for bundling your auto and renters insurance. You can also earn additional savings for living in a gated apartment complex/community or one that has a security guard. 

Renters insurance will cover your personal property in the event of damage and theft. Your landlord is responsible for insuring the building and structure, so you won't need to pay for dwelling coverage, unlike standard homeowners insurance. 

A renters insurance policy has three main parts: personal property coverage, personal liability coverage, and "loss of use coverage." The table below inc

CoverageIncluded with renters insurance?
Dwelling/StructureNo - landlord responsible
Personal liabilityYes
Personal belongingsYes
Loss of Use (additional living expenses)Yes
High-end electronics/special jewelryLimited, requires add-on*
RoommatesNo
Cyber liabilityYes*
Water damageYes
FloodNo**
Wind or hailYes
EarthquakeNo*
PetsYes*

*Available as add-on coverage

**Flood insurance is separate coverage

Data from Hippo Insurance

Progressive renters insurance discounts

  • Multi-policy discount — Bundle your auto and renters insurance to save an average of 3% on your car insurance. 
  • Secured/gated community discount — Get a discount if your apartment complex is gated or has a security guard.
  • Single deductible benefit — If you bundle your renters and auto insurance policy with Progressive, and you have an incident that causes you to file a claim on both your renters and auto policy, you'll receive compensation for one of your deductibles.  

Progressive renters insurance quotes

Progressive renters insurance starts at $10 per month. Its premiums are cheaper than the national average, which is $179 per year, or about $15 per month. Progressive is not the cheapest renters insurance provider in the industry, but its rates are still competitive. 

ProgressiveGEICO Liberty Mutual

Starts at $10 per month

 
Starts at $12 per month Starts at $5 per month 

Progressive Life Insurance Review

Progressive Life Insurance didn't make the list for J.D. Power's life insurance customer satisfaction

Progressive Life Insurance offers offers term and permanent life insurance products. The term life products offered are level term, final expense, and short-term RAPIDecision no medical exam policy (simplified issue). The permanent life insurance products offered are whole life and universal life.

There are two types of life insurance: permanent life and term life. Some financial advisors recommend a combination of term and permanent life insurance.

Types of term life insuranceTypes of permanent life insurance
Level premiumWhole life
Annual renewal (ART)Universal life
Return of PremiumGuaranteed Universal
ConvertibleIndexed Universal
Group life insuranceVariable life
Guaranteed issueVariable universal life
Simplified issue 
Final expense

Progressive life insurance features

  • Term life — Provides coverage for a period of time based on the term length you select — usually 10, 20, or 30 years
  • Final expense — A no medical exam life insurance policy referred to as "burial insurance" with coverage between $5,000-$35,000
  • Short-term life — Referred to as RAPIDecision Life One, a new one-year term life insurance product starting at just $7 per month, targeting millennials but available for ages 20-60. Coverage ranges from $50,000 to $200,000. It's a no medical exam simplified issue product.
  • Whole life — A permanent life insurance product that offers cash value in addition to death benefits
  • Universal life — A permanent life insurance product that offers cash value based on interest rates in addition to death benefits

Visit Progressive's life insurance website to learn more.

Progressive insurance vs. the competition

 
Progressive insurance logo
Progressive
GEICO
nationwide
Availability National presenceNational presenceNational presence
Types of insurance offeredAuto, homeowners, renters, life, and petAuto, homeowners, renters, life, and petAuto, homeowners, renters, life, and pet
Claims and customer satisfaction 
  • Ranked #17 in J.D. Power's auto claims satisfaction survey
  • Ranked #12 in J.D. Power's homeowners insurance customer satisfaction survey
  • Ranked #8 in J.D. Power's renters insurance customer satisfaction survey
  • AM's Best financial rating: A+ (Superior)
  • Ranked #13 in J.D. Power's auto claims satisfaction
  • AM's Best financial stability: A++ (Superior)
  • Ranked #11 in J.D. Power's auto claims satisfaction
  • Ranked #14 in J.D. Power's homeowners insurance customer satisfaction
  • Ranked #2 in J.D. Power's life insurance customer satisfaction
  • AM's Best financial rating: A+ (Superior)

Progressive Life Insurance, GEICO, and Nationwide insurance are available in all 50 states. All providers sell auto, homeowners, renters, life, and pet insurance. While Progressive offers some of the cheapest rates, it scores relatively low in claims and customer satisfaction across its insurance products. If you value customer satisfaction over cost, then you may opt to go with a different insurance provider. 

Progressive Life Insurance's financial strength is on par with its competitors with a rating of A+ (Superior) from A.M. Best.

Is Progressive trustworthy?

Among all policy types, the NAIC Complaint Index shows that Progressive Life Insurance has significantly more complaints compared to other top insurance companies. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) is an insurance regulatory organization that protects consumer interests. The complaint index compares a company's performance to other performance of other providers in the industry.

Progressive Life Insurance's financial stability is good, with an A.M. Best's rating of A+ (Superior). AM's Best is a credit rating agency that assesses an insurance company's ability to pay claims to its policyholders. A company that receives an A++ to B+ is stable in financial strength, while anything lower than a B means that a company is unstable or unable to meet its financial obligations. 

While Progressive Life Insurance is a legitimate insurance provider, it's important to do your own research to ensure that its the right insurance company for you. 

Progressive — Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Are Progressive's online rates the same as rates from an agent?

No, obtaining a quote online and obtaining a quote via Progressive agent can result in different rates. According to Progressive, "these areas of our business make independent decisions about the expenses they incur and the prices of their products." To learn more, visit Progressive's FAQ page.

Does Progressive offer pet insurance? 

Yes, Progressive offers pet insurance through Pets Best. You can save 5% on your policy when you obtain a quote for pet insurance, and another 5% if you insure more than one pet. Progressive offers accident, accident and illnesses, and wellness plans. 

How do I pay my Progressive bill? 

You can pay your Progressive bill by logging into Progressive's customer service site to pay online, send a payment via text on your mobile device, make a payment by phone at 1-800-776-4737, set up automatic payments, or sending a check to Progressive via mail.

Read the original article on Business Insider