GEICO

The Gecko is really only half the reason I like the company so much!

When I was seventeen I was rear ended by a GEICO customer. I was really worried that somehow I'd get blamed for this since I was such a new driver and all. But funny thing is, when the GEICO field adjuster came to take pictures of my damaged truck, he actually reassured me that typically with rear-end cases, the person who rear-ends you is at fault 99% of the time. To myself I thought that was awfully nice of the guy to say, especially because that meant that his customer would have to pay for the accident. But the good feelings kept on going when he said he'd give me a check for the highest estimate I could find and on top of that, he'd throw in enough for a 2-day car rental! I wasn't even his customer, but he saw how concerned I was, and he did all this to make me feel more comfortable! In under 2 weeks I had my check from GEICO. It was a great experience

Fast forward to about a year ago. I got into an accident with a State Farm customer whose wife was a claim adjuster. I was still under my dad's Allstate policy at the time. The police officer immediately ticketed the other guy for failure to yield to oncoming traffic. I got no ticket. I'm assuming the guy's wife got angry about him being at fault so I find out that State Farm is claiming that I was majority at fault because my car was less than 50% in the left hand turning lane and mostly on the painted (non-raised) median. My Allstate claims adjuster thought this was bogus and she sent the case to arbitration. However, probably to cover her butt, she never would be specific on whether or not she thought I had a good chance in winning the case. This made me worry. My sister assured me that I would most likely win, but my adjuster's lack of enthusiasm worried me still. I felt that she wasn't going to push for me if she didn't believe that I truly wasn't at fault. Eventually she became slow at responding to my emails and calls if she did at all, and this made me worry even more.

I decided to switch to GEICO because I remembered feeling a lot more secure when working with them and I appreciated how friendly they seemed. Their rate quote was also much lower than Allstate's if I had gotten coverage on my own. This was while the arbitration was still occurring, so I had only my truck's damages reported as being paid for by Allstate. If I was found 50% or more liable, I'd also have 50-100% of the State Farm customer's damages to pay for.

Anyway. 7 months after the arbitration, I get a check for the amount of my deductible along with a very vague letter. I assumed this meant that I wasn't liable at all for the accident, and my sister reassured me again. Fast forward to 2 days ago, I decided to make sure that I was getting the best possible rate since I was found not liable for the accident. I called GEICO and they said they had already lowered my rate. Score 1 for GEICO. Then I asked if it was lowered due to the fact I was found 0% liable in arbitration. They said that they only check previous liability claims when you first open the policy, and if those change, you would have to provide proof that the surcharge should be removed from your rate. I was slightly worried about how hard it would be to prove that I wasn't liable, but I asked them exactly what I'd need, and it turned out to be just a print out of the arbitration results from Allstate and some sort of written proof that I was the driver involved in the accident. Since it was my dad's policy, his name was written in the arbitration file. So I attached my email conversation to my fax to GEICO showing that I was communicating with the Allstate adjuster and not my father. I figured this should be enough "proof" and it was! 2 hours later I got a call from GEICO stating that my rate would be lowered $170 for every 6 month period!

This is why GEICO impresses me. I did not fathom that GEICO would be so quick to lower my rate and even call me back and let me know as soon as the rate had changed. They always managed to make me feel like I was valued and they wanted my business, unlike how I ended up feeling with Allstate. I also found out that for people w/o home owner's insurance or multiple vehicles or policies with the same company GEICO's rates will be among the most competitive because they automatically offer the best rate possible and they don't rely on discounts to give you a good rate. So I highly recommend GEICO to anybody who doesn't have a home or multiple vehicles. I also recommend them for their great customer service. I also recommend American Family Insurance if you own a home, because their rates are competitive, and I know that at least one of their claim adjusters will be on my side if I need it ;)