Auto-Owners Insurance review 2023

Auto-Owners car insurance

Auto-Owners car insurance may be appealing to drivers looking for highly customizable coverage and plenty of discount options. Policies are available in 26 states and the company operates via a network of independent agents. Auto-Owners offers standard auto insurance coverage types as well as several optional endorsements. To personalize your coverage, you can choose additional protections, such as road trouble service, additional expense coverage, loan/lease gap, diminished value coverage or the Personal Auto Plus package, which rolls several endorsements into one. If you bundle your home and auto policies with Auto-Owners and you experience an incident that damages both your house and car, such as a windstorm or fire, you’ll only pay one deductible.

If you’re within its service area, Auto-Owners could be one of the best car insurance companies available, and our unique Bankrate Score model reflects that. The company’s auto Score is impacted by limited state availability and lower-than-average J.D. Power scores but bolstered by robust and unique offerings.

Pros and cons of Auto-Owners car insurance

If you’re shopping for new coverage, you may be gathering car insurance quotes and comparing auto insurance rates. While price is important — we discuss Auto-Owners’ average premiums below — other factors can be impactful as well. Below are some pros and cons of Auto-Owners car insurance based on our assessment:

Auto-Owners car insurance cost

On average, car insurance from Auto-Owners costs an average of $1,361 per year for full coverage and $325 per year for minimum coverage, according to Bankrate’s 2023 study of quoted annual premiums. Comparatively, the national average cost of car insurance is $2,014 per year for full coverage and $622 per year for minimum coverage. Below, we showcase Auto-Owners’ average premiums compared to the national average for a range of driver profiles.

Auto-Owners car insurance rates by driving history

If you’re looking for cheap car insurance, you should understand how your driving record impacts your insurance rates. Drivers with tickets and at-fault accidents tend to pay higher rates because they are viewed as being more likely to file a claim. Bankrate has tracked average rates by driving record for several years, and you can see our analysis for Auto-Owners in the table below. We chose not to include DUI rates as not all companies will extend coverage to drivers with DUI convictions. If you have a DUI on your record, you should contact Auto-Owners directly to see if you qualify for a quote. 

Auto-Owners car insurance quotes by age

Your age, and the ages of the drivers on your policy, is also a big factor in how much you’ll pay for car insurance. Younger drivers are more likely to get into accidents — and thus cost the insurance company money in the form of a claim payout — so they tend to pay higher rates. Keeping young drivers on their parents’ policy can help mitigate some of the cost. The average rates below are for drivers with clean driving records across several ages.

Average cost of car insurance for drivers on their parents’ policy

Average cost of car insurance for drivers on their own policy

Auto-Owners car insurance discounts

Auto-Owners offers drivers plenty of ways to save on car insurance. Some standout discounts from Auto-Owners include:

Auto-Owners car tools and benefits

Auto-Owners car insurance is sold by local independent agents. Local agents may be more familiar with the needs of drivers in a given area than online or call center consultants, since they also live and work in the same community. It can also be helpful to have a local agency to help guide you through insurance decisions and claims. Additionally, independent agents generally contract with more than one insurance company, which means that if Auto-Owners isn’t the right option for you, the agency may be able to offer another company.

In addition to standard car insurance, Auto-Owners also offers insurance solutions for ATVs and off-road vehicles, motorcycles, motorhomes and other recreational vehicles. If you are interested in Auto-Owners extended lineup of insurance for various vehicle types, contact an independent agent for a quote.

Auto-Owners home insurance

Our Auto-Owners Insurance review revealed that the company could be a great home insurance option for those who are looking for endorsements to build personalized coverage. Auto-Owners offers plenty of coverage types to help you create the policy that fits your needs. On top of standard coverage types like dwelling, other structures and liability coverage, you may also have the option to add extras like identity theft coverage, home cyber protection, guaranteed home replacement, sewer backup coverage and equipment breakdown. Auto-Owners also offers a Homeowners Plus endorsement which adds several add-ons, such as coverage for damage to your property caused by household appliances, with one endorsement.

Auto-Owners has a decent Bankrate Score for home insurance, but the rating is pulled down by the company’s lack of national availability, as well as its lack of credit ratings from Standard and Poor’s (S&P) and Moody’s.

Bankrate Award winner for best budget home insurance company

Our annual Bankrate Awards celebrates the best of the best in the world of personal finance. Auto-Owners stood out as the best budget home insurance company based on its low average rates.

Why Auto-Owners won

Auto-Owners’ average premium for home insurance is $1,049 per year for $250,000 in dwelling coverage, which is $379 lower than the national average of $1,428. Additionally, Auto-Owners offers numerous discounts to help shoppers save even more on their home insurance. Some of the more unique discount offerings include savings if you have an Auto-Owners life insurance policy, if you have an automatic water shut-off system and if you have paid your mortgage off.

Pros and cons of Auto-Owners homeowners insurance

When you’re looking for the best home insurance company for your needs, analyzing a range of metrics can be helpful. Comparing home insurance quotes from several companies and looking at factors in addition to price can be a good strategy to make sure a company meets your needs. Here are some of the pros and cons of Auto-Owners home insurance that we identified in our review:

Auto-Owners home insurance cost

On average, home insurance from Auto-Owners costs $1,049 per year for a policy with $250,000 in dwelling coverage. For context, the national average cost of home insurance is $1,428 annually for the same coverage amount. Your rates will vary based on your unique situation, including how much coverage you need. Below, you can see Auto-Owners’ average premiums compared to the national averages for a range of dwelling coverage limits.

Auto-Owners home insurance discounts

If you’re searching for a cheap home insurance policy, Auto-Owners offers several ways to save on home insurance. If you’re looking to lower your rate, check if you’re eligible for any home discounts from Auto-Owners, including these relatively unique options:

Auto-Owners home tools and benefits

If you rent your home or own a condo, Auto-Owners has insurance solutions for you. Additionally, the carrier can help facilitate the purchase of a National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) flood insurance policy, which provides coverage for damages caused by flooding. Auto-Owners also has rental home, mobile home and farm insurance options. All the coverage is sold by independent agents, just like the auto insurance, which means you’ll have a local point of contact for insurance guidance.

Auto-Owners life insurance

Auto-Owners life insurance could be a good fit for policyholders who need coverage and already have their home or auto insured with the company. Auto-Owners offers a life multi-policy discount, which could earn you some additional savings on your auto or home policy if you also have an Auto-Owners’ life insurance policy. While quotes from different life insurance companies don’t vary as much as auto or home insurance for similar policy types, shopping around and comparing life insurance quotes could still help you find additional policy types or perks best fit your financial planning needs.

Auto-Owners offers several types of life insurance, including term life, whole life and universal life insurance policies, which means that there are multiple options for finding the right policy type for your needs.

Pros and cons of Auto-Owners life insurance

Some shoppers simply want the cheapest life insurance they can find, and price is always an important factor. There are a few other things you should consider about a life insurance company, though, like if it offers endorsements that you need and what kinds of coverage it offers. Here, we’ve identified some perks and drawbacks of Auto-Owners life insurance:

Auto-Owners life insurance endorsements

Auto-Owners does not list specific life insurance endorsements on its website. However, the carrier does note that endorsements are available for each policy type. The best way to know which life insurance options can be added to your policy is to talk with an independent Auto-Owners agent. Remember that adding endorsements to your policy will likely increase the cost of your life insurance, but it will also mean you have broader coverage.

Auto-Owners life tools and benefits

In addition to term, whole and universal life, Auto-Owners also offers disability income policies and annuities. Although these are not strictly life insurance policies, they are often included within a company’s life insurance or financial services offerings.

Auto-Owners customer satisfaction

Understanding how to assess the overall level of policyholder satisfaction with a company can be an important tool as you search for the best insurer for you. To analyze satisfaction, we look at third-party scores from companies like J.D. Power, which reviews overall customer and claims satisfaction, and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), which tracks complaints and assigns each company and product line a complaint index. We also review AM Best financial strength ratings to get a sense of a company’s historical ability to pay claims. We’ve broken down Auto-Owners’ third-party ratings by product line below.

Auto-Owners auto satisfaction

Auto-Owners has an A++ (Superior) financial strength rating — the highest level available — from AM Best. This means that, historically, Auto-Owners has been financially strong enough to pay claims, even in situations where many claims are filed simultaneously.

When it comes to customer satisfaction, though, Auto-Owners doesn’t fare as well. The 2022 J.D. Power U.S. Auto Insurance Study ranked companies in 11 regions by analyzing satisfaction across five categories, including billing processes, general interaction and policy offerings. Auto-Owners isn’t a national company and was only ranked in four regions, but in three of those four, it scored below the industry average. In the Southeast region, though, Auto-Owners earned the second highest official ranking. Insurance shoppers in Southeastern states may want to consider Auto-Owners for its level of service in that area. The company is also ranked below average for claims satisfaction in the 2022 J.D. Power U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study.

When we look at complaints filed with the NAIC, though, we see a different outcome. For Auto-Owners private passenger (personal auto) insurance product, the NAIC assigned the company a complaint index of 0.66. An index of 1.00 is the baseline, average number of complaints that the NAIC expects to receive; Auto-Owners’ below-average score suggests that the NAIC received fewer complaints than average. This seems to contradict the J.D. Power findings, so it may be helpful to talk to current policyholders before committing to Auto-Owners based on its service level.

Auto-Owners homeowners satisfaction

Auto-Owners’ financial strength rating from AM Best doesn’t change based on the type of coverage you’re purchasing. This means that the A++ (Superior) rating is also indicative of Auto-Owners’ historical ability to pay home claims.

Auto-Owners wasn’t ranked in J.D. Power’s home claim satisfaction study, but the company was included in the 2022 J.D. Power U.S. Home Insurance Study.This study, like the auto insurance study, reviewed several areas of satisfaction with a company, and claims satisfaction was included. Auto-Owners was ranked slightly above the industry average for its overall home insurance satisfaction. The NAIC, though, gave the company a home insurance complaint index of 0.12, far below the 1.00 baseline.

Auto-Owners life satisfaction

J.D Power didn’t include Auto-Owners in its life insurance study, possibly because the company doesn’t write coverage nationally. However, the Auto-Owners Life Insurance Company, which underwrites the carrier’s life insurance offerings, has a 0.0 complaint index with the NAIC. Despite having over $144 million in written premium in 2021, no complaints were filed about Auto-Owners life insurance in that year.

How to file a claim with Auto-Owners

Because Auto-Owners is sold by independent agents, you will typically file a claim directly with your agency. However, Auto-Owners does have some after-hours claims-filing solutions:

• Call 1-888-869-2642 for roadside assistance or request in the mobile app
• Call 1-877-492-7768 (Safelite) or 1-888-295-2590 (Quest Claims) for glass-only auto damage
• Call 1-877-492-7768 for Safelite in AZ, FL, OH, MN, GA, KY and SC
• Call 1-888-252-4626 for all other claims

Once your claim is filed, you’ll be put in contact with a claims adjuster. The adjuster will gather information about your damage and the cause of the loss, review your policy and pay the claim if the damage is covered.

Auto-Owners availability

Auto-Owners does business in the following 26 states:

• Alabama
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• Colorado
• Florida
• Georgia
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Missouri
• Nebraska
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Pennsylvania
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Utah
• Virginia
• Wisconsin

It’s possible that some products aren’t available in certain states, so contact a local agent to know exactly what options are available to you.

Other Auto-Owners perks worth considering

In addition to auto, home and life insurance, Auto-Owners offers several other insurance solutions. If you like to keep all your insurance needs with one carrier, Auto-Owners might have additional coverage types of interest to you. Besides the products already listed, Auto-Owners offers the following types of insurance, among other options:

• Rental dwelling: If you own and rent properties, you may need landlord insurance.
• Umbrella: Umbrella insurance provides extra liability coverage to protect your finances.
• Boat: If you have a boat, jetski or other watercraft, Auto-Owners might have an insurance solution for you.
• Trailer: Auto-Owners offers options to insure utility trailers.
• Business: If you own a business, Auto-Owners could be a good option. The company offers several business insurance products, including commercial auto, commercial umbrella, bonds and workers compensation.
• Pet: Auto-Owners partners with Figo to provide pet insurance,which is essentially a health insurance policy for your animal.

Keep in mind that coverage options may vary by state, so talking with an agent or representative of the company can help you determine what’s available in your area.

Auto-Owners corporate sustainability

Auto-Owners has a dedicated giveback program called A-O Gives Back. The program was launched in 2018 and allows Auto-Owners employees from different regions access to pre-approved charity events with Auto-Owners corporate sponsors. Nonprofit organizations can request support from Auto-Owners by emailing GivingBack@aoins.com.

Not sure if Auto-Owners is right for you?

Shopping for insurance usually means getting quotes from a few different home and car insurance companies. This allows you to compare rates, coverage offerings, discount options and third-party agency ratings for things like financial strength or customer satisfaction. If you’re interested in Auto-Owners, these companies may also be worth including in your quote comparison:

Auto-Owners vs. AAA

AAA may be better known for its roadside assistance packages and membership perks, but the company also offers solid home and auto insurance options and a long list of discounts. Membership is required though, so if you’d rather not commit to a membership, Auto-Owners might be the better insurance option.

Learn more: AAA Insurance review

Auto-Owners vs. Erie

If you prefer working with a local independent agent, Erie may offer the personalized customer experience you’re looking for. Like Auto-Owners, Erie’s policies offer robust coverage options. Coverage is only available in 12 states and Washington, D.C., though, so Auto-Owners might be better if you live outside of Erie’s coverage area.

Learn more: Erie Insurance review

Auto-Owners vs. Travelers

If Auto-Owners’ array of discounts is appealing to you, Travelers could be a great option. The company offers coverage nationally and has a long list of savings opportunities for both auto and home policies. Travelers also tends to have lower-than-average satisfaction scores with J.D. Power, though. If service is a primary concern for you, neither Travelres nor Auto-Owners may be the best option.

Learn more: Travelers Insurance review

Is Auto-Owners a good insurance company?

Auto-Owners may be a good company if you want to work with local agents, bundle multiple types of coverage with one company and personalize your policies to your specific needs. The company stands out for its broad range of endorsements and discount offerings. Auto-Owners doesn’t have the best customer satisfaction ratings though, so it may be a good idea to talk with current policyholders before buying a policy.

Methodology

Bankrate utilizes Quadrant Information Services to analyze 2023 rates for all ZIP codes and carriers in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Rates are weighted based on the population density in each geographic region. Quoted rates are based on 40-year-old male and female homeowners with a clean claim history, good credit and the following coverage limits:

Auto

• $100,000 bodily injury liability per person
• $300,000 bodily injury liability per accident
• $50,000 property damage liability per accident
• $100,000 uninsured motorist bodily injury per person
• $300,000 uninsured motorist bodily injury per accident
• $500 collision deductible
• $500 comprehensive deductible

To determine minimum coverage limits, Bankrate used minimum coverage that meets each state’s requirements. Our sample drivers own a 2021 Toyota Camry, commute five days a week and drive 12,000 miles annually.

Age: Rates were calculated by evaluating our base profile with the ages 16–60 (base: 40 years) applied. Depending on age, drivers may be a renter or homeowner. Age is not a contributing rating factor in Hawaii and Massachusetts.

The rates for drivers ages 16–20 added to their parents’ policy reflect the good student and driver's training discounts applied. The rates for drivers aged 16–20 on their own policy do not include the good student and driver's training discounts. Additionally, 25-year-old rates are based on the driver as a renter and 30+ on the driver as a homeowner.

Incidents: Rates were calculated by evaluating our base profile with the following incidents applied: clean record (base), single speeding ticket and single at-fault accident. 

Homeowners

• Coverage A, Dwelling: $150,000, $250,000, $350,000, $450,000, $750,000
• Coverage B, Other Structures: $15,000, $25,000, $35,000, $45,000, $75,000
• Coverage C, Personal Property: $75,000, $125,000, $175,000, $225,000, $375,000
• Coverage D, Loss of Use: $30,000, $50,000, $70,000, $90,000, $150,000
• Coverage E, Liability: $300,000, $300,000, $300,000, $300,000, $500,000
• Coverage F, Medical Payments: $1,000

The homeowners also have a $1,000 deductible and a separate wind and hail deductible (if required).

These are sample rates and should be used for comparative purposes only. Your quotes will differ.

Bankrate Scores

Our 2023 Bankrate Score considers variables our insurance editorial team determined impacts policyholders’ experiences with an insurance company. These rating factors include a robust assessment of each company’s product availability, financial strength ratings, online capabilities and customer and claims support accessibility. Each factor was added to a category, and these categories were weighted in a tiered approach to analyze how companies perform in key customer-impacting categories.

Like our previous Bankrate Scores, each category was assigned a metric to determine performance, and the weighted sum adds up to a company’s total Bankrate Score — out of 5 points. This year, our 2023 scoring model provides a more comprehensive view, indicating when companies excel across several key areas and better highlighting where they fall short.

• Tier 1 (Cost & ratings): To determine how well auto and home insurance companies satisfy these priorities, 2023 quoted premiums from Quadrant Information Services (if available), as well as any of the latest third-party agency ratings from J.D. Power, AM Best and the NAIC, were analyzed.
• Tier 2 (Coverage & savings): We assessed companies’ coverage options and availability to help policyholders find a provider that balances cost with coverage. Additionally, we evaluated each company’s discount options listed on its website.
• Tier 3 (Support): To encompass the many ways an auto and home insurance company can support policyholders, we analyzed avenues of customer accessibility along with community support. This analysis incorporated additional financial strength ratings from S&P and Moody’s and factored a company’s corporate sustainability efforts.

Tier scores are unweighted to show the company's true score in each category out of a possible five points.