Cincinnati insurance review 2023

Cincinnati car insurance

Drivers who have more high-end lifestyles may particularly benefit from Cincinnati car insurance, especially when the coverage is combined with other product lines. Auto insurance coverage is available in most states and Washington, D.C., but Cincinnati does not sell auto insurance in Alaska, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma or South Dakota. If you’re shopping for the best car insurance company, it may be worth getting a quote from Cincinnati to see how well its coverage fits your situation. The Cincinnati Financial Corporation is made up of smaller underwriting companies, including The Cincinnati Insurance Company, The Cincinnati Indemnity Company and The Cincinnati Casualty Company.

Cincinnati Financial — sometimes called CinFin — offers all the standard auto insurance coverage types common with most car insurance carriers plus several endorsements to help you build a policy that works for your situation. Drivers looking for a coverage boost might be interested in the Personal Auto Plus endorsement, which adds numerous optional financial protections to your policy, including trip interruption coverage, air bag replacement and lock replacement — although the specifics of the endorsement vary by state. The helpful endorsements, plus Cincinnati’s high financial strength rating and low level of complaints contributed to its Bankrate Score.

Pros and cons of Cincinnati car insurance

Cincinnati car insurance could be a good choice for some drivers, but it’s not likely to be the best choice for everyone. If you’re in the process of getting car insurance quotes and comparing rates, you may want to think about comparing other aspects of insurers too. That way, you get a better understanding of how a company will fit your needs. Here are some pros and cons that we identified in our Cincinnati Insurance review for the company’s car insurance product:

Cincinnati car insurance cost

Based on Bankrate’s analysis of 2023 premium information from Quadrant Information Services, the average cost of full coverage car insurance with Cincinnati is $1,680 per year, while minimum coverage costs an average of $482 per year. For comparison, the national average cost of car insurance is $2,014 per year for full coverage and $622 per year for minimum coverage. Your unique rating factors will impact how much you pay, and your rate with Cincinnati could be higher or lower than the averages we show here.

Cincinnati car insurance rates by driving history

Your driving history has a large impact on how much you pay for your car insurance. Drivers with at-fault accidents or moving violations on their records may find it harder to find cheap car insurance. Below, we compare Cincinnati’s average rates to the national average for a few different driver profiles. We’ve chosen to omit average rates for drivers with DUI convictions, as some companies will decline to write policies for these drivers. If you have a DUI conviction, you may want to talk directly to a Cincinnati agent to see if you qualify for coverage.

Cincinnati car insurance quotes by age

In most states, your age is also a major car insurance rating factor. Younger drivers usually pay higher rates but may be able to save on car insurance by staying on their parents’ policies until they have established their own households. We compare Cincinnati’s average rates to the national average for several ages below, and we’ve included young drivers both on and off their parents’ policy (note that drivers under 18 are not legal adults and generally cannot own a car insurance policy). These drivers have clean driving records; keep in mind that driving incidents will likely increase rates.

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

Average cost of car insurance for drivers on their own policy

Cincinnati car insurance discounts

Although Cincinnati doesn’t advertise many car insurance discounts, there are a few ways to lower your premium. The carrier offers savings for bundling policies such as auto and home, insuring multiple vehicles, being claims-free or a good student. Cincinnati also has a car insurance telematics program called RideWell, which might earn you a participation discount and a personalized discount based on your driving habits. More unique discounts may be available on a state-by-state basis. Talk to a local Cincinnati Insurance agent about the savings opportunities available to you.

Cincinnati car tools and benefits

Cincinnati can insure more than just your personal vehicles. The carrier offers a few types of extended coverage, which include antique and collector car coverage and a replacement cost plus endorsement. The antique and collector car insurance endorsement can be added to your personal auto policy rather than having to take out a new policy for these vehicles, and doesn’t apply an age limitation (many carriers will only insure vehicles over 25 years old as collector cars). The replacement cost plus endorsement could help protect you from new-vehicle depreciation. With it, if your new vehicle is totaled from a covered incident, you could replace the vehicle with a similar new vehicle or pay the remaining loan balance.

Cincinnati also offers a mobile app called MyCincinnati. Within the app you can pay bills, file claims, access your agency’s information, view your documents and more. The app has a good rating in the App Store, with 4.7 out of 5.0 stars, but it only gets 3.6 out of 5.0 stars from Google Play.

Cincinnati home insurance

While Cincinnati home insurance stands out for its high-value home features, the carrier insures homes of any value. Coverage is available in the same states as auto insurance. Homeowners have a few different programs to choose from, including the Executive package (for homes of any value), the Executive Classic package (for home values between $500,000 and $1 million), or the Executive Capstone package (for homes above $1 million). Each package comes with its own set of endorsements, but Cincinnati’s home policies commonly offer identity theft coverage, earthquake coverage and golf cart coverage. Package availability varies by state, but based on the carrier’s qualities and coverage options, Cincinnati may be one of the best home insurance companies for high-value homes.

Pros and cons of Cincinnati homeowners insurance

Just like with auto insurance, it may be helpful to compare home insurance quotes as well as other aspects of each insurer as you shop. We identified the following perks and drawbacks of Cincinnati home insurance; you may want to keep these in mind as you shop for coverage:

Cincinnati home insurance cost

Nationally, home insurance costs an average of $1,428 per year for $250,000 in dwelling coverage. Cincinnati Insurance’s average annual premium for the same amount of coverage is $987 per year. Remember that the cost of home insurance will vary based on a number of factors, though, including the specific features of your home, your claims history, your state and the coverage limits on your policy. Below, we compare Cincinnati’s average rats to the national average for several dwelling coverage amounts.

Cincinnati home insurance discounts

Taking advantage of discounts may help you find cheaper home insurance, but just like with auto insurance, Cincinnati doesn’t advertise many home discounts. However, you could save by bundling your auto and home policies, insuring a newer home, being claims-free or having a central alarm system installed. Discounts may vary by state, so talking with a local Cincinnati agent may be the best way to learn about your savings options.

Cincinnati home tools and benefits

The Executive Capstone program is one of the most unique options for policyholders looking to cover high-value property. To qualify, you must have a home with a replacement cost value of $1 million or more. If you meet that requirement, the Executive Capstone program could help you financially protect your home and could also extend to your auto, collector cars, boat or yacht policy and your personal umbrella policy to add vital financial protection for your more complex financial protection needs.

In addition to home insurance, Cincinnati also offers coverage for renters and condo owners. Each policy type and program will have its own unique features and options. Talk with a Cincinnati agent to learn what selections might be best for you. The MyCincinnati app is also available for home insurance customers.

Cincinnati life insurance

Cincinnati offers three types of life insurance policies — term, whole and universal — to suit the financial considerations of potential policyholders. Although Cincinnati’s products don’t particularly stand out as unique, it could still be one of the best life insurance companies depending on your circumstances. Unlike auto and home insurance, Cincinnati offers life coverage in 49 states and Washington, D.C. New York residents unfortunately don’t have access to Cincinnati life insurance.

Pros and cons of Cincinnati life insurance

As you shop for and compare life insurance quotes, you may want to take even more care to look at factors other than price. The cost of life insurance is based primarily on your age, health and the type of policy you choose. Identifying the pros and cons of different life insurance companies can help you find a carrier that meets your needs. Here are some areas where Cincinnati excels and falls short:

Cincinnati life insurance endorsements

The endorsements or riders that are available to add to your Cincinnati life insurance policy will depend on the type of policy you buy, the state you live in and your eligibility qualifications. If you’re looking for cheap life insurance, remember that riders will increase your premium, but the extra coverage could be a worthwhile tradeoff. Cincinnati offers the following riders, among others, for its term and whole life policies:

Cincinnati life tools and benefits

In addition to auto, home and life insurance, Cincinnati also offers a few different types of annuities, which could be a useful tool for your financial planning. The carrier also has a helpful blog that addresses life insurance and financial planning topics. For policyholders with high-value homes, classic or antique cars or other expensive assets needing financial protection, this particular financial planning tool may be a nice addition to consider.

Cincinnati customer satisfaction

Analyzing a company’s customer satisfaction scores and other third-party ratings is an important part in choosing the best insurer for your needs. One metric that doesn’t change across product lines is financial strength. Cincinnati earns an A+ (Superior) financial strength rating from AM Best, the second-highest level available. This indicates that Cincinnati has been a historically strong company and has been able to pay claims, even when faced with a large influx.

When analyzing auto and home insurance satisfaction, there are a few places to look. Consumer data analytics company J.D Power rates insurers for both overall satisfaction and claims satisfaction, but unfortunately Cincinnati wasn’t rated in any studies, likely because it is a smaller insurer. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), is another good resource for satisfaction information, though. The NAIC tracks the complaints that it receives regarding each insurer and assigns a complaint index to each product line.

Cincinnati’s insurance business is split between three main companies: The Cincinnati Insurance Company, The Cincinnati Casualty Company and The Cincinnati Indemnity Company. We focus on these companies as we analyze satisfaction. Some specialty policies may also be underwritten by The Cincinnati Specialty Underwriters Insurance Company. Below, we break down Cincinnati’s satisfaction scores by auto and home insurance.

Cincinnati auto satisfaction

Within the NAIC complaint index, a score of 1.00 indicates a baseline or average number of complaints. All three of Cincinnati’s main underwriting companies receive lower-than-average NAIC complaint indexes for the company’s private passenger (personal auto) product. The Cincinnati Insurance Company has a score of 0.28 and The Cincinnati Casualty Company has a score of 0.59. The Cincinnati Indemnity Company has no complaints and a score of 0.00, although it also has a relatively low total written premium, which likely means that it’s not the main personal auto insurance company for Cincinnati. These lower-than-average scores indicate a high level of satisfaction with Cincinnati auto insurance.

Cincinnati homeowners satisfaction

The NAIC also received very few complaints about Cincinnati’s home insurance. The Cincinnati Insurance Company has a score of 0.08 and The Cincinnati Casualty Company has no complaints and a score of 0.00. NAIC records show no written premium for home insurance in The Cincinnati Indemnity Company, which likely means that Cincinnati does not use that underwriting company for home insurance. These low complaint indexes likely mean that satisfaction in Cincinnati’s home insurance service is also quite high.

Cincinnati life satisfaction

The Cincinnati Life Insurance Company, which underwriters CinFin’s life insurance products, has an NAIC complaint index of 0.15 for individual life policies. This is far lower than the 1.00 baseline and indicates fewer complaints than average. J.D. Power did not rate Cincinnati in its life insurance study, likely due to the company’s smaller size.

How to file a claim with Cincinnati Insurance

You can file a Cincinnati auto or home insurance claim in a few ways:

• Contact your local agency
• Call 1-877-242-2544 for auto or home claims
• Call 1-888-212-6970 for life insurance claims
• File a claim online through your customer portal
• File in the MyCincinnati mobile app

Once your claim has been filed, you’ll be put in touch with an adjuster to walk you through the next steps. You can also view Cincinnati’s claims process resources for each product to learn more.

Cincinnati Insurance availability

Cincinnati auto and home insurance products are available in 45 states and Washington, D.C. Cincinnati does not sell auto or home insurance in Alaska, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma or South Dakota. Cincinnati life insurance is available nationwide, with the exception of New York State.

Other Cincinnati Insurance perks worth considering

Cincinnati offers numerous other lines of insurance, including:

• Business insurance: If you own a business, you may want to take advantage of Cincinnati’s commercial options, including business auto, commercial property and workers’ compensation insurance.
• Personal articles coverage: This policy type, also called scheduled personal property coverage, is designed to insure high-value items like fine jewelry, collectibles or antiques.
• Boat insurance: Cincinnati has options to insure boats and personal watercraft both over and under 20 feet long.
• Personal umbrella insurance: Umbrella insurance provides additional liability coverage that can help further protect your finances.

Cincinnati Insurance corporate sustainability

Cincinnati is a strong supporter of the communities in which its employees work and live. The company consistently ranks among the top 25 campaign donors to the United Way of Greater Cincinnati. Other community initiatives include ArtsWave, which supports more than 100 arts and community initiatives in the Cincinnati area; Insuring the Children, which raises awareness of child abuse and neglect; and Crayons to Computers, which provides school supplies to 600 schools in the Cincinnati area. Cincinnati Insurance has also made a strong commitment to managing climate risk. As far as products offered, the carrier has insurance products specifically designed for social service and nonprofit groups.

Not sure if Cincinnati Insurance is right for you?

While Cincinnati Insurance may be a great fit for some, you may also have other needs to consider. If you are gathering quotes from multiple insurers, you might want to consider these carriers as well:

Cincinnati vs. Auto-Owners

Auto-Owners has an impressive list of endorsements and discounts that you might find helpful if you value personalizing your policies. Combine that with a low overall NAIC complaint index and several helpful discounts, and you may find that Auto-Owners is a great choice for your needs. Cincinnati does have a wider coverage area though; Auto-Owners is only available in 26 states, so it won’t be an option for everyone.

Learn more: Auto-Owners Insurance review

Cincinnati vs. Chubb

If you are considering Cincinnati specifically for high-value home coverage, you might want to get quotes from Chubb as well. While Cincinnati has options for high-value homes, Chubb specializes in this market. The company’s coverage offerings and policy extras are specifically geared toward clients with a high net worth. Because of that, Cincinnati could be a better option for shoppers with a more standard portfolio of assets.

Learn more: Chubb Insurance review

Cincinnati vs. Nationwide

If you want a company that offers numerous options to personalize your coverage, Nationwide might be a good fit. Among its unique and home endorsements is the Better Roof Replacement option, which will pay to repair or replace your roof with stronger and safer materials after a covered loss. Neither Nationwide nor Cincinnati have the most robust digital tools, though, so if you want to handle your policies digitally, you may want to look elsewhere.

Learn more: Nationwide Insurance review

Is Cincinnati Insurance a good insurance company?

Cincinnati could be a good insurance company for many drivers and homeowners. The company offers a wide range of products and options and has a low level of complaints about its service. Cincinnati could be a particularly good choice for homeowners with high-value homes, due to the unique Executive Classic and Executive Capstone policies. Cincinnati doesn’t have the most robust digital tools, though, and it isn’t available nationwide. The best way to know if Cincinnati is the right company for you is to reachout to a local agent, get a quote, and evaluate the coverage offerings and service for yourself.

Methodology

Bankrate utilizes Quadrant Information Services to analyze 2023 rates for 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

Auto Bankrate Score

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 insurance companies satisfy these priorities, 2023 quoted premiums from Quadrant Information Services, as well as 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.
• Tier 3 (Support): To encompass the many ways an auto 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.