Personal Finance

Was it really that easy? GEICO Direct I am going to preface this by saying I am in that under 25 age bracket wher...

The All In One Auto Insurance Liberty Mutual Insurance Group Auto A couple years ago I got a letter from my bank offering a discount for usin...

I was clearing out my e-mail inbox this morning and *panicked* when I noticed that I had forgotten to pay my car insurance. It was exactly 5:01 pm on Saturday, so I figured my policy had been canceled and I was a goner. I crossed my fingers and ran to the phone to call Geico . . .

I dialed, pressed 1 for the “auto insurance” option and a very nice woman picked up. Zero time on hold! Of course, I had forgotten to find my policy number, and I got married so my last name had changed. I was dreading what would happen next, but she said, “No problem, I can look it up by your phone number,” and proceeded to do so.

Of course, I had dialed the customer service number, so she had to transfer me to the payment center. I started to settle in for a long wait, but I didn’t even have time to sit down before an automated system kicked in and took my payment. They had my debit card on file from the last time I paid, so I selected that option. Except - oops! - I forgot to update my card when it expired last month. So the automated system kicked me over to someone in the payment center.

Again, zero wait time, and again, a very nice rep. I told him what happened and in about 40 seconds he had processed the payment, updated my card and transferred me to the guy who could change my name. This is getting repetitive, but he was also very nice and also took care of everything quickly.

So, in summary, I was a total ditz and did everything wrong . . . yet in about 6 minutes I had paid my bill, changed my name and updated my credit card information! And let me tell you, changing your name with some companies is a huge hassle — you wouldn’t believe what I had to go through with Sprint.

Usually it’s a pain when companies transfer you all over the place. You sit there on hold wondering why they can’t just have one person take care of it all. But let me tell you, when the agents are friendly and there’s no hold time, it’s a totally different experience. I barely even noticed I was getting transferred.

I’ve been insured with Geico for almost 2 years, but this was actually the first time I’ve had to contact them about anything. It was a great experience, and did a lot to make me a loyal customer. There are other good things about the company, too:

Rates

I did a lot of comparison shopping before I chose Geico, and they were by far the lowest rate for me. I still check occasionally, and they still have the best prices. If I ever find anyone with lower rates, I will definitely see if Geico will match them, because I’m quite fond of the company.

Plans

Well, Geico had the right plan for me, which was pretty much the absolute minimum required! They have all the different coverage options you’d expect from an auto insurance company, and the site does a good job of explaining the different terms used in the insurance business.

Deals and Incentives

One neat perk I found out about is that Berkshire Hathaway shareholders can get a small discount on their Geico insurance (Berkshire owns Geico). I feel pretty special that my single share of BRK-B gets me a deal!

Also, there’s a program called Geico Privileges that offers discounts from a number of different online stores, including Barnes and Noble, PetsMart, Zales and OfficeDepot. There are a ton of car rental and hotel deals, too. Some of the discounts are significant, like 20% off at shoes.com

Payment and Service

If I had had my act together, of course, I could have paid online with a checking account or credit card, or even mailed a check. And I have no excuse: Geico e-mailed me a full month before my payment was due!

I think I’m going to set up recurring payments; there’s no fee, and they just use your credit or debit card. Another great feature from Geico is that you can set your payment schedule. At first I was on a monthly schedule until I learned that I could pay for six months at a time, which is what I do now.

One more wonderful thing about Geico is that agents actually are available 24/7 for you. And they act like they really want to help you. They all sounded like they were working in nice cubicles with good views, maybe eating some Mrs. Fields cookies (I just saw that Geico Privileges has 10% off Mrs. Fields).

Overall

I can’t think of anything bad about this company. I guess they do a lot of advertising, which must cost a lot. And, of course, I’ve never had to file a claim, so I can’t speak to that experience. But if you’re looking for a low rate and great customer service, I’d highly recommend Geico.

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