Regularly shopping your car insurance rates is a smart idea. But some avoid it because they've heard horror stories of people being oversold insurance coverage by unscrupulous agents looking to pad their own paycheck.
But in today's online world, it's possible to avoid an insurance agent altogether and configure your policy on your own. And if that's something you'd be comfortable with or even prefer, Elephant car insurance may be what you’re looking for.
Its website is very easy to use and provides all the information needed to decide on various coverage options. They also have competitive rates. In this article, we’ll review Elephant car insurance and break down all that they have to offer.
Quick Summary
- Get a policy completely online
- Competitive rates and discounts
- File a claim right from the mobile app
Elephant Car Insurance Review | |
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Product Name | Elephant Car Insurance |
Policy Types | Car, homeowners, renters, condo, motorcycle, life, and |
Quotes | Online or Phone |
Anonymous Quotes | No |
Promotions | None |
Who Is Elephant Insurance?
Elephant is an insurtech based in Richmond, Virginia. It was founded in 2009 and its CEO is Alberto Schiavon. Elephant is a subsidiary of Admiral Group plc, headquartered in the U.K., and has offices globally.
From the beginning, Elephant has tried to appeal to a new generation of consumers who are looking for convenient online quote and claims processes. And it's always looking for ways to lead the way in finding new ways to save customers money. For example, it recently created a "work from home discount" for Elephant car insurance customers.
“We understand customers are seeking flexible ways to manage their car insurance,” said Schiavon in a press release. “This discount was created to acknowledge the change that has occurred to many jobs today. If you are currently working from home and driving less, we want to help you save even more on your car insurance.”
What Do They Offer?
Elephant is an insurtech, which means it isn’t a traditional insurance company. Elephant depends on technology to keep costs down. It offers a wide variety of insurance types, including:
You can get a quote through Elephant’s slick website in a matter of minutes.
Being an online provider doesn't mean that Elephant can provide insurance to everyone. In fact, it's availability is still quite limited. Currently, Elephant car insurance is only available in seven states: Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Tennessee, Texas, Ohio, and Virginia.
Direct-To-Consumer
Elephant is a direct-to-consumer company. That means you don’t have to interact with insurance agents. You can get a quote and a policy completely online without any human interaction.
It’s also part of the reason that Elephant is able to offer competitive rates. While traditional insurance companies must pay the overhead of nationwide stores staffed with agents, Elephant uses low-cost technology instead.
That being said, Elephant does have plenty of agents standing by who can answers questions or assist you with your quote over the phone. And their customer service team is available six days a week for existing customers.
Consistently Decreasing Deductible
A deductible is an amount you must pay before insurance kicks in. For example, you get into an auto accident that costs $5,000 to repair your car. The deductible is $500. That means you pay $500 out-of-pocket while the insurance company pays $4,500.
With Elephant’s decreasing deductible, each year you remain accident-free, the deductible will decrease by $100. Using the above example, in the second year, the deductible is $400 and continues dropping by $100 every year.
Discounts
In addition to its diminishing deductible and work-from-home discount, Elephant car insurance offers several more rate reduction opportunities. These include:
- Multi-car discount
- Safe car discount
- Responsible driver discount
- Multi-policy discount
- Good student discount
- Online quote discount
- Electronic signature discount
- Paperless account discount
- Pay in full discount
Sample Quote
While Texas is one of the states that Elephant offers auto insurance, that doesn’t mean every city in the state is available. The first attempt at insurance in Houston, TX said it wasn’t available but Dallas, TX was.
This quote is for a 30-year-old single male living in Dallas, TX, and renting an apartment. The vehicle is a 2018 Ford Escape S that is currently being financed and is kept in a carport. The quote was for $173/mo. You can get discounts for longer periods: $505/3mos or $897/6mos. The quote had the following coverages:
- Bodily Injury Liability — $50k/$100k
- Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist - Bodily Injury — $50k/$100k
- Property Damage Liability — $50k
- Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist - Property Damage — $50k
- PIP - Texas — No Coverage
Other coverage details:
- Other Than Collision (Comprehensive) — $500 Ded.
- Collision — $500 Ded.
- Rental Reimbursement — No Coverage
- Custom Equipment Coverage — No Coverage
- Texas Anti-Theft Fee — $4.00
Windshield Replacement
In most cases, your windshield will be replaced for free by Elephant. However, that’s a fairly common insurance feature across competitors. Like many insurance companies, Elephant uses recommended vendors and is quick to get your windshield replaced.
Online Account Management
With Elephant car insurance, virtually all actions related to your account can be handled from their website or app. For example, you can increase or decrease coverage limit amounts at any time. And you can pay your bills and edit your payment options online as well.
The claims process with Elephant is also convenient and mobile-friendly. To submit claims, simply take out your phone and snap a few photos of the damages. Then you can use the Elephant app to upload the photos and file your claim.
Customer Service
Regarding paying out of its claims, Elephant's parent company, Admiral Group, received an A+ rating from Fitch Ratings. That means their financial outlook is stable and should be able to pay their claims. However, some customers have complained online have been about the speed of those payments.
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) average score is 1.00. Elephant came in at 8.39, which means it had over 8X more complaints per customer than the national average. However, it should be noted that this was still based on a relatively small number of complaints (54).
Are There Any Fees?
There are no fees for getting a quote with Elephant car insurance. However, you will need to enter in your email address during the quote process. They don't currently offer fully anonymous quotes.
How Do I Open An Account?
You can visit Elephant.com to get started with a quote. You’ll then be able to select and purchase a policy. Elephant says that you should be able to get your quote, eSign your documents, and print your insurance cards in a matter of minutes.
Is My Money Safe?
Yes, Elephant’s uses encryption on its website. And while its parent company, Admiral Group (based in the UK), is not rated by A.M. Best, it consistently receives an A+ Insurer Financial Strength (IFS) rating from Fitch Ratings.
Is It Worth It?
Elephant offers competitive auto insurance rates. You can adjust the policy features all online until you have exactly what you want. Plus, representatives are available by phone when needed.
If you want the efficiency of doing everything online, Elephant likely has what you need. But if you’d rather deal with an insurance agent in person, Elephant may not be a good fit.
To make sure you're getting the best deal, you may want to compare Elephant rates with some of our favorite car insurance companies. Or, to save time, you could get quotes from multiple auto insurers in minutes by using an online shopping marketplace like Policygenius or Gabi.
Elephant Car Insurance Features
Policy Types |
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Quotes |
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Anonymous Quotes | No |
Decreasing Deductible | Yes |
Roadside Assistance | Yes |
Legal Assistance | Yes |
Accident Forgiveness | No |
Pet Injury Coverage | Yes -- policyholders with Collision or Other than Collision coverage that have a dog or cat inside a covered auto or non-owned auto at the time of a loss can receive up to $1,000 in veterinary fees incurred or death benefits. |
Customer Service Number | 1-844-937-5353 |
Customer Service Hours | Mon-Friday, 9 am-8 pm (EST) |
Claims Email | Claims@elephant.com |
Mobile App Availability | iOS and Android |
A.M Best Rating | N/A |
Fitch IFS Rating | A+ |
Promotions | None |
Elephant Car Insurance Review
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Pricing and Discounts
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Coverage and Benefits
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Products and Services
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Customer Service
Overall
Summary
Elephant car insurance offers competitive rates, multiple policy discounts, and a mobile-friendly online claims process.
Pros
- Online quotes, claims, and account management
- Agents available if needed
- Strong selection of available discounts
- Deductibles decrease with each accident-free year
Cons
- Limited availability (currently only in seven states)
- Higher than average complaints per customer
Robert Farrington is America’s Millennial Money Expert® and America’s Student Loan Debt Expert™, and the founder of The College Investor, a personal finance site dedicated to helping millennials escape student loan debt to start investing and building wealth for the future. You can learn more about him on the About Page or on his personal site RobertFarrington.com.
He regularly writes about investing, student loan debt, and general personal finance topics geared toward anyone wanting to earn more, get out of debt, and start building wealth for the future.
He has been quoted in major publications, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, ABC, NBC, Today, and more. He is also a regular contributor to Forbes.
Editor: Clint Proctor Reviewed by: Chris Muller