National General Car Insurance Review: Good Rates but Poor Service
National General usually has cheap rates and offers good coverage options. But customers often complain about claim delays and low payouts.
Find Cheap Car Insurance Quotes in Your Area
Get National General car insurance if:
- You want cheap rates
- You have tickets or a DUI on your record
- You want to shop online
Skip National General car insurance if:
- Good customer service is important to you
- You're willing to shop around for a better deal
Overall ValuePenguin rating: 3.5/5
Rating breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Price | 5/5
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| Coverage | 5/5
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| Customer service | 0/5
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| Unique value | 5/5
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ValuePenguin's team of insurance experts reviews and rates companies by analyzing cost, coverage options, customer service and unique features. Our team includes licensed insurance agents and has more than 50 years of combined insurance experience. All ValuePenguin reviews are independent and unbiased.
Read the full breakdown of how ValuePenguin reviews insurance companies.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Generally cheap rates
- Good quotes if you have a bad driving record
- Lots of coverage options
Cons
- Poor customer service
- Not the absolute cheapest option
National General auto insurance quotes
National General usually has cheap car insurance rates, with full coverage at an average of $235 per month. That's about 11% less than average.
- Minimum coverage from National General costs an average of $69 per month, about 25% lower than average.
- Remember, though, National General typically has bad customer service. The low monthly rate might not make up for that.
- But despite National General having low rates, it isn't the cheapest company available. State Farm and Geico have cheaper full coverage rates, and USAA is also cheap if you're part of the military.
- It's usually a good idea to shop around and get quotes from different companies in your area, so you can compare rates, coverages and customer service.
Find Cheap Car Insurance Quotes in Your Area
National General car insurance rates vs. competitors
Company | Min cov. | Full cov. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Farm | $58 | $144 | |
| National General | $69 | $235 | |
| Geico | $70 | $178 | |
| Progressive | $110 | $273 | |
| Allstate | $184 | $556 | |
| USAA | $59 | $189 | |
Rates are for a 30-year-old man living in Texas. USAA is only available to military members, veterans and their families.
National General is also usually cheap if you have a speeding ticket or DUI on your driving record, or if you have poor credit.
But it's not usually a cheap choice for teens or for drivers with an accident on their record.
Rates after a ticket
$266/mo
$294/mo
Rates after an accident
$505/mo
$424/mo
Rates for an 18-year-old
$700/mo
$662/mo
Rates after a DUI
$273/mo
$393/mo
Rates for poor credit
$375/mo
$576/mo
National General auto insurance discounts
National General offers several car insurance discounts, all of which are fairly standard for most companies.
Even though the discounts aren't particularly unique, they can still help you lower your rate.
- Multivehicle discount: If you cover more than one car with National General, you might get a discount.
- Multipolicy: This discount is for people who buy more than one policy from National General, such as auto and home insurance.
- Safe driver: You may be able to save if you haven't had any accidents or tickets for the last five years.
- Paid-in-full: If you pay your full rate instead of paying monthly, you get a lower rate.
- Paperless: This discount is for getting your policy statements and bills electronically instead of by mail.
- Security device: Your car insurance might be cheaper if you have a security device installed that can help prevent theft or vandalism.
- Low mileage: You might get a discount on your car insurance when you drive fewer miles than average.
You may be able to get other discounts depending on where you live. The best way to see what discounts you qualify for is to get a quote.
DynamicDrive by National General
DynamicDrive is a program that gives you a custom discount based on data about how you drive. This is called a "telematics program."
DynamicDrive tracks your braking and speed, plus how often you use your phone and what time of day you drive. All that info is used to assign you a personalized discount that reflects how safely you drive. You have to track at least 60 driving trips before your policy renews or you'll lose the discount.
National General auto insurance coverages
National General offers several coverage options that can help you tailor your policy to your specific needs, but your options might depend on the policy level you get.
The Custom360 Signature plan is the company's standard option. The Custom360 Elite plan is designed to give you more coverage.
- Roadside assistance: This common add-on helps cover the cost of a tow, locksmith services, tire changes and more.
- Accident forgiveness: With this option, your rate won't go up if you cause an accident.
- Auto replacement: If you have this option and your car is damaged beyond repair, and if your car is less than 3 years old, National General will replace it with a car of the same or newer model year. If your car is between 4 and 15 years old, National General will replace it with a version that is one model year newer and has 20,000 fewer miles.
- Rideshare: If you drive for a service like Uber or Lyft, this option covers you when your app is on but before you've picked up a rider.
- Full safety glass: If you file a claim that only affects the glass on your car, such as from a rock chipping or cracking your windshield, your deductible will be waived.
- Diminishing deductible: For every 12-month period you go without having a claim on your policy, your deductible is lowered by $100.
- Portable electronics: This option covers the cost to replace or repair damaged electronics, like phones and portable radios, when they're damaged in a covered accident.
- Transportation expenses: This coverage is often called "rental car coverage," and it helps pay for a rental car, rideshare costs or public transportation costs when your car isn't able to be driven after an accident.
National General also advertises an auto protection plan option, as well as an accidental death and dismemberment option, but doesn't share more details as to what these options cover.
National General also offers a few less common benefits, including:
- Emergency expenses: National General will pay up to $500 for food, a place to stay and travel costs, so you don't get stranded after a covered problem like an accident or breakdown.
- Lifetime guarantee on repairs: If you get your car fixed at one of National General's Gold Medal Repair Shops, the repairs come with a guarantee for the life of the car.
Along with these coverage options, National General offers standard coverages:
National General customer reviews and ratings
National General has very poor customer service reviews.
Overall, National General gets about twice as many complaints as expected for a company its size, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).
When you buy a policy from National General, it actually comes from one of several smaller companies. All but two of these companies get more complaints than expected, which means people are usually upset with the service they get from National General. Most complaints have to do with claims handling, delays and low offers for damage.
National General company | Complaint index |
|---|---|
| National Genl. Ins. Online Inc. | 0.41 |
| National General Insurance Co. | 2.82 |
| National General Assurance Co. | 1.99 |
| Integon Preferred Insurance Co. | 3.05 |
| Integon National Insurance Co. | 3.97 |
| Integon Indemnity Corp. | 2.36 |
| Integon General Insurance Corp. | 2.06 |
| Integon Casualty Insurance Co. | 0.00 |
| MIC Gen Ins. Corp. | 1.56 |
| New South Ins. Co. | 1.20 |
All data is from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). An index of 1.00 represents an expected level of complaints. Indexes above 1.00 indicate more complaints than expected.
National General also does not get good reviews from J.D. Power. In J.D. Power's annual claims satisfaction survey, National General gets a score of 605, the lowest score in the study and well below the average of 700. That could mean people are often unhappy with the service they get from National General.
However, National General does get an A+ rating from AM Best for financial strength. This means the company is considered financially stable and is likely able to pay out claims.
Frequently asked questions
Is National General Insurance good?
National General isn't the best insurance company because of its poor customer service reviews. It tends to have cheap rates, but you can also usually find a cheaper policy by shopping around. It's not a bad option, but it's probably not the best option for most people.
How much does National General cost per month?
On average, National General costs $235 per month for full coverage and $69 per month for minimum coverage.
Is National General the same as Allstate?
No, National General is not the same as Allstate. They are two separate companies. Allstate bought National General in 2021 but continues to operate it as a separate brand.
Methodology
To find the average cost of car insurance from National General and other companies, ValuePenguin's insurance experts got quotes for a 30-year-old man in Texas with a clean driving record and good credit score who owns a 2018 Honda Civic EX.
Minimum coverage quotes include only the required car insurance coverages and limits in Texas. Full coverage quotes include higher liability limits along with collision and comprehensive coverage:
- Bodily injury liability: $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident
- Property damage liability: $50,000 per accident
- Uninsured and underinsured motorist bodily injury: $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident
- Comprehensive and collision deductibles: $500
All rates are from Quadrant Information Services, which gets its data from public insurance company filings. Quotes are for comparison only. Your rates will be different.
ValuePenguin rates insurance companies after reviewing average costs, coverage options, customer service and unique features. Customer service info comes from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) and J.D. Power's annual surveys.
About the Author
Senior Writer
Licensed Insurance Agent
Cate Deventer is a Senior Writer who specializes in health insurance, Medicare, auto and home insurance. She's been a licensed insurance agent since 2011.
She started her insurance career working as a customer service agent for State Farm. She later moved to an independent agency, where she worked with several insurance companies and hundreds of clients. She quoted policies, filed claims and answered insurance questions. In 2021, she pivoted her career and began writing about insurance for Bankrate. She moved to ValuePenguin in 2023 and began writing about health insurance and Medicare.
Cate has a passion for helping readers choose insurance to fit their needs. She enjoys knowing that her research and knowledge help people choose insurance products that make a positive difference in their lives.
How insurance helped Cate
Cate used her health insurance knowledge to navigate a surgery in 2023. Understanding how her policy worked let her focus on recovery instead of worrying about bills.
Expertise
- Health insurance
- Medicare & Medicaid
- Auto insurance
- Home insurance
- Life insurance
Credentials
- Licensed Life, Accident & Health Insurance Agent
- Licensed Property & Casualty Insurance Agent
Referenced by
- CBS
- NBC
- Wall Street Journal
Education
- BA, Theatre, Purdue University
- BA, English, Indiana University
Editorial Note: The content of this article is based on the author's opinions and recommendations alone. It has not been previewed, commissioned or otherwise endorsed by any of our network partners.
