Elephant Car Insurance Review 2022 – Forbes Advisor

2022-09-10 02:38:40 By : Ms. Amy Liu

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Elephant car insurance offers all of the standard coverage types you’d find at most insurance companies, along with some extra coverage types like loan/lease coverage and rideshare insurance. Elephant has a complaint level around the industry average.

Related: Best car insurance companies

Elephant Insurance came onto the auto insurance scene in 2009 as a subsidiary of Admiral Group plc. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, Elephant insures more than 200,000 vehicles.

Elephant Insurance is available in eight states:

The company sells insurance for cars, motorcycles and off-road vehicles. YourMechanic is available to all Elephant customers and connects customers to more than 600 diagnostic, maintenance and repair services at a discounted rate.

You can also set up contactless payments and contact-free car repairs.

Elephant sells the standard types of auto insurance you will find at other auto insurance companies:

Elephant also sells additional coverage types, including:

Yes, Elephant offers accident forgiveness. To qualify, all drivers on your policy must be accident-free for three years. After this three-year period, you’re eligible to have your next at-fault accident waived, meaning your premium won’t increase because of the accident.

Elephant also offers an upgraded accident forgiveness, which eliminates the three-year waiting period, meaning your accident forgiveness will kick in right away. To qualify for the upgrade, none of the drivers on your policy can have an at-fault accident on their records from the past three years.

No, Elephant does not offer new car replacement insurance. This type of coverage typically reimburses you for a brand-new vehicle of a similar make and model instead of only the depreciated value of your car if it is totaled due to a problem covered by your policy (like a fire or accident).

Elephant sells “loan/lease coverage” which is similar to gap insurance. Generally, gap insurance pays the “gap” between what you owe on your car loan or lease and the depreciated value of your car if it is totaled due to a problem covered by your policy (like a car accident).

With Elephant’s loan/lease coverage, you’ll get up to 25% of your car’s depreciated value if you are “upside down” on your car loan.

For example, if you owe $20,000 on your totaled car and its depreciated value is $17,000, you have a $3,000 gap. With Elephant’s loan/lease coverage, you are covered up to 25% of $17,000 ($4,250). In this scenario, loan/lease coverage would be sufficient to pay the remaining balance of your loan.

Yes, Elephant offers a diminishing deductible as an optional policy add-on. If you have collision insurance with at least a $500 deductible, you’ll see your deductible reduced by $100 for annual policies and $50 for six-month policies for each term you remain accident-free, up to $500.

Yes, Elephant offers SR-22 insurance in Illinois, Indiana, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.

An SR-22 is a court-order document that auto insurance companies file with the state as evidence that you meet the minimum liability coverage requirements. The state typically requires drivers with DUI convictions or multiple driving offenses to file an SR-22.

No, Elephant currently does not offer usage-based insurance (UBI). UBI uses telematics to track driving behaviors such as speeding, harsh braking, acceleration and phone use. Drivers who practice safe driving habits typically earn discounts.

Elephant does plan to launch its own telematics app, according to the company’s website.

No, Elephant does not offer pay-per-mile insurance. With pay-per-mile insurance, you’ll typically pay a daily or monthly base rate and a per-mile rate. It can be a good fit for low-mileage drivers.

Yes, Elephant sells rideshare insurance as an auto policy add-on. If you drive for a company like Lyft or Uber, you might have a coverage gap between your personal auto insurance and the rideshare company’s insurance.

Elephant’s rideshare insurance covers you while your rideshare app is on and you are waiting for rider requests. It does not cover you when you accept a ride, pick up and drop off your passenger (that’s typically covered by your rideshare company). Elephant’s rideshare insurance resumes when your app is on and you’re waiting for the next ride.

Elephant offers various car insurance discounts to help you cut your bill, such as:

Elephant has around the average level of complaints compared to other car insurance companies, based on complaints made to state insurance departments across the country. Policyholders made complaints against Elephant in 2021 for reasons such as surcharges and claim delays.

In a survey of collision repair professionals by CRASH Network, Elephant Insurance earned a C grade.

The opinions of collision repair professionals are useful because they see how insurers compare in the claims process. Auto body professionals have an insider’s view of the use of lower-quality repair parts, whether insurance companies encourage the use of repair procedures recommended by car manufacturers, and whether insurers have quick and satisfactory claims processes for customers.

Other types of insurance policies offered by Elephant include:

Elephant insurance allows you to submit a claim and photos through its mobile app. You can also use the app to manage your billing, access your policy documents and change your coverage limits.

Elephant launched its Helping Herd initiative in June 2021. The company donated more than $300,000 to organizations that were impacted by Covid-19. Helping Herd provided two rounds of donations to roughly 50 nonprofits in the states where Elephant operates. Each organization received between $2,000 and $20,000.

Elephant also supports Project Yellow Light, a scholarship competition that encourages teens to discuss the dangers of distracted driving through short films, radio spots and billboards.

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