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7+ years in personal finance writing
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NPN: 21630969
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Updated
Root Insurance is a usage-based auto insurance company that’s relatively new to the market. In 2015, Root made its debut in Ohio, positioning itself as the nation’s “first licensed insurance carrier powered entirely by mobile.”
To provide personalized quotes, Root tracks driving behavior through its app, giving safe drivers an opportunity to save on car insurance.
In this review, we draw on verified Insurify user reviews, industry rankings, and our expert analysis to provide a complete, data-driven look at how Root Insurance performs.
Here’s how Root car insurance compares to its competitors on cost, claims, and customer satisfaction.
Average monthly premium: $157 for full coverage
Root Insurance user rating: 3.4/5 from 1,342+ verified Insurify reviews
Insurify Quality (IQ) Score: 7.9/10
Best for: Safe, low-mileage drivers who want to save on auto insurance
Here's our honest review about Root for auto insurance in a few paragraphs:
While Root Insurance is still a small player in the insurance market, it’s making a name for itself as a tech-insure company. The company offers auto insurance in 35 states, with plans to expand to the rest of the U.S.
With its entirely digital process, from purchasing a policy to filing a claim, Root differs from many traditional insurance companies. Root also requires a test-drive to assign an accurate quote, instead of driver demographics, like age, gender, or credit.[1]
You’ll pick a policy and drive for a few weeks while the Root app tracks your driving behaviors. Root will then provide a quote based on how you drive.
For safe drivers who don’t put many miles on their cars, Root offers an opportunity to save on car insurance premiums. But if you have a history of speeding, tickets, and riskier driving behaviors, you might need to look elsewhere for coverage.
| User Reviews | 3.4 |
|---|---|
| IQ Score The Insurify Quality (IQ) Score uses more than 15 criteria to objectively rate insurance companies on a one-to-ten scale. The Insurify editorial team researches insurer data to determine the final scores. | 7.9 /10 |
| Liability Only Liability-only insurance, sometimes called minimum-coverage insurance, pays for bodily injury and property damage to others in an accident the policyholder causes. It does not pay for the insured’s own damages. | $91/mo |
| Full Coverage Full-coverage car insurance generally includes liability, collision, and comprehensive coverage, and may include other optional coverages such as uninsured motorist coverage. Collision covers a policyholder’s repair or replacement costs in case of an accident. Comprehensive covers damages caused by non-accident events. The average quote displayed here reflects policies with the following coverage limits: $50,000 bodily injury liability per person; $100,000 bodily injury liability per accident; $50,00 property damage liability per accident; $1,000 collision deductible; and a $1,000 comprehensive deductible. | $157/mo |
Root's score | Industry average | |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage options | 3.2 | 3.2 |
| Customer service | 2.4 | 3.6 |
| Discounts | 2.7 | 2.9 |
| Policy transparency | 3.1 | 3.1 |
| Value | 2.8 | 2.9 |
Drivers appreciate the easy sign-up process and initial affordability but dislike the significant rate increases over time and difficulty reaching customer service.
To learn more about Root Insurance, take a look at what actual customers have to say. We’ve collected 1,342+ reviews that you can use in determining if Root Insurance is the right company for you.
Category  | Average Score |
|---|---|
| Overall experience rating | 3.4/5 |
| Customer service | 2.4/5 |
| Value | 2.8/5 |
| Claims handling | 3.2/5 |
| Coverage options | 3.2/5 |
| Discounts | 2.7/5 |
| Policy transparency | 3.1/5 |
| Policy flexibility | 3.0/5 |
Liability rates start as low as $42 per month
Insurify user reviews are submitted by verified drivers switching to a new insurance company. To get an honest take, we ask about their experience with their old insurer, what made them switch, and if they like their new insurance company.
When comparing insurers, industry ratings provide consumers with insights into an insurance company’s reliability, financial strength, and customer experience. You can use these scores to evaluate different aspects of an insurer’s performance, like how they handle customer service and claims.[2]
The following table highlights industry ratings for Root Insurance and what they mean.
Rating | Score | What This Means |
|---|---|---|
| IQ Score | 7.9/10 | Root’s IQ Score is higher than several of the company’s competitors. |
| AM Best | Not rated | AM Best hasn’t given Root a financial strength rating. |
| J.D. Power | Not rated | J.D. Power hasn’t rated Root. |
| NAIC complaint index | 1.93 | Root has an above-average number of complaints. |
| BBB customer reviews | 3 out of 5 stars with 629 reviews | Root has a higher customer review rating compared to several competitor companies. |
Root offers some of the cheapest auto insurance coverage compared to competitors, according to Insurify data. Its average monthly premium for liability-only insurance is $91, while its full-coverage car insurance averages $157 per month. Among its competitors, only Mile Auto offers lower rates.
Generally, the better your driving record, the lower your car insurance premiums. A speeding ticket or traffic violation can result in higher costs.
The following table compares auto insurance rates from Root and several competitors based on driving record.
Driving Record | Root Insurance | Chubb | Clearcover | Hugo | Mile Auto |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clean driving record | $157 | $224 | $214 | $60 | $133 |
| One speeding ticket | $222 | $290 | $278 | $79 | $157 |
| At-fault accident | $216 | $301 | $328 | $69 | $184 |
| DUI | $230 | $323 | $308 | $78 | $192 |
Age is one of the key factors that influence car insurance rates. In general, teens and young drivers pay the highest rates, while older drivers pay lower premiums.[3]
The table below compares the cost of coverage at different ages for several auto insurance companies.
Age | Root Insurance | Chubb | Clearcover | Hugo | Mile Auto |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teen drivers | $261 | $516 | $313 | $101 | $307 |
| Adult drivers | $155 | $189 | $222 | $192 | $123 |
| Senior drivers | $127 | $145 | $195 | $36 | $95 |
Car insurance discounts can make a big difference in your auto insurance costs. But Root doesn’t offer any discounts to its customers.
If you’re interested in discounts that can help you save on your car insurance — such as those for being a safe driver, making good grades, or bundling policies — you’ll need to choose a different insurance company.
See quotes from top insurers in minutes
For every state Root operates in, the car insurance company offers at least the state-minimum car insurance coverage. Liability coverage options include both bodily injury liability and property damage liability coverage.
But in many states, Root offers more than the bare-minimum coverage, including the following:[4]
Comprehensive coverage, part of a full-coverage policy, provides financial protection from non-collision incidents, like severe weather, fire, vandalism, or theft. If you lease or finance your vehicle, your lender might require you to purchase full-coverage insurance.
Collision coverage helps reimburse you if you damage your car in a collision with another vehicle, an animal, or an object such as a fence, tree, or guardrail. This optional form of insurance provides additional protection even if you’re at fault.
After an accident, this coverage helps pay for a rental vehicle while your car is in the shop for repairs. If you don’t want to deal with a rental car, you can get reimbursed for Lyft rides instead.
Some U.S. states require uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, which pays for your injuries and property damage if someone without insurance — or with limits too low to cover your costs — causes an accident.
Some states require PIP coverage, which covers your and your passengers’ medical expenses and lost wages from an accident.
Similar to PIP coverage, eight U.S. states require MedPay coverage, which pays for medical bills resulting from injuries in an accident. It covers both the driver and any passengers involved in the accident.
Root includes roadside assistance with every insurance policy. You’ll have coverage for three incidents of up to $100 per vehicle per policy term. If you need a jump-start or a tow, this coverage should help you out.
In addition to auto coverage, Root offers renters insurance policies in select U.S. states. Renters insurance protects your personal belongings and provides liability coverage if you rent your home. It also covers additional living expenses, like hotel fees and dining out, if a covered peril damages your rental home and you have to live elsewhere temporarily.
To file an auto claim with Root Insurance Company, follow these steps:
Open the Root app. Log in to your app, and answer a few questions about the accident. You can file a claim in about three minutes.
Document the damage. Take as many pictures as necessary to clearly show the damage to your vehicle.
Submit your information. Once you submit the claim information, wait for Root Insurance to reach out to complete the claims process.
Track your status. You’ll receive emails from Root Insurance at every step of the process. For a quick status update, you can log into the app.
Get paid. If Root accepts your claim, it’ll complete the claim and send you a check or electronic payment.
Learn about switching car insurance companies, and check out the answers to frequently asked questions about Root car insurance.
Yes. Root is a legitimate insurance company. Root is relatively new to the insurance industry, but the company offers affordable policies for people who practice safe driving.
The premise of Root auto insurance is to reward safe drivers with low premiums. Most drivers need to complete a test-drive through the Root app to receive a final auto insurance quote. When you work with Root, the company will continue to monitor your driving habits and behaviors through the mobile app.
The average cost of Root car insurance is $157 per month for full coverage and $91 per month for liability coverage, according to Insurify data.
It’s a little unclear. Root has a NAIC complaint index of 5.02, which is a bit more than five times more than expected for a company of its size. With the high number of complaints, it’s possible that customers experience a bumpy claims process.
Yes. The first six months after purchasing Root act as a test-drive period before you can get a quote. That said, good drivers might be able to get a rate before the test-drive period is over. You’ll then have at least 30 days to accept your rate or cancel.
Root tracks driving behaviors such as braking, turning, and how much you drive.
Root Insurance is available in every state except the following: Alaska, Hawaii, Michigan, New York, and North Carolina.
Insurify data scientists analyzed more than 190 million quotes served to car insurance applicants in Insurify’s proprietary database to calculate the premium averages displayed on this page. These premiums are real quotes that come directly from Insurify’s 500+ partner insurance companies in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Quote averages represent the median price for a quote across the given coverage level, driver subset, and geographic area.
Unless otherwise specified, quoted rates reflect the average cost for drivers between 20 and 70 years old with a clean driving record and average or better credit (a credit score of 600 or higher).
Liability-only premium averages correspond to policies with the following coverage limits:
Quotes for Allstate, Farmers, GEICO, State Farm, and USAA are estimates based on Quadrant Information Services’ database of auto insurance rates.
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)
)
)
)
)
)
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7+ years in personal finance writing
Certified Financial Education Instructor
Experienced personal finance writer
Background working with banks and insurance companies
Featured in
Licensed property and casualty insurance agent
10+ years editing experience
NPN: 21630969
7+ years experience in data analysis
Ph.D. in Computational Biology
At Insurify, our goal is to help customers compare insurance products and find the best policy for them. We strive to provide open, honest, and unbiased information about the insurance products and services we review. Our hard-working team of data analysts, insurance experts, insurance agents, editors and writers, has put in thousands of hours of research to create the content found on our site.
We do receive compensation when a sale or referral occurs from many of the insurance providers and marketing partners on our site. That may impact which products we display and where they appear on our site. But it does not influence our meticulously researched editorial content, what we write about, or any reviews or recommendations we may make. We do not guarantee favorable reviews or any coverage at all in exchange for compensation.
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Average price $124/mo* | Average price $170/mo* | Average price $169/mo* | Average price $0/mo* | Average price $104/mo* |
Overall rating | Overall rating | Overall rating | Overall rating | Overall rating |
Value for money | Value for money | Value for money | Value for money | Value for money |
Customer service | Customer service | Customer service | Customer service | Customer service |
Claims handling | Claims handling | Claims handling | Claims handling | Claims handling |
Special highlight Usage-based insuranceAI-generated from 1342 user reviews | Special highlight High net worth driversAI-generated from 10 user reviews | Special highlight Robust mobile appAI-generated from 64 user reviews | Special highlight MicropaymentsAI-generated from 222 user reviews | Special highlight Low-mileage driversAI-generated from 202 user reviews |