
This text presents the data you want about automobile insurance coverage in Maine. It identifies greatest decisions among the many insurers who write insurance policies within the Pine Tree State, as properly detailing the automobile insurance coverage you’re required to hold there. Additionally included is information in regards to the state’s insurance coverage prices and their drivers – akin to what number of drivers in contrast with different states are typically uninsured, based mostly on information from the Insurance coverage Analysis Council.
What to Know About Automobile Insurance coverage in Maine
- Maine is without doubt one of the least costly states during which to purchase automobile insurance coverage, based on quite a few surveys of premiums throughout the nation.
- The state’s minimal necessities for automobile insurance coverage protection are greater than these for some states. They embrace comparatively excessive per-accident legal responsibility limits and the necessity to carry uninsured/underinsured driver legal responsibility.
- Distinctions to driving in Maine embrace its low (15 years) age at which a learner’s allow might be obtained, and the elevated danger of collisions with moose on the state’s many roads by way of forested areas.
How We Selected the Finest Automobile Insurance coverage in Maine
Cash’s picks for the very best automobile insurance coverage in Maine all provide standout protection and are based mostly on the picks in our nationwide rating of the very best automobile insurance coverage suppliers. We additionally think about how firms fared within the 2024 J.D. Energy U.S. Auto Insurance coverage Research, which features a rating of buyer satisfaction in New England, and complaints information from the Nationwide Affiliation of Insurance coverage Commissioners (NAIC). For extra particulars on how we choose picks, see the methodology under.
High Picks for Finest Automobile Insurance coverage in Maine
Allstate
Amica
GEICO
Nationwide
State Farm
Finest Automobile Insurance coverage in Maine Critiques
These insurers are prime picks amongst those who write auto insurance coverage insurance policies in Maine, based mostly on their charges, buyer satisfaction and number of choices. The perfect automobile insurance coverage firms in Maine have choices for good drivers to decrease their charges, reductions for bundling a number of insurance policies and versatile protection to assist drivers lower your expenses. (See the methodology under for extra particulars.)
Listed in alphabetical order:
HIGHLIGHTS
- Satisfaction
- About common in New England: J.D. Energy (646/1,000; common is 638).
- Complaints
- Higher than most: NAIC (index of 0.7; 1.0 is common)
- Monetary stability
- Superior (A.M. Finest score, A+)
Allstate scored slightly above common within the 2024 J.D. Energy U.S. Auto Insurance coverage Research in New England. Its file of complaints with the NAIC can also be higher than the norm.
It’s among the many firms that provide a diminishing deductible to prospects who make no claims inside a sure interval. The non-obligatory Allstate’s Deductible Rewards program lets drivers earn a right away $100 off their collision coverage deductible, and one other $100 in deductible financial savings for every year they drive with out entering into an accident, as much as a most financial savings of $500 – a comparatively beneficiant schedule.
There are additionally respectable reductions of as much as 25% on each your automobile and householders insurance coverage in the event you bundle each of these insurance coverage varieties from Allstate. (Nevertheless, Allstate automobile insurance coverage premiums are sometimes dearer than rivals’, so remember to analysis prices earlier than assuming an Allstate bundle will essentially be inexpensive.)
Different pluses embrace a relatively excessive low cost of as much as 40% if Allstate’s Drivewise telematics program determines that you’re a good driver. One massive disadvantage: in contrast to some rivals’ telematics applications, your charges may rise if Drivewise identifies dangerous conduct. A Milewise pay-as-you-go coverage possibility lets you pay a every day fee plus a per-mile cost on days you drive.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Satisfaction
- Above common in New England: J.D. Energy (709/1,000; common is 638)
- Complaints
- Significantly better than most: NAIC (Index: 0.57)
- Monetary stability
- Superior: A.M. Finest (Score, A+)
Amica is thought for top-notch service. Save for USAA, which is accessible solely to army households, Amica has the very best rating for buyer satisfaction in New England from J.D. Energy. Nationally, it has fewer complaints lodged with the NAIC than can be anticipated for an insurer of its dimension. It additionally has a standout B score from physique outlets and different restore services that report their experiences with insurers to the Crash Community. (The Community grades most insurers as C or decrease.)
The corporate’s telematics program stands out for permitting prospects to redeem good-driving rewards for reward playing cards with retailers akin to Amazon and Goal.
Amica’s premiums are typically dearer than the norm in worth comparisons, although, so that is an insurer greatest suited to those that worth top-of-the-line customer support over price financial savings.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Satisfaction
- About common in New England: J.D. Energy (638/1,000: common is 637)
- Complaints
- Higher than most: NAIC (index: 0.75; 1.0 is common)
- Monetary stability
- Very superior: A.M. Finest (Score, A++)
GEICO is an honest, although not excellent, insurer in most respects. It scored about common in buyer satisfaction in New England within the 2024 J.D. Energy U.S. Auto Insurance coverage Research. Its file for complaints with the Nationwide Affiliation of Insurance coverage Commissioners is best than most insurers, although. Additionally, whereas GEICO’s premiums are typically middle-of-the-road, they’re typically notably inexpensive than these of rivals for some drivers.
An space the place GEICO stands out is in its telematics – or usage-based insurance coverage (UBI) – insurance policies. In its nationwide rankings, J.D. Energy ranks GEICO as among the many most satisfying for telematics-based insurance coverage.
GEICO’s UBI program, which runs on the corporate’s cellular app, consists of the power to add a photograph of auto harm and shortly obtain a restore estimate through the app, streamlining the claims course of.
GEICO stands out for providing an unusually big selection of reductions for which drivers might be eligible, together with doable reductions to members of alumni {and professional} associations and purchasers of different companies owned by GEICO’s guardian firm, Berkshire Hathaway.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Satisfaction
- Nationally, slightly under common for buying however above common for claims: J.D. Energy (664/1,000, buying: common is 676. 728/1,000, claims: common is 697.)
- Complaints
- Higher than most: NAIC (index: 0.7; 1.0 is common)
- Monetary stability
- Very superior (A.M. Finest score, A++)
Nationwide’s customer support isn’t scored for New England by J.D. Energy, because of an absence of knowledge; the corporate tends to be, at greatest, common on that measure in different areas. However the insurer is among the many most satisfying in its claims dealing with, based on J.D. Energy, and its premiums are sometimes inexpensive than these of rivals.
The corporate additionally tops J.D. Energy’s rating for satisfaction with insurance coverage offered by way of telematics applications. Nationwide presents two such applications – one is targeted on offering safe-driving reductions to prospects with common insurance policies, and the opposite lets drivers pay for insurance coverage protection by the mile. Each applications stand out as among the many comparatively few the place you don’t danger greater premiums if the telematics monitoring finds your driving to be missing. Neither program penalizes drivers with greater premiums if the monitoring software program flags dangerous driving behaviors.
Extra pluses embrace an exceptionally beneficiant coverage for changing new automobiles which might be totaled — as in, declared a complete loss. Whereas most rivals will present a brand-new alternative to your automobile solely till the automobile is 2 years previous, Nationwide extends that perk to automobiles which might be as much as three years previous.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Satisfaction
- Above common in New England: J.D. Energy (664/1,000: common is 637)
- Complaints
- Higher than most: NAIC (index: 0.84; 1.0 is common)
- Monetary stability
- Very superior (A.M. Finest score, A++)
J.D. Energy awards State Farm an above-average rating for buyer satisfaction in New England, and the insurer has fewer complaints than the norm lodged with NAIC.
State Farm’s premiums might be inexpensive than some rivals, particularly with regards to insuring teen drivers.
State Farm stands out for its insurance coverage for youthful drivers. It presents teen drivers who preserve at the least a 3.0 GPA a Good Scholar Low cost of 25% till age 25, a steeper discount than most different firms. It additionally presents a Scholar Away at Faculty low cost that solely covers the coed – and solely costs for them – whereas they’re at house for breaks and holidays, a possible cost-saver for households with drivers who’re at school.
A information to automobile insurance coverage in Maine
This is the data and recommendation it’s essential guarantee your automobile insurance coverage protection in Maine is satisfactory, each to satisfy the state mandates and to make sure you are well-protected.
Maine’s insurance coverage necessities
Like virtually all states, Maine imposes necessities for the kinds and quantities of automobile insurance coverage its drivers should carry. Listed below are the insurance coverage minimums it’s essential drive legally within the state.
Bodily Harm Legal responsibility Protection
This a part of your coverage protects you financially in the event you injure somebody in an auto accident. Your duties would possibly embrace funds for medical bills, ache and struggling and misplaced wages.
Maine requires drivers to hold minimal bodily harm legal responsibility protection of $50,000 per individual and $100,000 per accident.
Property Injury Legal responsibility Protection
This covers you in the event you trigger harm to another person’s property in a automobile accident. The protection consists of harm to different automobiles and property, akin to fences or different buildings.
Maine requires drivers to have at the least $25,000 per accident in property harm legal responsibility.
Uninsured Motorist Bodily Harm Protection
Maine has top-of-the-line information for the share of drivers on its roads who’re carrying insurance coverage. Nonetheless, the state mandates that automobile insurance coverage offered in Maine embrace protection to guard you if the accountable celebration in a automobile accident lacks insurance coverage or does not carry sufficient of it.
Maine requires drivers to hold uninsured motorist bodily harm protection of at the least $50,000 per individual and $100,000 per accident.
Medical Funds
This protection may also help pay for medical bills injured drivers and passengers face after an accident, no matter who’s at fault. Medical funds protection can cowl the prices of ambulance rides, hospital stays, surgical procedure and rehabilitation.
Maine requires drivers to hold at the least $2,000 in medical funds insurance coverage.
Purchase greater than the minimal protection in the event you can afford it
Specialists advocate you get greater than the mandated minimums for automobile insurance coverage, offered your funds permits it. That’s true even in Maine, which has comparatively stringent necessities.
For legal responsibility protection, a frequent suggestion is to hold at the least $100,000 per individual and $300,000 per accident for bodily harm, together with $100,000 for property harm.
Carrying much less legal responsibility insurance coverage than these skilled suggestions can prevent cash in your premiums. Nevertheless, it is going to additionally enhance your monetary danger from an accident that causes a number of accidents. Such an occasion would possibly create a six-figure complete legal responsibility that might threaten property akin to your automobiles or house in the event you lack different means to pay for it.
You must also think about shopping for extra medical funds protection than the required state minimal. In keeping with many specialists, it’s greatest to pick a medical-payments restrict that’s massive sufficient to cowl your medical insurance annual deductible plus any potential out-of-pocket bills. Such a complete may simply exceed the state minimal of $2,000, particularly in the event you typically have relations within the automobile with you.
Think about the protection lenders might require
Auto-loan lenders need to be sure that their funding within the automobile is protected in case it’s broken or written off as a complete loss. If the automobile is financed, the lender holds the title till the mortgage is paid off, so that they have to be sure the automobile is insured.
Along with carrying at the least the state minimums for legal responsibility protection, auto mortgage lenders normally require you to hold the next varieties of insurance coverage:
Complete insurance coverage, which covers harm to the automobile from occasions aside from collisions, akin to theft, vandalism or pure disasters.
Collision insurance coverage, which covers harm to the automobile in a collision with one other automobile or object.
GAP (for Assured Asset Safety) insurance coverage, which covers any shortfall between the depreciated worth of the automobile (the standard most payout within the occasion the automobile is written off for insurance coverage functions) and the remaining steadiness of the mortgage.
In the event you fail to take care of the required insurance coverage protection, your lender might buy insurance coverage for you. That may be dearer than in the event you purchased the protection your self, and the lender might add the associated fee to your mortgage steadiness, which implies you’ll pay curiosity on it.
Evaluate your mortgage settlement to know the precise insurance coverage necessities of your lender.
Tips on how to pay much less for automobile insurance coverage in Maine
Some easy methods can lower the cost of your car insurance. (Along with taking a number of of the strikes under, you’ll be able to, after all, think about altering insurers to get a lower cost; right here’s the way to switch car insurance.)
Analysis reductions
As in all states, firms that write automobile insurance coverage insurance policies in Maine provide a variety of reductions relying on how good your driving expertise are, how loyal you’re to your insurer and extra. Frequent fee reductions embrace these for sustaining a clear driving file, with no claims or site visitors violations; taking a defensive driving course, which is now supplied on-line; and sustaining good grades as a scholar.
Bundle insurance coverage insurance policies
A variety of insurers will let you bundle your automobile insurance coverage with homeowners insurance or renters insurance and reward you with decrease charges on each. The low cost in the event you bundle auto and home insurance coverage sometimes ranges from about 5% to fifteen%, which implies you would possibly save tons of of {dollars} a 12 months.
Enhance your deductible
The deductible is the portion of a declare you’re required to pay out of pocket earlier than your insurance coverage firm pays the remainder. Rising your deductible could make your premiums extra inexpensive. Nevertheless, watch out to not increase the quantity to a determine you’d be hard-pressed to pay within the occasion you had been to have an accident.
Evaluate your coverage frequently
It’s smart to reassess your coverage when it comes up for annual renewal, or everytime you make life modifications that have an effect on it, akin to including or subtracting drivers for the automobile or altering how far or how typically you commute. These evaluations be sure that you get the protection you want, and solely that.
Cut back protection
You possibly can cut back your annual premium by dropping collision or complete protection on automobiles that don’t have a lease or mortgage. Nevertheless, be cautious of eliminating this protection if you cannot afford to switch your automobile.
Think about usage-based insurance coverage
You possibly can probably save in a number of methods by switching to usage-based insurance coverage (UBI). With such protection, often known as “telematics,” you agree to make use of an app or gadget to observe driving behaviors like how briskly you drive, how shortly you flip and the way abruptly you brake.
You possibly can typically save for a time merely for making an attempt out telematics. After the trial, assuming your driving passes the check, you need to get pleasure from ongoing financial savings in your insurance coverage.
Store round for cheaper charges
Purchasing round and evaluating quotes from at the least three totally different insurance coverage suppliers may also help you get the most cost effective fee with out sacrificing essential protection. Nevertheless, resist letting charges and reductions alone decide your selection. You must also think about firms’ monitor information for customer support, together with claims dealing with, and suppleness in account choices, akin to deductibles. You may also assess the insurers’ apps and different digital options.
Methodology
We chosen our picks by researching and evaluating the next components to reach on the standout firms. Components are listed in tough order of significance in our evaluation:
- Buyer expertise: We favored firms that scored properly in a number of credible satisfaction research. The place out there, we used the insurer’s buyer satisfaction rating for New England in J.D. Energy’s 2024 U.S. Auto Insurance coverage Research. The place unavailable, we used J.D. Energy nationwide information on satisfaction with claims and the shopping experience. We thought-about the complaints index of the Nationwide Affiliation of Insurance coverage Commissioners, the place a decrease quantity means the corporate obtained fewer complaints than can be anticipated for its dimension, and the CRASH Network’s report, which charges insurers based mostly on suggestions on claims dealing with from automotive collision restore professionals.
- Pricing profile: Whereas the automobile insurance coverage fee you’ll pay will differ based mostly in your private components, we analyzed eight on-line analyses of automobile insurance coverage charges to find out every firm’s worth profile in contrast with its rivals.
- Reductions: We rewarded the vary and generosity of every firm’s reductions, together with these for bundling automobile protection with different varieties of insurance coverage choices, remaining loyal and/or claim-free with the insurer, being scholar and taking a defensive driving course.
- Know-how: Most insurers now use apps to facilitate acquiring premium quotes, submitting claims and extra. Firms obtained credit score for the standard and performance of their apps, as mirrored in our reporting and J.D. Energy’s evaluation of the very best auto insurance coverage apps.
- Monetary stability: An insurance coverage firm’s monetary stability might be gauged by its A.M. Finest monetary power score. We selected insurers with an A score or higher.