Posted by: LK Lam

EDITOR’S RATING 3 / 5 PROS

• Competitive rates.
• Solid policy discounts.
• Nationwide availability.

CONS

• Only available to AAA members.
• Complaints about customer support and roadside assistance service.
• Average claims support.

AAA Review Summary: AAA auto insurance is only available to AAA members. An annual membership can cost anywhere from $50 to $130 on average, depending on the level of membership you decide to purchase. If you’re already a member and wish to consolidate all your insurance policies with one company, AAA auto insurance is worth considering given its competitive rates, discounts, and other member benefits. In particular, AAA’s accident forgiveness and disappearing deductible benefits are worth highlighting since not all auto insurers offer those features.

However, you can certainly find a broader range of coverage options and a better insurance shopping experience with other major auto insurers. Many of the regional AAA websites have an outdated feel, and it’s often difficult to get details about policy options in your state without calling a AAA agent.

In the sections below, learn more about AAA car insurance and how it fares against popular competitors.

Find the Cheapest Auto Insurance Quotes in Your Area Age 16-20 21-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-65 65+ Currently Insured? Find Insurers AAA Auto Insurance Reviews & Ratings

• • WalletHub: 3.4/5 (152 user reviews)
  • Better Business Bureau: A+ (accredited)
  • J.D. Power: 3.3/5 (average rating of 3 AAA affiliates)
  • National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC): In 2018, AAA auto insurance received fewer complaints than other auto insurers of similar size.

A review of AAA auto insurance complaints online reveals that the quality of AAA’s flagship roadside assistance service is a crapshoot. While some customers praised AAA’s performance of repairs, many others took issue with the response time and customer service during roadside emergencies. Customers have also pointed out AAA auto insurance’s unexplained premium increases over the years.

AAA-affiliated companies have received an excellent rating for financial strength over the years from A.M. Best, a nationally recognized credit rating agency that focuses on the insurance industry.

Fun Fact: AAA conducts reviews of hotels and restaurants for travelers. With the help of professional onsite inspectors, AAA has rated more hotels and restaurants than any other professional rating organization in North America.

AAA Auto Insurance Coverage Options

AAA sells auto insurance in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, but policies are only available to AAA members.

The company offers all the standard coverage options to keep you and your vehicle protected on the road. These include liability coverage for bodily injury and property damage as well as coverage for medical payments, personal injury protection, collision damage, and uninsured/underinsured motorists. Comprehensive coverage is an option, too. Additionally, all AAA members have access to the company’s flagship emergency roadside service.

AAA members can choose to enhance their auto policies with additional coverage options. It’s important to note that the availability and details of these extra coverage options vary widely. AAA is organized regionally, and each regional organization operates largely independently. As a result, not all coverage options are available in all states.

Supplemental Coverage Options from AAA Auto Insurance:

• Rental Reimbursement: Covers the cost of a rental car when your vehicle is in the repair shop due to an accident.
• Gap Coverage: Pays the difference between the actual cash value of your car and the amount that is still owed on your loan or lease if you total your car in an accident.
• Accident Forgiveness: Protects you from a premium increase after an accident.
• Disappearing Deductible: Reduces your comprehensive and/or collision deductible by $50 for every policy period in which you remain claim-free (up to $500).

Specialty Types of AAA Auto Insurance:

• AAA Commercial Auto Insurance
• AAA Rideshare Insurance
• AAA Mexico Auto Insurance
• AAA Motorcycle & Recreational Vehicle Insurance

Sample AAA Car Insurance Quotes

WalletHub’s editors obtained AAA auto insurance quotes for driver profiles varying in age and experience.

Age	Clean Driving Record	Poor Driving Record
21	$310 / month	$480 / month
30	$217 / month	$334 / month
42	$186 / month	$289 / month

Premiums may vary by state and coverage level. To learn how WalletHub obtained these quotes, please refer to the Methodology section below.

AAA Insurance Discounts

• Prior Insurance: Discount for switching to AAA. To qualify, drivers must have had continuous coverage while they were insured with their previous auto insurance company.
• AAA Membership: The longer you’re a AAA member, the more you save.
• New Car: Discount for insuring a brand-new vehicle on your policy.
• Multiple-Product: Discount for bundling more than one AAA insurance product.
• Multiple-Car: Discount when you insure more than one vehicle with AAA.
• Vehicle Safety: Discount for having certain vehicle safety devices on board (e.g., airbags and anti-lock brakes).
• Anti-Theft: Discount for installing anti-theft equipment in your vehicle.
• Paperless: Discount for choosing to receive your policy documents electronically.
• Pay in Full: Discount when you pay your premium for the entire policy period within 7 days of your insurance’s effective date.
• AutoPay: Discount for enrolling in automatic premium payments.
• AAA Safety Inspection: Discount when your vehicle passes a safety inspection by AAA.
• AAADrive™: Discount for enrolling in AAA’s driving monitoring program. AAADrive uses a mobile app to track your driving habits, giving you feedback on how safely you drive and what you may need to work on.
• Defensive Driver: Discount when you complete a defensive driving course.
• New Young Driver: Discount for adding a driver under the age of 20 to your existing auto policy.
• Good Student: Discount for students who receive a “B” or better average in school.
• Student Away: Discount for parents whose young drivers are attending school more than 100 miles away without access to their vehicles.

The eligibility criteria, availability, and amount of these discounts vary by state.

AAA vs. GEICO, State Farm & Allstate

Insurer	AAA	GEICO	State Farm	Allstate
Average Annual Premium	$3,322	$3,546	$3,925	$4,949
WalletHub Ranking (total of 46 companies)/td>	14th	21st	26th	40th
Complaints Score (lower is best)	1.12	0.84	0.59	0.88
Customer Satisfaction	3.3/5	3/5	3/5	3/5

Note: Customer satisfaction ratings are from JD Power’s 2019 automotive insurance surveys.

Methodology

In order to rate and rank AAA auto insurance, we looked closely at the auto policies sold by some of the most popular insurance companies in the United States. We evaluated the relative strengths and shortcomings of each company, and based our AAA auto insurance review on the following key factors:

• Cost
• Coverage options & limits
• Claims process
• Customer reviews
• Watchdog ratings
• Customer service
• Transparency

To assess customer satisfaction at AAA auto insurance and other companies, WalletHub assigns each auto insurer a complaints score, which represents the annual number of complaints against the company adjusted to its market size based on its share of annual premiums for personal auto policies. This adjustment is necessary as larger companies tend to log more complaints.

Assumptions for AAA Auto Insurance Quotes:

Gender: MaleMarital Status: SingleState: CaliforniaCar: Honda Accord

Coverage Type	Coverage Limit
Bodily Injury	$100,000/person $300,000/accident
Property Damage	$50,000
Medical Payments	$5,000
Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (Bodily Injury)	$30,000/person $60,000/accident
Comprehensive	$250 deductible
$250 deductible	$500 deductible (waiver add-on included)

In order to compare auto premiums across major insurance carriers, WalletHub collected quotes for at least 30 cities in the state of California. California was chosen given its population size and its average ranking in WalletHub’s research on car insurance pricing. The sample quotes we obtained from the state insurance regulator’s database are based on a variety of driver profiles with different ages and driving records, where a poor record means that the driver has had at least one at-fault accident or traffic violation.

You can learn more about the findings of our car insurance research in WalletHub’s 2019 Cheap Car Insurance Study. And if you would like to help other consumers as they shop for auto insurance, feel free to share your own experiences with AAA by writing a AAA auto insurance review.

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