Pros
- Save up to 40% by installing SmartRide®, Nationwide's driver monitoring system
- Free annual insurance review
- User-friendly mobile app
Cons
- Complaints about high premiums and claims servicing
- Limited coverage options and discounts
- Limited discounts
- No rideshare coverage
Nationwide Insurance Review Summary
Nationwide is a solid insurance company, earning a 2.9/5 rating from WalletHub and above-average scores from organizations such as the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and J.D. Power. Nationwide’s NAIC score is 0.65, which means it has received about as many customer complaints as its industry peers. Some customers have noted issues with claims servicing and high rates, however.
One interesting thing to note about Nationwide Insurance is that it’s not available in all 50 states. For example, residents of Alaska, Hawaii, Louisiana, and Massachusetts are out of luck when it comes to car insurance, and residents of other states may have limited Nationwide offerings. In addition to car insurance and homeowners insurance policies, Nationwide offers insurance policies for small businesses, pets, boats, recreational vehicles and your health. The company also has investment, banking and retirement services.
Summary: Nationwide Insurance Scores by Review Category
Category | Score |
---|---|
Nationwide Quotes / Pricing | 0/30 |
Customer Service & Reviews | 20/30 |
Nationwide Financial Stability | 10/10 |
Nationwide Claims Process | 15/15 |
Nationwide Types of Insurance and Additional Services Offered | 5/5 |
Nationwide Discounts | 3/5 |
Nationwide Transparency | 5/5 |
OVERALL | 58/100 |
Now that you’re familiar with how Nationwide scores in each of our review categories, let’s see how it compares to top competitors in a handful of key areas. Hopefully, this will help you find the best insurance company for your needs.
Nationwide Car Insurance Pricing
Category Rating: 0% (0 out of 30)
Driver Profile | Average Quote |
---|---|
18-Year-Old | $272 per month |
21-Year-Old | $136 per month |
45-Year-Old | $74 per month |
45-Year-Old with a Speeding Ticket | $129 per month |
45-Year-Old with DUI | $206 per month |
55-Year-Old | $71 per month |
65-Year-Old | $74 per month |
Nationwide doesn’t offer the most affordable auto insurance rates you can find, and rank poorly relative to other large insurance companies. The company received a score of 0/30 in the cost portion of this review, as its premiums rank in the bottom quartile among the cheapest major car insurance providers, according to WalletHub data. Learn more about WalletHub’s Methodology.
Nationwide Customer Service & Reviews
Category Rating: 60% (20 out of 30)
- Reviews on WalletHub: 3.3/5
- J.D. Power: 4.1/5
- NAIC: 0.65
- BBB: A+
Nationwide lost points in this category because the company doesn’t have a 24/7 customer service line. Plus, its customer rating on WalletHub is above-average, but not great.
Nationwide’s Financial Stability
Category Rating: 100% (10 out of 10)
- Standard & Poor’s: A+
- Moody’s: A1
- AM Best: A+
Nationwide is on solid financial footing, earning above-average ratings from AM Best (one of the nation’s leading credit rating agencies for the insurance industry), S&P and Moody’s. Such statements of financial strength are important because they show an insurer’s ability to pay claims.
Nationwide Insurance Claims
Category Rating: 100% (15 out of 15)
Nationwide lets customers file a claim anytime online or over the phone. You can call the 24/7 claims support line (800-421-3535) for help navigating the process. Nationwide's accessibility earned it full marks in this category, per WalletHub’s grading criteria.
Learn more about Nationwide's claims process.
Types of Nationwide Insurance Policies
Category Rating: 100% (5 out of 5)
- Auto insurance
- ATV insurance
- Boat insurance
- Classic car insurance
- Condo insurance
- Dental insurance
- Flood insurance
- Golf cart insurance
- Homeowners insurance
- Identity theft insurance
- Life insurance
- Long-term care insurance
- Motorcycle insurance
- Personal watercraft insurance
- Pet insurance
- Private Client insurance
- Renters insurance
- RV insurance
- Scooter insurance
- Snowmobile insurance
- Specialty health insurance
- Travel insurance
- Umbrella insurance
- Wedding insurance
Nationwide received a high score in this category because it offers several types of insurance policies – including auto, homeowners, travel, life and pet insurance – as well as discounts for bundling policies. With that being said, let’s talk more about what Nationwide offers as a car insurance provider.
Nationwide auto insurance offers all the major types of coverage needed by most drivers: bodily injury liability, property damage liability, uninsured/underinsured motorist, collision, and comprehensive. The company also offers many extra coverage options, which you can add to your auto policy for enhanced protection.
Supplemental Nationwide Car Insurance Coverage Options:
- Emergency Road Service: Pays for the cost of towing, jump starts, fuel delivery, tire repairs, and winching services. This coverage option also provides up to $100 for lockout services.
- Accident Forgiveness: Protects your auto policy from a premium increase after an accident for which you are at fault.
- Rental Car Deductible: Covers your deductible expense if you have an accident in your rental car.
- Vanishing Deductible: Reduces your comprehensive and/or collision deductible by $100 each year for safe driving (up to $500).
- Total Loss Deductible Waiver: Waives your comprehensive or collision deductible if you completely total your car in an accident.
- Annual On Your Side® Review: Reviews of your existing policies to ensure that you are adequately protected.
You should only choose supplemental coverage options that make sense for your unique situation, as well as your budget. You don’t want to pay for coverage you don’t realistically need. That same sentiment can apply to the specialty car insurance policies Nationwide offers, too.
Specialty Types of Nationwide Car Insurance Policies:
- Nationwide Commercial Car Insurance for individuals who use their vehicles for business. In addition to the standard coverage options, you can also purchase special add-ons for your commercial policy, such as roadside assistance, new vehicle replacement, towing and more.
- Nationwide Classic Car Insurance for owners of antique cars, vintage race cars, collector motorcycles, military vehicles and even antique tractors.
Nationwide also protects vehicles built for enjoying the great outdoors, offering insurance for motorcycles, RVs, snowmobiles, personal watercraft, boats, scooters, and ATVs. Keep in mind that the availability and details of Nationwide’s supplemental and specialty insurance coverage options vary by state.
Nationwide Insurance Discounts
Category Rating: 60% (3 out of 5)
- Multi-policy discount
- SmartRide discount
- SmartMiles discount
- Accident-free discount
- Good student discount
- Defensive driving course discount
- Anti-theft discount
- Safe driver discount
- Easy Pay sign up discount
- Affinity discount
- Paperless discount
Nationwide offers almost a dozen discount options, but not quite as many as some of its top competitors, so the company gets an average score in this category. The availability and eligibility requirements for discounts on Nationwide policies also vary by state.
Nationwide Insurance Transparency
Category Rating: 100% (5 out of 5)
You can find key information on the Nationwide website quickly and easily, so it received the highest score possible in this department.
Bottom Line
Nationwide is a solid insurance company overall, offering auto insurance, homeowners insurance, and more. Nationwide has a top-notch claims handling process, and the company also scores well in the customer service and transparency departments. However, Nationwide could work on offering more discounts.
Nationwide Car Insurance vs. Competitors
Insurer | Nationwide | Allstate | Progressive | State Farm |
---|---|---|---|---|
Average Premium* | $2,287 per year | $1,569 per year | $1,296 per year | $1,410 per year |
Number of Car Insurance Discounts | 11 | 12 | 13 | 16 |
Offers Home Insurance | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Complaints Score (lower is best) | 0.65 | 2.70 | 1.45 | 1.18 |
Editor’s Rating | 2.9 | 2.9 | 3.9 | 4.1 |
*Complaints Score represents the company's overall NAIC rating. Car insurance-specific rating may differ.
*Average annual premiums are based on a variety of driver profiles. Individuals premiums may differ, but these rates illustrate how costs from these insurers typically compare. Learn more about how these rates were calculated in the methodology section below.
For more car insurance research, check out WalletHub’s Cheap Car Insurance Study. And if you have experience with Nationwide that you think might help other consumers, you can also write a Nationwide insurance review.
Video: Nationwide Insurance Review
Methodology
In order to provide fair, helpful reviews of insurance companies such as Nationwide that can lead consumers to the best insurance coverage for their needs, WalletHub rates each insurance company in seven major categories: Cost, Insurance Types, Customer Service & Reviews, Discounts, Claims, Financial Stability and Transparency. Below, you can find an overview of what each section in our scoring rubric entails.
- The “Cost” section includes information about how expensive the insurance policies are. Nationwide's average premiums and quartile rankings are based on data from California, the largest state Nationwide operates in. Rate information is provided by Quadrant Information Services. Individual rates will be different.
- The “Insurance Types” section examines what types of insurance policies the company offers
- The “Customer Service & Reviews” section measures the insurance company’s reputation as well user reviews and information from watchdog organizations.
- The “Discounts” section examines how many and what types of discounts the company offers. It also takes into consideration whether or not there are discounts for bundling policies.
- The “Claims” section examines the ways in which customers can make claims with the policy. It considers whether or not customers can make claims by phone or online, as well as whether or not the company has a 24/7 support line.
- The “Financial Stability” section considers the company’s status with credit rating agencies AM Best, S&P and Moody’s.
- The “Transparency” section measures how clearly the insurer discloses key information on its website.
The final score takes these seven categories into account and reflects how close an insurance company is to WalletHub’s definition of a 5-star insurer. For more information, please read WalletHub’s full insurance company methodology.
Ask the Experts
To gain more insight about 2023 Nationwide Insurance Review, WalletHub posed the following questions to a panel of experts. Click on the experts below to view their bios and answers.
1. How valuable would you say the “Nationwide is on your side” jingle has been for Nationwide?
2. With more people buying insurance online, do you think Nationwide will move toward having fewer local agents available, even for existing customers?
WalletHub experts are widely quoted. Contact our media team to schedule an interview.