Liberty Mutual Auto Insurance Review

Company Background Information

Liberty Mutual Insurance, founded in 1912 is one of the oldest and largest global insurers in the world and the 7th largest auto insurer in the United States. The company is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts and employs over 50,000 people at 900 global locations. Liberty Mutual is a mutual insurance company, similar to Amica Mutual, where policy holders own shares of the company and receive reduced premiums when Liberty Mutual is profitable.

Liberty Mutual purchased Safeco Insurance in 2008 and the company has several subsidiaries and offers a large number of different insurance products through them. Personal insurance is sold through a network of over 2,000 insurance salespeople, call centers, and the company website. The company also sells auto insurance through its Safeco brand through a network of over 10,000 insurance agents. Liberty Mutual was recently rated 3 out of 5 power circles by J.D. Power in 2013 for customer satisfaction with claims and is currently rated A (Excellent) by A.M. Best for its financial stability.

Pros of Liberty Mutual Insurance

• A wide range of different insurance products available
• Strong company history and financial ratings
• Numerous discounts similar to other major insurance providers

Cons of Liberty Mutual Insurance

• Negative customer reviews regarding claims processing and various difficulties with customer support
• Some states not eligible for Liberty’s unique discounts
• Some customers are excluded from Liberty’s discount programs

Discounts

Liberty Mutual offers a wide range of discounts for its auto policy holders and group savings for select organizations. The main discounts offered by Liberty Mutual include the following:

• Multiple policy discounts for purchasing homeowners and vehicle insurance
• Multiple vehicle discounts
• Group savings for members of the 14,000 organizations that are included in Liberty Mutual’s affinity program
• Good student discounts for students that maintain a minimum of a B average
• Low mileage discounts for vehicles driven less than 7,500 miles per year
• Discounts for safety features such as anti-lock brakes and for anti-theft devices
• Special discounts for teachers – teachers have a $0 deductible if their vehicle is vandalized while they are at school, personal property coverage up to $2,500, and a $0 deductible if the vehicle is damaged while in use for educational purposes. The discounts are not available in every state.

Website

The Liberty Mutual website is well designed and modern. Policy holders can easily make a payment from the website, view their billing history, view claim status and manage and update their policies. The website includes helpful information on auto insurance and useful tools including coverage calculators, information about auto insurance costs, information about the minimum coverage required by state, a vehicle safety score tool which rates vehicles for their overall safety and anticipated insurance costs, and crash test ratings for many different makes and models. There is also detailed information about senior and teen driving.

Types of Insurance Offered

Liberty Mutual offers auto, motorcycle and umbrella insurance for its main vehicle insurance product lineups. For auto insurance it offers bodily injury, medical, property liability, personal injury protection, comprehensive, collision, and uninsured motorist auto coverage. The company offers some unique benefits that can be added on such as accident forgiveness, unlimited rental car coverage, and new car replacement. Some of the unique benefits offered include:

• Auto insurance rates guaranteed for 12 months
• Accident forgiveness included free with auto policies for customers who meet eligibility requirements
• Optional rental car coverage that covers the cost of a rental vehicle no matter how long it takes a Liberty selected facility to repair it (availability depends on the state and there are daily limits)
• New car replacement – this is included as a standard feature on most Liberty auto insurance policies, and vehicles that are less than one year old with under 15,000 miles are only eligible for the program. Also North Carolina and Wyoming are excluded from the program.
• Windshield repair – Liberty offers glass coverage or comprehensive coverage that will cover any damages to a windshield. There is a network of glass replacement providers that Liberty offers and the repair can be completed wherever the customer is located. Liberty handles the billing directly and guarantees the repair, similar to the Total Liberty Care Program.
• Roadside assistance – Liberty offers optional 24 hour roadside assistance that includes towing to the closest facility, jump starting batteries, flat tire changing service, and vehicle unlocking services.

Total Liberty Care Program

Liberty Mutual offers a lifetime repair guarantee when a customer uses a Total Liberty Care repair shop for their damaged vehicle. Liberty handles the paperwork involved when a customer uses their shop for vehicle repairs. Customers who use a Total Liberty Care shop can see updates on their vehicle’s status from the website and the company pays the facility directly, limiting the amount of effort needed from the policyholder to get their vehicle fixed. Liberty Mutual customers can choose to have their vehicle repaired at another facility if they desire, but they won’t be eligible for the benefits of the Total Liberty Care program.

Customer Reviews

Customer reviews online suggest that the customer experience with Liberty Mutual is average with some customers claiming long delays during claims processing, trouble with getting rental fees reimbursed, unexplained increases in auto insurance premiums, and other problems with customer support. Liberty Mutual was rated 3 out of 5 with J.D. Power for its claims processing which also suggest that most customers would have a mixed experience with claims processing.

Recommendations

Although Liberty Mutual is not without its negative reviews, it is a stable and large auto insurer that has a high customer retention rate and many satisfied customers. Liberty Mutual can save a prospective customer money through its many discount options and offers multiple quotes from different policies to interested customers. To get a quote from Liberty Mutual and other insurance providers now, enter your zip code on this page.

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