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Are you a native New Yorker looking for an insurance company who can claim the same? Then you might be looking for insurance coverage from Country-Wide. They pride themselves on being a family-owned and operated business, offering “value-added” benefits, and employing “Cutting edge technology to foster an ease of doing business”. They were incorporated back in 1963 and have been selling auto insurance to the NYC metropolitan area and its contiguous suburbs ever since.
When you’re looking into a new insurance company, whether you’re dissatisfied with your current provider or just looking for a more affordable deal, you’ll want to make sure your new company is rated highly before making a switch. But if you’re considering Country-Wide, you may want to tread carefully. A.M. Best has rated their financial strength at a C+, which means their ability to pay out on claims may be compromised. Likewise, although they have improved their rating in recent years with the Better Business Bureau, they still have a D-.
Metric | Rating |
AM Best Financial Strength Rating (2016) | C+ (Marginal) |
Better Business Bureau (2016) | D- |
NAIC Complaint Index (2012) | 4.28 (Median Index: 1.00) |
Despite the company’s “About Us” page insisting that they use cutting-edge technology in their business practices, there isn’t very much information on their website about what sort of discounts, if any, you can expect if you purchase an auto policy from Country-Wide. For the most factual and up-to-date on Country-Wide insurance discounts, your best bet is to contact your local agent.
If you are going to own and operate an automobile in New York, you are legally required to purchase:
At the very least, Country-Wide should be able to offer you Liability coverage in the amounts mandated by the state of New York in order to make sure you can drive legally. Aside from that, it is confusing to know for sure what other types of coverage Country-Wide may offer – unless you call up an agent and ask them, that is.
If you’re shopping around for the best deal, then you’re going to have to compare your current provider against other providers, including Country-Wide, that operate near you and can write you an auto policy. Despite the cutting-edge technologies that Country-Wide uses in their day-to-day business, we were unable to find estimated quotes for their auto policies online.
The chart above, though, displays some estimated quotes from other insurance providers across the country. Just keep in mind that these are only estimates, and can’t necessarily be guaranteed. But the numbers above can help you put a quote from Country-Wide into context. That way, you can determine whether or not they are giving you the best deal.
Pro | Con |
Local expertise in NYC: despite its name, Countrywide focuses solely on the New York City metropolitan area and suburbs | Poor reviews and higher than average complaints recorded from policyholders about claims and settlement process |
They incorporate “cutting edge” technology in their business practices | This purported level of technological expertise is conspicuously absent from the company website |
Boasts a racially diverse staff that can speak to and service customers in many different languages | “Marginal” financial creditworthiness, as rated by AM Best |
If you’re a native New Yorker, you can probably appreciate having your auto policy managed by a local business. However, they have shaky financials and a plethora of customer complaints filed against them in recent years (although there are small signs that the customer service situation is improving). Whether you’re sold on Country-Wide yet or not, it’s still important to make sure you compare rates with other providers in your area.
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