Which Auto Insurance Company Is Better – Liberty Mutual or GEICO?
Last Updated on June 4, 2021
GEICO and Liberty Mutual are two of the largest auto insurance companies in the United States. GEICO is currently the 2nd biggest, only behind State Farm. However, it’s considerably bigger in auto insurance than Liberty Mutual, which is currently the 6th largest auto insurance company in the US.
What other differences are there between Liberty Mutual and GEICO, and is one a better option for auto insurance?
All About Liberty Mutual
Liberty Mutual is actually a larger insurance company than GEICO, although GEICO is bigger in the US auto market. That’s partly because GEICO solely does auto insurance in the US, while Liberty Mutual offers insurance and financial products beyond auto insurance.
Liberty Mutual was founded in 1912 in Boston, Massachusetts. Today it employs over 50,000 people, has revenues over $39 billion, and owns numerous subsidiary companies, some of which operate internationally.
One of the most important subsidiary companies that Liberty Mutual owns is Safeco. Safeco only offers personal insurance products, such as auto insurance and homeowners insurance.
So, if Liberty Mutual isn’t competitive on your auto, you can try Safeco if you still want to be a part of the Liberty Mutual brand.
Liberty Mutual offers auto insurance directly through its website, as well as through its network of independent insurance agents across the country.
Liberty Mutual’s AM Best rating is an A, as is almost all of its numerous subsidiary companies.
All About GEICO
The Government Employees Insurance Company, aka GEICO, is a bigger player in the US auto insurance market but is a smaller company. But with revenues over $25 billion and over 40,000 employees, it’s hardly a small business. This is especially true considering that GEICO is owned by Berkshire Hathaway, which is the 3rd largest public company in the world.
GEICO offers a different model of selling insurance than Liberty Mutual. It only offers auto insurance, although it’s affiliated with other insurance companies that it can sell homeowners, renters, and other personal insurance products through.
It sells directly to its consumers, rather than having its own network of GEICO agents or using independent agents. This means that it only sells insurance through its website or on the phone.
However, its large staff of telephone and online operators are licensed agents who are qualified and able to offer professional advice.
GEICO’s AM Best rating is a top-rated A++.
Target Markets
Traditionally, GEICO targeted a younger crowd, people who preferred the ease of online shopping and wanted minimum interaction with an agent. While this is still true to a degree, GEICO has tried to move more into the preferred driver market, which means people with good driving histories and good credit scores.
This is the area that Liberty Mutual has traditionally focused on. They’ve tended to market themselves more towards families, businesspeople, and basically anyone with a good driving history. Today, they are trying to move more into the area traditionally occupied by GEICO.
Basically, the two companies have served different market segments in the past, but are trying to expand into the other’s territory.
Liberty Mutual vs. GEICO Comparison
Both auto insurance companies have happy and loyal customers, and they both offer coverages and discounts that could set them apart when you’re making your comparison.
Multi-Policy Discount
Both Liberty Mutual and GEICO offer multiple personal insurance products, but GEICO doesn’t actually underwrite the policies. They only offer auto insurance and outsource their other products to other insurance companies. While this might not be a bad thing, Liberty Mutual gets the nod for writing almost any type of insurance, as well as offering a 15% discount for bundling home and auto.
Edge: Liberty Mutual
Multi-Vehicle Discount
If you have more than one vehicle on your auto policy, you can take advantage of this discount. Liberty Mutual’s is pretty standard at 10-15%, while GEICO offers a huge discount of 25%.
Edge: GEICO
Safe Driver Discount
Drivers who haven’t had any accidents or violations in the past 5 years can qualify for this discount. GEICO offers up to a 26% discount, while Liberty Mutual offers a 15-20% discount.
However, if you qualify for this discount with Liberty Mutual, you can also choose to enroll in their Accident Forgiveness program, which guarantees that your rates won’t increase after your first accident with them.
Edge: Liberty Mutual
Telematics
Telematics is a program that tracks certain aspects of your driving and gives you discounts based on how you perform. Liberty Mutual’s RightTrack program guarantees a 5% discount just for completing the program, with up to a 30% discount possible. GEICO’s telematics program is a smartphone app called DriveEasy that has only recently been released to the public. It promises to offer you discounts for driving safely, but since it’s still new, the jury is still out as to how well it works.
Edge: Liberty Mutual
Extra Discounts/Coverages
Both companies offer a few unique discounts that could play a decisive factor in your rates.
Liberty Mutual offers an affinity discount if you’re a member of any of their 14,000+ associations and organizations. They also offer a big advance quote discount, as well as a discount for using a hybrid or electric vehicle.
GEICO offers a 15% discount for active and former military members, as well as an 8% discount for any federal employee. It also offers a wide array of smaller discounts, such as payment discounts and even a discount for wearing your seatbelt.
Edge: Tie
Final Word – GEICO vs. Liberty Mutual
Both auto insurance companies are good companies and offer a wide variety of discounts to lower your premium. GEICO is probably more consistent in its rates, while Liberty Mutual is more up-and-down depending on the location.
If you like combining your different policies with one company and can take advantage of any of Liberty Mutual’s discounts, as well as have a clean driving record, then Liberty Mutual might be the better option for you.
