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Metromile Insurance Review: 6 Things To Know

By Ruthe Hall
By Ruthe Hall

Metromile is a company that specializes in pay-per-mile car insurance policies. Here's how it works: each month you're charged a flat monthly rate along with a few cents for every mile you drive.

If you're looking for a way to save money on auto insurance and you drive around 10,000 miles annually or less, a pay-per-mile policy is worth considering. This type of insurance is still fairly new, so there aren't too many companies specializing in pay-per-mile policies yet. But Metromile is one of the leaders in the field.

Want to learn more? In this article, you’ll find answers to frequently asked questions about Metromile including:

Note: Metromile was acquired by Lemonade in July 2022. The company currently states that if you buy a policy from Metromile, then you'll get coverage through Metromile. The acquisition may result in changes in the future, however, including availability in more states. While there isn't a published timeline for any changes, this article will be updated to reflect future changes accordingly.

How Much Does Metromile Insurance Cost?

As a pay-per-mile insurance company, Metromile is, "disrupting a more than $250 billion personal auto insurance industry" by charging its policyholders lower rates for driving less. The company calls traditional auto insurance "unfair," reporting that 65% of drivers overpay for insurance.

So far this year, it's estimated that the average cost of full coverage car insurance is $1,984. But Metromile states that drivers who switch to their insurance save an average of 47% compared to their previous traditional policies.

So just how much does Metromile insurance cost? Well — just like with every other type of insurance — the honest answer is: It depends.

Factors That Influence Your Rate

Two key things will determine how much Metromile insurance will cost you:

  • Your driver profile
  • How much you drive

Every insurance company — including Metromile — will assess personal factors about you that are statistically shown to increase or decrease your riskiness as a driver. These factors make up your driver profile, and factors can range from your age to your credit score and vary from insurer to insurer and state to state.

Metromile uses your driver profile specifically to determine your base rate and per-mile rate, which you can read more about below. The company says:

“Metromile considers a variety of factors when calculating a base rate—things like the driver age, credit history, type of vehicle, driver history, and more.”

Source: https://metromile.com/blog/metromile-billing/

Currently, Metromile advertises their starting base rate is just $29 per month. This would likely be for a driver who has good credit, no traffic violations or accidents in the last three or more years, and doesn’t drive a vehicle that’s expensive to repair.

Your driver profile also impacts your per-mile rate. Metromile uses an example of six cents per mile for a per-mile rate on their website.

The next step to calculate how much pay-per-mile insurance will cost you is to plug in how many miles you drive with your base and per-mile rates.

How Your Pay-Per-Mile Rate Is Calculated

Once you know your base rate and per-mile rate, it’s easy to calculate how much your car insurance will be from month to month. All you need to do is use this formula:

Basically, you’ll plug in the total number of miles you’ve driven in a month along with your rates. So, let’s say that your base rate is $40 and you’re charged $0.06 per mile. If you drive 350 miles in a month, here’s how to calculate your insurance: ($0.06 x 350) + $40 = $61.

You might also be charged various fees each month, which would bring your total monthly rate up.

How Does Metromile Track Your Mileage?

With Metromile, your mileage is monitored using device called the Metromile Pulse. You get the telematics device after enrolling. Then, you simply plug it into your car’s on-board diagnostic (OBD-II) port. This port is a common feature in most cars made since 1996 and can likely be found near your car’s center console or steering wheel. Electric or older vehicles cars might require an adapter — which Metromile can send to you — to connect the Pulse.

The Metromile Pulse uses cell modems to send your driving data to Metromile. So, you don’t need Bluetooth or a smartphone to track your miles.

It's worth noting that Metromile says you can use the Pulse to, "keep track of how many miles you're traveling, how much gas you're using, your driving speed (or the speed of anyone else — like a teen driver), and more."

This info is available when you use the trip tracking feature in the Metromile app. But, Metromile does not say they’ll use any information other than your mileage to adjust your monthly rate.

What Types of Coverage Does Metromile Offer?

When it comes to car insurance coverage, you’ll find that Metromile offers all of the same standard protections as a traditional insurer. This includes:

  • Liability: pays for damages, losses and/or injuries to others and their vehicles resulting from an accident you caused
  • Comprehensive: pays for damages to your vehicle caused by events other than an accident (example: you hit an animal or your car is damaged by a weather-related event)
  • Collision: pays for damages to your vehicle after an accident, regardless of who's at fault
  • Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist: pays for damages, losses and/or injuries to you and your vehicle resulting from an accident caused by an uninsured or underinsured driver
  • Medical Payments: pays medical expenses for you and your passengers after an accident, regardless of who's at fault
  • Personal Injury Protection (PIP): pays for your medical-related expenses and certain financial losses after an accident, regardless of who's at fault (example: medical bills and lost wages)

You can click on each type of coverage above to read more about these offerings from Metromile.

Add-On Coverages

In addition to the standard coverages, Metromile offers Roadside Assistance Insurance and Rental Car Insurance. Whether you run out of gas, get a flat tire, or lock your keys in the trunk, roadside assistance is insurance you can use when you find yourself stuck on the side of the road. But Clark doesn't typically recommend getting this coverage from your insurer.

Rental car insurance extends your auto insurance to any vehicle you rent as long as you’ve also got comprehensive and collision through Metromile. So, if you travel and/or use rental cars often, you’ll likely be able to skip the rental company’s insurance with this protection through Metromile.

How Do You File a Claim With Metromile Insurance?

You’ve got several options when it comes to filing a claim with Metromile. Here are three:

When you’re ready to submit, you’ll need to choose whether the claim is for roadside assistance, glass only damages, or all other claims.

Metromile then uses data from your Pulse device and an artificial intelligence (AI) claims system called AVA to process the claim. The company says AVA, "guides you through collecting damage photos, and gathers data from the Pulse to reconstruct the scene of an accident."

AVA is used to make the claims process more streamlined by also connecting you with repair shops, rental reservations and a claims adjuster.

What States Offer Metromile Car Insurance?

Metromile insurance is currently offered in eight states, including:

  • Arizona
  • California
  • Illinois
  • New Jersey
  • Oregon
  • Pennsylvania
  • Virginia
  • Washington

As mentioned, however, Metromile was recently acquired by Lemonade. The company states that pay-per-mile will be available sooner in more states as a result of the merger.

How Do You Cancel a Metromile Insurance Policy?

Metromile makes it easy for you to cancel your pay-per-mile insurance policy. All you need to do is contact the company at 1-888-242-5204 and let them know the date you’d like to cancel.

The company states they don't charge cancellation fees. Just be sure to send back your Metromile Pulse device within 30 days to avoid any potential fees. Metromile will charge you $100, "for each device not returned to us in good, working condition."

If you decide that Metromile isn't for you and you'd rather shop around for different coverage, we've got lots of guides to support your car insurance journey. I recommend starting with our article on how to shop for lower car insurance. Then, you can review our list of the best auto companies to consider when shopping around! Finally, check out guide on how to cancel your car insurance and switch insurers.

Final Thoughts

Pay-per-mile insurance is still fairly new, but Metromile is amongst the leaders in the field. If you drive around 10,000 miles per year or less, it’s worth considering. Metromile offers all the standard coverages as traditional insurance companies. But — a long as you’re comfortable sharing driving data — you can save money by driving less.

Still not sure? You can always get a quote from Metromile to see if the numbers pique your interest before making a decision.

This article was originally published on Clark.com

The post Metromile Insurance Review: 6 Things To Know appeared first on Clark Howard.

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