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MileMeter: Big saving on pay as you drive auto insurance
MileMeter bills itself as the “anti-insurance insurance company." They are a small 7 person office in Dallas Texas. MileMeter is the first (and still only) car insurance company offering pure pay-by-the-mile auto insurance. You can enjoy huge savings, if you drive low miles. If you have a vehicle that is driven less than 12,000 miles per year, MileMeter insurance could help you lower your auto insurance up to 75%!
It's also a great alternative for temporary car insurance. You can buy from 1,000 to 6,000 miles of coverage for every 6 months. The value of your unused miles is credited to the renewal policy, subject to the minimum earned premium of 1000 miles every six months. So you will at least pay for 2000 miles per year (1000 miles every 8 months x2), but unless you walk, bicycle or bus everywhere, that would be easy.
Because MileMeter is a simple product, you can get choose full coverage, limits up to personal injury protection and towing coverage, quotes, buy insurance and print your proof of insurance card in five minutes. The biggest hassle I see is that because they don't use electronic tracking devices to track your mileage, you have to email MileMeter a photo of your car's odometer, with your driver license visible.
But that is easily comparable to spending an hour in an insurance brokers office, or another carrier installing a dashboard monitor in your car. And they offer great flexibility according to your miles driven.
MileMeter is a great answer to traditional auto insurance, which typically offers a complex system of rates, varying discounts, different penalties for poor credit, accidents and tickets, nosy questions about your income & housing, and high rates.
| I'm different because I believe many people are OVERinsured. Don't just drop coverage, look at the parts of an are youautop policy you are not using. Like car rental, if you have a car you can borrow. Drivers who used our service get multiple rates, save money and get better coverage. There over 100 car insurance companies, so don't try and determine the discounts for every carrier on your own. For low auto insurance rates, choose your state to the right. |
Drawbacks of MileMeter:
- You can't use their service if you live outside of Texas.
- Customers who drive farther than their purchased insurance do so without coverage.
- About 1/3 of households would actually pay higher car insurance on MileMeter
- They had to close the doors previously for lack of financing.
- If your current insurer charges you for super low miles, the rates *might* be comparable (doubtful)
- You cannot use the service If you drive over 12,000 miles per year (it's not economical)
- They do not use credit scoring or claims records to protect the company or drivers rates
- Their future looks bright, but another economic downturn could again impact the company
- They present a huge acquisition target for the giant insurance carriers either to dissolve the business or reconfigure the service
- They do not track how long the vehicle is driven, hard braking, speeders, or time of driving
- Distance based driving may not differentiate highway, city, or country road driving
- Mileage tracking does not charge more for a driver who changes lanes abruptly or drives distracted
How Much Can You Save?
MileMeter is reported to charge around .08 per mile. A low-mileage customer driving 4,000 miles per year might pay under $30 per month. The Brookings Institution did an independent study that 64% of California households would reduce their premiums on pay as you drive car insurance, saving $276 per vehicle per year. So if you're low mileage, MileMeter makes sense environmentally and economically.
Other Companies offering Pay As You Drive Car Insurance
Progressive has a pay-as-you-drive program called Snapshot, new version of MyRate. Snapshot provides discounts of up to 30% per year from its regular car insurance rates. Snapshot is currently available through 25 states. Because each state has separate insurance regulations, the Snapshot is and slowly getting approval in each state. Snapshot provides discounts on auto insurance based on mileage, times of day the car is used and hard braking.
GMAC Insurance with OnStar technology, offer a discount in 35 states for those who have a GM vehicle equipped with OnStar and drive less than 15,000 miles a year.
Comparison of Auto Insurance Carriers & Brokers
| Carrier Name | Pay by mile? | JD Powers Claims paying |
JD Powers Rates Out of 5 |
JD Powers Overall Out of 5 |
Editor Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21st Century | Yes | 2 | 3 | 2 |  |
| AAA | Yes | 2 | 2 | 2 |  |
| AIG | No | *NR | *NR | *NR |  |
| Acceptance Ins. | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| American Family | No | 4 | 3 | 3 | |
| Affirmative Insurance | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Allied | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Allstate | Yes | 3 | 2 | 3 | |
| Ameriprise | No | No | 5 | 4 |
|
| Amica | No | 4 | 5 | 5 |  |
| California Casualty | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Coast National | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| CSAA | No | 3 | 4 | 3 | |
| Direct General | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Electric Insurance | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Encompass Insurance | No | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| Erie | No | 3 | 5 | 4 | |
| Esurance | No | 2 | 3 | 2 | |
| Explorer | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Farmers | No | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| Geico | No | 3 | 4 | 3 | |
| GMAC | Yes | *NR | 3 | 2 | |
| The Hartford | No | 4 | 3 | 3 | |
| The Hanover | No | 3 | 2 | 2 | |
| Horace Mann | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Infinity | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Liberty Mutual | Business | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
| Mercury | No | 3 | 3 | 2 | |
| Metlife | No | 3 | 3 | 2 | |
| MileMeter | Yes | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Nationwide | No | 3 | 2 | 2 | |
| New Jersey Manufacturers | No | No | 5 | 5 | |
| Progressive | Yes | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
| Prudential | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Safeco | No | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
| Safeway | No | No | Yes | *NR | |
| State Farm | Yes | 4 | 3 | 4 | |
| Titan | No | No | No | *NR | |
| Travelers | No | 3 | 3 | 2 | |
| Unigard | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Unitrin Direct | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| USAA | No | 5 | 5 | 5 | |
| Viking | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Wausau | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Wawanesa | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Western General | No | *NR | *NR | *NR |
|
| Western United | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Workmens | No | *NR | *NR | *NR | |
| Carrier Name | Pay by mile? | JD Powers Claims paying |
JD Powers Rates Out of 5 |
JD Powers Overall Out of 5 |
Editor Rating |
- Acceptance Insurance services AZ, AR, CO, GA, IL, IN, IA, NE, ND, WI
- CSAA or California State Automobile Association services Northern California, Nevada, and Utah
- Esurance services only AZ, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IL, MD, MI, MO, NJ, NV, NY, OH, PA, TN, TX, VA, WA, WI, & MN
- Mercury services only AZ, CA, FL, GA, IL, MI, NJ, NY, NV, OK, PA, TX, & VA
- Viking Insurance is available in the following states: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Written by Craig J. Casey
Financial Writer helping people with their insurance problems on the net since 1998.
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