Allstate Drivewise vs. Farmers Signal: Which Service Is Best (2023)

If you’re considering buying a car insurance policy with a usage-based program, Allstate and Farmers have probably popped up in your research. To make this an easier decision for you, we’ve put together our Allstate Drivewise vs. Farmers Signal insurance review.

We’ll discuss how each program works and what discounts they’ll offer, as well as some general information about each company, such as auto insurance rates and industry ratings.

To compare car insurance quotes from companies in your area, use our free quote comparison tool above by entering your ZIP code.

What are Allstate Drivewise and Farmers Signal?

Allstate Drivewise and Farmers Signal are both usage-based insurance programs. Both of these programs track your vehicle usage to help safe drivers lower their car insurance rates.

Usage-based insurance typically uses GPS, cellular, or other types of technology to track driving behaviors, such as speed, hard braking or cornering, miles driven, what times of the day you drive, and if you use your phone while driving.

While both Allstate Drivewise and Farmers Signal use an app to track your driving behaviors, some programs can use systems already built into your car, a device that is plugged into your car, or a device that is installed and connects to your phone via Bluetooth.

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Who can earn discounts with usage-based insurance?

Usage-based insurance may be a good option for safe drivers. Some usage-based insurance programs will offer a discount just for joining their programs. Others will offer rewards after a specific review period.

Allstate Drivewise car insurance offers cash back rewards for signing up and then every six months after that for safe driving. You can also complete safe driving challenges to earn Allstate Rewards.

Allstate will reward those who generally drive under 80 mph, make minimal abrupt stops, and limit their late-night driving.

Signal by Farmers offers up to 5 percent off when you first sign up for the program. You then have the opportunity to earn up to 15 percent off at policy renewal and an additional 10 percent off when you add a relative to your insurance policy who is under 25 years old.

The Farmers Signal app will monitor more general driving behavior, so overall safe drivers are likely to benefit from the program.

Usage-based insurance may not be the best choice for those who have a “lead foot” or those who drive at higher speeds, brake hard, or have previous traffic violations.

If this sounds like you, signing up for usage-based insurance may help you improve your safe driving, but if you don’t meet the program’s driving standards, it may not decrease your rates — it may even increase your rates at review time.

Do customers like usage-based insurance?

There are a few concerns when it comes to using usage-based insurance. While many consumers say they would use one, many don’t. The main reason is the lack of knowledge across the industry about usage-based insurance.

Consumers often don’t know about telematics (the technology used to record and monitor your driving behaviors), and even insurance agents or customer service representatives feel a lack of knowledge in this area. Therefore, the programs often don’t get discussed.

On the other hand, some consumers are also concerned about privacy while using a monitoring device or app. However, many of these concerns are overshadowed by the fact that the program can earn discounts.

Who has more affordable car insurance rates?

Let’s take a look at Allstate vs. Farmers average annual car insurance rates to compare:

In most cases, it seems Allstate car insurance rates would be more expensive than Farmers car insurance rates. However, you should consider which discounts you would be eligible for through each company.

Allstate offers the following discounts: anti-lock brake discount, anti-theft device discount, multiple policy discount, early signing discount, good payer discount, student discounts, new car discount, automatic payment discount, paperless discount, paid-in-full discount, and safe driver discount.

Farmers is not as transparent about what discounts they offer, but some sources report they offer some of the same discounts as Allstate, plus defensive driving discounts and multi-car discounts.

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How do experts rate Allstate Drivewise vs. Farmers Signal insurance?

Allstate has an A+ rating from the BBB. They have closed 469 customer complaints in the last year, and they have a 1.19/5 star rating.

Allstate also has a 1.88 complaint index from NAIC, which is higher than the national average of 1.00. This means they get more complaints than other companies of a similar size.

Farmers also has an A+ rating from the BBB. They have only seven customer complaints closed in the last year, with a 1/5 star rating.

Farmers’ complaint index is at 1.08, which puts them just slightly above the national average of 1.00.

A.M. Best has given Allstate’s long-term and short-term credit ratings an a- and AMB-1+, respectively. This means the company has an excellent likelihood of being able to meet its financial obligations.

Farmer’s parent company, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd, has a long-term credit rating of a-, meaning it also has an excellent ability to meet its financial obligations.

How can I get quotes?

Allstate car insurance quotes can be found by contacting an agent. If you already have a policy with Allstate, you can use your Allstate login to locate your agent contact information.

You can also receive a quote from Allstate using the online quote tool on their website (www.allstate.com). You will need to provide your personal and vehicle information.

For questions regarding Allstate Drivewise, you can call (877) 431-7670.

Farmers car insurance quotes can be found by using the free online quote tool on their website (www.farmers.com). You will, again, need to provide your personal and vehicle information.

Our Recommendation: Allstate Drivewise vs. Farmers Signal Insurance

The car insurance company choose will depend on your specific situation. However, choosing between Allstate Drivewise and Farmers Signal, we recommend Farmers based on lower average rates and fewer customer complaints.

Both programs, however, are similar in that they use your driving behaviors to earn discounts on your car insurance premiums. The main difference would be your overall insurance coverage with the company and the customer service experience.

If you need help finding affordable car insurance, enter your ZIP code into our free quote comparison tool below.

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