Metromile Insurance Review 2021

Metromile exclusively sells pay-per-mile car insurance policies. The company estimates that people who drive fewer than 10,000 miles per year can save hundreds of dollars annually. If you don’t drive much and don’t mind having your driving tracked, Metromile’s pay-per-mile coverage might be what you’re looking for.

Metromile pros and cons

How much does Metromile auto insurance cost?

Metromile’s car insurance rates are broken into two parts: a base rate and a per-mile rate, typically a few cents per mile. The base rate and cost per mile are initially determined using many of the factors other insurers use, such as age, driving history and credit. Your monthly cost equals the per-mile rate multiplied by the number of miles you drove in the past month, added to your base rate.

Using a device plugged into your car’s diagnostic port, Metromile’s app tracks your driving behavior including mileage, average speed, cornering or braking and the time of day you drive.

Drivers in certain states may see a change in rates based on driving behavior. For example, in Arizona, Illinois, Oregon and Virginia, Metromile uses average speed, time of day and the day of the week to help determine rates. In Virginia, time spent per trip is also considered.

Metromile announced in May 2021 that it will start letting policyholders pay their premiums and receive claim payouts in bitcoin.

Will you save money with Metromile?

It depends on your base and per-mile rates, as well as how much you drive. Let’s say you have a base rate of $40 per month and pay 5 cents per mile.

• If you drive 500 miles in a month, your total premium would be (500 * $0.05) + $40, which totals $65 ($25 + $40).
• If you drive twice as much in a month, or about the average 1,000 miles, your total would be $90 ($50 + $40).

But say your Metromile base rate is $60 and your per-mile rate is 10 cents.

• Your cost for a month in which you drove 500 miles would be $110 ($60 + $50),
• If you drove 1,000 miles in the same month it would be $160.

» MORE: Pay-per-mile car insurance: What you need to know

If you get a quote from Metromile, it’s smart to estimate your costs like this for a month’s worth of typical driving to know whether you’ll save money.

Although you pay monthly, a base rate from Metromile is actually a daily rate multiplied by the number of days in each month, so the cost is slightly lower in shorter months.

To get a better estimate of how much you’d save, potential customers can test out Metromile through the company’s “Ride Along” feature. After you enter some basic information, Metromile will track your driving for about two weeks through its app. Based on these results, the company will tell you your expected monthly bill. You are under no obligation to switch to Metromile after trying Ride Along.

If you take the occasional road trip, don’t worry; your habit won’t result in a staggering insurance bill. Policyholders in seven of the eight states that Metromile serves — Arizona, California, Illinois, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington — aren’t charged for over 250 miles per day; in New Jersey, the cap is 150 miles.

Metromile auto insurance discounts

Car insurance discounts from Metromile vary by state. Depending on where you live, you may be eligible for:

• Discount for having alarms on your vehicle.
• Anti-theft or vehicle recovery device discount.
• Discount for not having any at-fault accidents.
• Continuous coverage discount.
• Mature driver discount.
• Multi-car discount.
• Discount for not having any points on your driver’s license.
• Safety equipment discount.
• Ride Along discount for safe driving behavior (up to 15% in Arizona and 40% in Oregon).
• Discount for getting an online quote.
• Paperless discount.
• Bundle discount for purchasing car insurance with Metromile and home insurance with its partner company Hippo.

Metromile auto insurance coverage options

Metromile offers all the usual types of auto coverage you would expect, with add-on options available, including:

• Rental reimbursement: If you have collision and comprehensive insurance on your policy, you can add this coverage.
• Roadside assistance can help pay if you need a tow, get a flat tire or are locked out of a vehicle covered by the policy.
• Pet injury protection is included in Metromile’s comprehensive and collision coverage in all states it serves except Illinois and Virginia. It provides up to $1,000 if your dog or cat is injured in an accident.
• No-deductible glass repair if you purchase comprehensive coverage, and the glass doesn’t need to be replaced entirely.

Metromile also offers fractional insurance for drivers in California and Illinois who use the carsharing platform Turo. With this coverage, you’ll pay only for the miles you drive, not those driven by others who use your car.

» MORE: Compare car insurance rates

Complaints about Metromile

Metromile had far more than the expected number of complaints to state regulators relative to its size, according to three years’ worth of data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

Metromile’s app and tracking device

Tracking device: The Metromile Pulse device tracks your mileage. The free device plugs into the diagnostic port of your car and transmits data to the insurer. The Pulse device can also collect data such as average speed, cornering or braking.

Mobile app: Metromile’s mobile app is where you can check your mileage as recorded by the Pulse device. You can also view policy documents, your auto insurance ID cards and trip charges based on mileage. Other app features include:

• Parking: Find your parked car and get street sweeping alerts to avoid tickets.
• Trip data, including speed, distance and how much you spend on gas.
• Car health, which tells you what your check-engine light means.

When you sign up and make your first payment, your insurance coverage can begin as soon as the next day, even though you won’t have the Pulse device yet. You’re covered during a grace period while Metromile ships the device to you. The grace period is 10 days in every state the company serves except California, and you won’t pay the per-mile rate until you plug in the Pulse in those states. In California, the grace period is seven days, and you won’t pay the per-mile cost for driving during that time.

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Auto insurance ratings methodology

NerdWallet’s auto insurance ratings reward companies for customer-first features and practices. Ratings are based on weighted averages of scores in several categories, including financial strength, consumer complaints, website transparency and affordability. Using our editorial discretion, we also consider customer satisfaction surveys. These ratings are a guide, but we encourage you to shop around and compare several insurance quotes to find the best rate for you. NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.

Insurer complaints methodology

NerdWallet examined complaints received by state insurance regulators and reported to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in 2018-2020. To assess how insurers compare to one another, the NAIC calculates a complaint index each year for each subsidiary, measuring its share of total complaints relative to its size, or share of total premiums in the industry. To evaluate a company’s complaint history, NerdWallet calculated a similar index for each insurer, weighted by market shares of each subsidiary, over the three-year period. Ratios are determined separately for auto, home (including renters and condo) and life insurance.