Amica: 10 Things To Know Before You Get a Policy

Written by |
Advertisement

Amica is an insurance company known for its top-tier customer service and claims satisfaction. But when it comes to their auto insurance, the company isn’t exactly known for having the cheapest premiums.

And while money expert Clark Howard is all about saving money, insurance is one area he doesn’t think you should skimp.

Amica ranks #2 on our list of best auto insurance companies here at Team Clark. So, if you’re shopping around for car insurance, the company is worth considering. In this article, we’ll look at answers to frequently asked questions about Amica, including:

1. Who Owns Amica Insurance?

Founded in 1907, Amica Mutual Insurance Company is the “oldest mutual insurer of automobiles in the country.” And the company has built a reputation of providing great customer service and easy claims processes for their customers. This might be one reason why Amica reports that 33% of their customers have been insured with them for more than 20 years!

As a mutual insurance company, Amica is owned by policyholders. Because there are no outside shareholders, policyholders have more rights — including ownership rights — in the company. And because policyholders are owners, that means the customers are at the center of everything Amica does.

That also means that joining Amica as a shareholder (through their dividend policy) can be relatively expensive your first year. But over time, there’s a good chance that your money will be returned to you. Amica typically pays its shareholders annual dividends of around 5-20% of their premium. You can think of the annual dividends as refunds on a percentage of your premium, which is where the savings come in with Amica over time. But just how much you’ll get back varies from year to year depending on how the company is doing financially.

2. What’s the Difference Between a Dividend Policy and Traditional Policy With Amica?

When enrolling in insurance with Amica, you might be able to choose between a dividend policy or a traditional (non-dividend) policy. No matter what you choose, you’ll have access to the same types of coverage with Amica. But there are a few differences.

First, a dividend policy will cost you more money up front to enroll. You can think of the higher cost as how you “buy into” the company. That’s another key difference. With a dividend policy, you’re a shareholder of Amica Insurance. You’re not a shareholder with a traditional policy.

If you choose to “buy in,” you’ll also be able to get money back when the company distributes annual dividends — or earnings — to shareholders. Amica says the average payout is between 5% and 20% of what you paid during the year. Traditional policyholders won’t get these payouts. But, payments are not guaranteed and the exact amount is based on a variety of factors.

Additionally, dividend policies aren’t available for Amica auto members in the following states:

Advertisement
  • California
  • Florida
  • Hawaii
  • Massachusetts
  • Missouri
  • North Carolina
  • New Jersey
  • Texas

Click here to learn more about Amica’s dividend policies.

3. What Type of Auto Coverage Does Amica Offer?

There’s no shortage of coverage options for your car(s) with a policy from Amica. You can get all the standard coverages including:

  • Liability: pays for damages, losses and/or injuries to others and their vehicles resulting from an accident you caused
  • Collision: pays for damages to your vehicle after an accident, regardless of who’s at fault
  • Comprehensive: pays for damages to your vehicle caused by events other than an accident
  • Medical Payments (MedPay): 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
  • Uninsured/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

For more info on what each of the standard offerings protect, check out our breakdown of what car insurance covers.

Amica also offers a range of additional options to increase your protection. Additional coverage options include things like:

  • Auto/Loan Lease Coverage (gap insurance)
  • Full Glass Coverage
  • Rental Reimbursement
  • Ridesharing/Delivery Driving
  • Roadside Assistance

Clark doesn’t recommend using roadside assistance from an auto insurer, but you might need gap insurance. And if you drive for companies like Uber, Lyft, GrubHub or DoorDash, then their ridesharing and delivery driver coverage could be good to have.

Amica has a great breakdown of what each coverage protects and what they consider “nice to have” versus “need to have” protection. When it comes to what you need to have, you might also want to check out the minimum auto insurance requirements by state.

4. How Much Does Auto Insurance Cost with Amica?

Don’t expect to get the lowest rates from Amica. ValuePenguin reports that full-coverage car insurance with Amica is, “30% more expensive than its competitors.” Based on their data, the average annual cost for full-coverage car insurance with Amica is around $2,496! This is notably more expensive than the national annual average of $1,780 for full coverage.

Amica knows they don’t have the cheapest rates. But signing up for a dividend policy may make up for their higher-than-average premiums. Amica says, “A dividend policy may cost more up-front, but you can save more in the long run.”

When it comes to insurance, Clark doesn’t mind paying more for the best service. He says:

“Sometimes you’re better off paying a little more to be with a quality insurer who will be there when the chips are down.”

Still — with these numbers in mind — the best way to know how much auto insurance from Amica will cost you is to reach out for a quote. As always, there are factors like how you drive, what you drive and how much you drive that impact your rates for car insurance. Where you live also plays a role in how much it’ll cost you for car insurance. Check out the average car insurance rates by state to get an idea of how much your location impacts your insurance.

Advertisement

5. What Discounts Does Amica Offer Members?

Amica may not have the lowest premiums, but they offer lots of ways to save money through discounts. These are some of the discounts Amica offers:

  • Anti-theft devices: discount for having anti-theft devices (ex: car alarm, vehicle recovery system)
  • AutoPay: discount for enrolling in automatic payments of premiums
  • Claim-free: discount for being claims-free for three years or more
  • Defensive driver training: discount for adult drivers who complete a qualifying defensive driver course
  • Driver training: discount for young drivers who complete a qualifying driver training program
  • E-discount: discount for paperless billing and electronic receipt of policy documents
  • Good student/college graduate: discount for full-time students in good standing and/or college graduates (limited to students/graduates between 15-25 years old)
  • Loyalty: discount for being with any insurance company for two years or more
  • Multiline: discount for bundling multiple types of insurance with Amica (ex: auto, home, flood, etc.)
  • Paid in full: discount for paying entire policy premium before first bill’s due date
  • Student away at school: discount for child who is full-time student and away at school without a car

You’ll find most of these discounts are standard offerings from auto insurers, but there are a few unique discounts too. One standout is their loyalty discount. Amica says that you’ll qualify for it, “when you’ve been with an insurance company, not just Amica, for at least 2 years. The more years of loyalty to an insurance company, the more money you save.”

6. What Other Types of Insurance Does Amica Offer?

Amica offers a full range of insurance products, including:

  • Auto
  • Condo
  • Flood
  • Home
  • Life
  • Marine
  • Motorcycle
  • Pet
  • Renters
  • Retirement
  • RV and Trailer
  • Small Business
  • Umbrella
  • Wedding/Special Event

If you have — or plan to get — insurance for any of these other things, it’s definitely worth getting quotes from Amica for auto insurance too! You’ll likely be able to save money overall thanks to their bundling discount.

7. What Is the StreetSmart by Amica Program?

If you’re willing to let Amica monitor your driving, then you can earn rewards and discounts on your premiums. StreetSmart by Amica is a driver incentive program that requires participants to download a mobile app to enroll. The app captures and measures qualities of your driving, including:

  • Driving speed
  • Hard braking
  • Phone usage/screen tapping
  • Road segment type

Then, StreetSmart will give you a score (out of 100) based on your driving behaviors. Your score determines how you rank on Amica’s leaderboard, which includes all the participants in the StreetSmart program. And you can qualify for rewards and achievements based on your score.

Amica says you can redeem rewards for, “e-gift cards from popular retailers such as Amazon, iTunes, Best Buy, Sephora, Target and Starbucks, or make a charitable donation to organizations such as the American Cancer Society, Habitat for Humanity or the Special Olympics.” The e-gift cards can be redeemed in $5 increments (ex: $5, $10, $15, etc.), with a minimum requirement of $5 to redeem.

Your score can also be used to calculate discounts on your premiums. If you’re eligible, you’ll receive a flat enrollment discount on your current policy when you sign up early-on in your policy’s term. Signing up later in your policy’s term means your discount will be applied after a policy renewal. Then, your discount will be adjusted based on a 91-day score from StreetSmart.

You might be wondering if StreetSmart can negatively impact your premiums. While you can get discounts for good driving, Amica says, “Driving data won’t impact your rates with Amica. Driving data only affects the premium discount you receive.” So, your premium shouldn’t increase if your driving score isn’t great. Just don’t expect the good driving discounts or rewards either.

What States Offer StreetSmart by Amica?

Currently, StreetSmart is only offered to Amica members in the following states:

Advertisement
  • Arizona
  • Colorado
  • Connecticut
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Maryland
  • Minnesota
  • Ohio
  • Oregon
  • Pennsylvania
  • Rhode Island
  • Texas
  • Utah
  • Virginia
  • Wisconsin

8. Can You Cancel Your Amica Policy Easily?

To cancel your Amica auto insurance policy, you can call 800-242-6422. When you call, you’ll need to let them know a cancellation date. This can be effective immediately or on a future date. But if you cancel before your policy’s end date, you might have to pay a $25 cancellation fee. So before you cancel, ask about early cancellation fees. And if you’ve paid your premiums in advance, ask about refunds for unused premiums too.

When you’re ready to cancel, be sure that your cancellation date won’t leave you with a lapse in coverage! Otherwise, you risk driving uninsured and paying higher rates for insurance when you sign up for a new policy. We’ve got a guide with steps for how to cancel your insurance and how to switch car insurance.

9. What Is the Contact Info for Amica?

There are several ways to get in touch with Amica. You can contact them using the info below.

Online/Chat
Phone
Mail

amica.com


You can also complete Amica's Customer Service Form to have some contact you.

Customer Service and/or Claims: 800-242-6422

Weekdays: 6 AM – 1 AM EST
Weekends: 7 AM – midnight EST
For payments:
Amica Mutual Insurance Company
PO Box 9128
Providence, RI 02940-9128

For claims:
Amica Scan Center
PO Box 9690
Providence, RI 02940-9690

Amica also has a mobile app that you can access to handle most of your auto insurance needs. Access Amica’s mobile app for iPhones here or get Amica’s mobile app for Android here.

10. What Do Current Customers Say About Amica?

Amica isn’t known for having the cheapest premiums, but they are consistently recognized for great customer service and satisfaction. This year, Amica is the highest scoring auto insurer when it comes to claims satisfaction according to J.D. Power. And here on Team Clark’s list of best auto insurance companies, Amica holds the #2 spot after NJM Insurance. Additionally, they’re #3 (after USAA and NJM) on car insurance rankings by Consumer Reports.

But what do customers think about Amica? Here are a few quotes from Amica policyholders in the Clark Community:

“We’ve had Amica for years (based on Clark’s recommendation). I believe Clark had mentioned Amica is never the cheapest, but they are 1 of the best due to customer service based on claims when you really need them…We had 1 auto claim, and Amica was great, but yes it did raise our auto rate for a couple years. That made it an easy choice to stick with Amica rather than shop around for a lower rate…which could go up the following year as some have reported with other insurance company options.”
– notcuban1

“I signed up with AMICA when I bought my new mustang. The initial quote was good but when the renewal came up they jacked up the premium by over $200 for absolutely no reason. I have read this complaint numerous times about AMICA before so it ain’t me!”
– Steve_Burns

Unfortunately, insurance premiums are increasing across the nation and across insurers. In fact, the rise in costs is one of the biggest reasons why customer satisfaction with insurers is so low. J.D. Power reports that — when it comes to customer satisfaction ratings — this year, auto insurers have seen, “the largest decline the past 20 years.” You can read more about why insurance premiums are rising here.

Final Thoughts

Amica may not offer the lowest premiums, but they make up for the cost with their exceptional customer service. And with several discounts and options to get money returned through a dividend policy, Amica might be worth considering if you’re looking for auto insurance. Don’t forget to check out our guide on calculating how much car insurance you need before getting quotes.

Advertisement
Advertisement