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Auto and home insurance are essential purchases you make but hope never to use. With many insurance coverage options available to you, it becomes confusing quickly.
Here’s everything you need to know about what Costco Insurance offers:
- What’s protected with Costco Insurance?
- Costco Insurance discounts
- Factors that impact Costco Insurance premiums
- Costco Insurance details and reviews
- Where is Costco Insurance available?
- Filing a claim with Costco
- Final thoughts
What’s protected with Costco Insurance?
Costco offers a wide variety of insurances for your home, car, and rented home. You can also get umbrella liability insurance and flood insurance. They have excellent customer service in addition to a wide array of coverage options.
There are several different types of coverages within most insurance policies. You can select from the various options and coverage limits. Each comes with a deductible you must pay before Costco Insurance pays its share.
Costco Car Insurance
Vehicle Damage
There are two different vehicle damage coverages you can have on your vehicle.
- Comprehensive Coverage: This full-coverage option applies to damage over which you have no control. This coverage includes a natural disaster, animals, and break-ins.
- Collision Coverage: Collision coverage applies when damages occur to your vehicle in a collision with an object or vehicle, no matter who is at fault.
Liability
Costco Auto Insurance covers liabilities such as:
- Bodily Injury: Bodily Injury covers you if you injure others during an accident when you are at fault.
- Property Damage: Property damage includes damage to someone else’s property or vehicle during an accident. This coverage does not protect your vehicle.
Medical
Costco Auto Insurance also includes certain medical coverages:
- Medical Expense Coverage: This coverage pays for any expenses resulting from needed medical care due to an accident. The one who is at fault does not matter. This insurance covers passengers, pedestrians, and those injured in other cars involved in an accident with the vehicle listed on the insurance policy.
- Personal Injury Protection (PIP): PIP is coverage for you, passengers, and even pedestrians harmed or killed during the accident.
Uninsured Motorists
A surprising number of people are driving without insurance or have only a minimal amount of coverage possible. If you get into an accident with them, it may not cover all the damage to your vehicle or your medical bills. This insurance protects you when the accident is not your fault, but the person at fault does not have insurance. It also covers what their insurance does not.
Additional Coverage
Costco offers additional perks that you can add to your car insurance policy. Each one of these may cause your insurance premiums to go up.
- Accident During Travel Coverage: This addition is ideal when you are over 100 miles away from your home, and your car is disabled. An accident during travel covers the expenses you pay for accommodation or travel.
- Gap Insurance: Gap insurance is often called guaranteed auto protection insurance. This insurance intends to pay the difference between your vehicle’s current value and what you owe on the loan if your car gets destroyed.
Gap insurance covers your vehicle up to 120 percent of its value. This coverage provides you with a replacement of a new car in the first year and then provides gap protection for the next two. - Roadside Assistance: It covers any assistance you need when your car is disabled. This assistance includes changing out a dead battery, replacing a flat tire, towing, and even getting your car out of the snow. This assistance covers the cost of the labor but not the cost of parts.
- Rental Car Coverage: This protection pays the amount of renting a car for each day you need after an accident that renders your vehicle undrivable. There is a set amount of how much the coverage will pay for a rental. You may end up paying a few more dollars per day for the size car you want to rent.
- Glass Repair: This add-on covers any window repair needed for your vehicle. You do not have to pay a glass deductible. Glass repair does not, however, cover the replacement of your windshield.
- Stolen Key Coverage: This coverage covers you if someone steals your car key. It covers the replacement of the locks on your car, as well as replacement keys. This coverage comes as part of comprehensive coverage. If the total cost is under $250, and there is no deductible.
- New Car Protection: This coverage replaces your car in its first year, or 15,000 miles if it is totaled. You can replace your vehicle with the same model and get up to 110 percent of the manufacturer’s retail price.
Costco Homeowners Insurance
Understanding the coverage that comes with your home insurance is significant in ensuring that you have the range of coverage you need. You need to know what it does and does not cover.
Dwelling
This coverage includes the structure of your home, including heating, plumbing, electrical, and air conditioning. Structures attached to the main dwelling, such as porches, decks, and garages, are included.
It typically comes with replacement cost valuation, which calculates how much it will cost to rebuild your house, not the current market value. You must also buy a coverage amount worth at least 80% of your house’s replacement cost estimate to get the full value of a claim.
This coverage does not cover flood, sewer, or earthquake damage. It does not cover home damage because of poor maintenance on your house. As the homeowner, you must keep your home maintained by inspecting it and protecting it from harmful activity such as leaks and clogged drains.
- Fire
- Electrical Current
- Volcanic Eruption
- Theft
- Explosion
- Smoke
- Aircraft
- Vehicles not owned or operated by you
- Freezing of plumbing
- Vandalism and Riots
- Hail
- Weight of Ice, Snow, or Sleet
- Windstorm
- Water from appliances, plumbing, or sprinklers
- Lightning
- Falling Objects
Other Structures
This section of Costco’s home insurance covers items that are not attached to your house. It is essential to occasionally review the coverage amounts you set, especially when you have made improvements or updates to your home. Your coverage limit for other structures is 10% of your total dwelling coverage amount.
Some examples of other structures include:
- Barns
- Sheds
- Gazebos
- Fences
- Pools
- A driveway
- Retaining wall
Personal Property
Personal property covers items such as clothes, furniture, electronics, and appliances. It is not easy to determine your necessary coverage amount because people do not often know the value of their property.
The best way to know this is to keep a property list that includes pictures, videos, receipts, and product information, including price. You want to keep this in several places and formats, including the cloud. This record helps you during the insurance claim process if ever needed.
Liability
Costco home insurance also comes with liability protection. It pays for lawsuits if you get sued for damage to another’s property or injuries caused by you. It also pays the medical bills of those injured parties and pays to replace or repair their property.
Additional Living Expenses
If your house is damaged or obliterated, and you cannot live there, additional living expenses (ALE) coverage pays for your stay elsewhere. It covers hotel or rent, extra food and transportation costs, dog sitting, and similar extra expenses you may incur.
Costco Insurance discounts
Costco insurance offers many discounts that can lower your insurance rates. Some discounts are only available in specific states.
Vehicle
- Brakes. Anti-lock brakes automatically pump the brakes for a driver when they slam on the brakes. This braking system prevents them from locking and allows you to remain in control.
- Airbags. They protect the driver and passengers by deploying when there is an accident.
- Seat Belts. They activate to ensure the driver and passengers are wearing them properly when the car is moving.
- Alarms. Any device that deters the theft of your car can reduce your premiums.
History and Habits
- Garage. Parking your car in a garage provides it extra protection and can reduce your premiums.
- Good Driver. Safer drivers get lower premiums.
- Premier Safety. When every driver on your policy has a clean driving record without accidents or violations for four years, you receive a discount.
Driver Education
- Defensive Driver. Taking this course can help decrease your premiums.
- Education. Students with at least four years of post-secondary education may receive a discount.
- Good Student. Full-time students that have high levels of achievement may get an insurance discount.
- Away Student. If a student is more than 100 miles away from home and does not drive often, they may get a discount. The student cannot have the vehicle at school for this to apply.
Loyalty
- Auto and Home. When you bundle home, auto, or other policies, you can save money.
- Multiple Vehicles. When insuring more than one car on the same policy, you may get a discount.
- Length of Time. There are milestones related to time as a Costco customer, and when you reach them, you may get lower rates.
Factors that impact Costco Insurance premiums
Several factors affect your premiums. Some may have a negative impact, while others may be positive.
- Age: Older drivers usually have fewer accidents. Those under age 25 typically pay higher premiums.
- Gender: Men tend to have more accidents and violations, and their premiums are higher.
- Usage: The more you drive, the more likely you are to get into an accident. Those who drive cars less frequently usually have lower premiums.
- Location: Those living in cities have a higher percentage of damage, break-ins, and accidents. Your zip code can impact your rates.
- Vehicle: The value of your car dictates the amount of coverage you need and hence, the cost of your premium. Safety, repairs, and theft determine this price.
Costco Insurance details and reviews
American Family Insurance is the parent company of CONNECT that provides the insurance for Costco. This insurance company has a high rating for its claims satisfaction. Customers rate them high for several conveniences:
- They provide customers the option to control their policies online without dealing with an insurance agent.
- You can find quotes and claims easily online.
- Costco Insurance provides a learning center complete with articles on how to maintain your car and drive safely.
- They allow their customers to identify themselves as nonbinary, female, or male.
- They include marriage options for civil unions and registered domestic partnerships.
- They give customers options for flexible payments in monthly payments or one payment.
- They allow for payment by credit card.
- Costco executive membership gives you some additional benefits. It provides lifetime renewability of your insurance, which means they cannot cancel your policy for multiple accidents. Also, you receive a discount of 5 to 10 percent off your insurance rate.
Where is Costco Insurance available?
Costco is a retail store club that requires you to have a membership. In addition to the discounted items you buy in their warehouse, they offer special discounts and prices on various services, like insurance. You must have a Costco membership to gain access to their insurance policies, even life insurance. Club membership costs $60 or $120 per year.
Costco is available in nearly all 50 states, excluding Alaska, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, North Dakota, and Wyoming.
Filing a claim with Costco
Unfortunately, there may be a circumstance requiring you to file a claim. You want that process to be as easy as possible. Costco insurance allows you to file a claim at any time, day, or night. You may be able to file a claim online for specific losses.
You need basic information to file a claim, such as a name, address, and policy number. You also need necessary information about the incident, such as where, when, and the damages. You are given an insurance adjuster within one day to confirm the deductible, coverage, and the facts you provided. You may need to give police or medical reports.
Final thoughts
Costco Insurance offers many great benefits that make it a great option as an insurance carrier. They offer competitive prices that are better than most others. A perk is that you may not have your policy canceled because of too many claims.
They can manage your account and track your policy with an easy-to-use online application. This insurance policy is worth taking a second look to see if it is right for you.
