CAA
Our neighbours to the south have AAA, we Canadians have CAA. The acronym stands for the Canadian Automobile Association. CAA is a not-for-profit organization that has six million members nationwide through its eight clubs (one thing to note about CAA is that it’s made up of several clubs and you have to buy insurance from your regional club).
CAA consistently offers some of the lowest car insurance prices in the market. No wonder then that it was named one of Canada’s most trusted brands of 2020 by the Gustavson Brand Trust Index, an annual report published by the University of Victoria’s business school.
CAA is also well known for advocating for government investment in public infrastructure, which it highlights with its yearly report that ranks the worst roads in Canada. Other causes that CAA lobbies include road safety, the environment, and consumer protection legislation. For the latter, CAA is campaigning for clearer protections for air travellers, as well as protection for drivers who use telematics or have cars with smart controls to ensure their personal data is private.
In 2018, CAA became the first car insurance company to provide pay-per-kilometre auto insurance in Canada. The CAA MyPace program allows drivers to pay for coverage for every 1,000 kilometers they drive up to 9,000 kilometres. A sensor that’s installed in your car keeps track of how many kilometers you drive and you can monitor your usage on an app.
Economical Mutual
The next high-ranking insurance company is 100% Canadian. Unlike our other two top contenders, Economical isn’t based on an American predecessor, nor has it ever been acquired by a multinational company. Economical was founded in Kitchener, Ont. in 1871, back when the city was called Berlin. According to company lore, its first policy was issued towards a local house and barn.
You might be familiar with the Sonnet brand. Though the company’s ads project the air of a hip upstart tech company bent on disrupting traditional companies, it’s actually an Economical creation. Sonnet is what’s known as a direct insurance writer. That means Sonnet insurance can’t be sold by brokers or car dealerships — you can only buy it straight from Sonnet.
Insurance from Economical can only be purchased through brokers and it could be one of the reasons customers like this brand so much. Because Economical doesn’t have agents, it is able to provide lower rates thanks to the reduced overhead expenses.
Economical and its other brands aim to make it as simple as possible to buy car insurance by using plain language on their website and in their contracts.
Economical boasts an 89% customer satisfaction score in post-claim surveys and guarantees proactive customer service and it claims agents are trained to find “simple, win-win solutions.”
Pembridge
As far as insurance companies go, Pembridge is a pretty youthful company (some of Canada’s biggest insurers pre-date Confederation).
Pembridge was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Markham, Ontario. Like Economical, Pembridge sells insurance through brokers, which reduces their operating costs and results in lower rates for consumers.
Pembridge is backed by American insurance giant AllState. It offers insurance for a wide range of vehicles including auto, RV, boat, and motorcycle insurance. Pembridge also offers tenant and homeowner’s insurance, so if you like your car insurance quote, you can bundle your home insurance with it and find even more savings.
Pembridge guarantees that all policyholders will receive “personal attention” from its “devoted” staff of claims agents, who are on call 24/7. Agents can help arrange preferred contracting services or repair programs, “which supply prompt, high-quality repairs with written guarantees on all work,” according to Pemridge’s website.
The charities it is affiliated with include Operation Red Nose, Women in Insurance Cancer Crusade (WICC), and Easter Seals.
Auto Insurance