Most websites that compare car insurance rates run estimates. They take a few public benchmarks, mix in carrier marketing, and produce a number that may or may not match what you’ll actually pay.
We do something different. We read the rate filings carriers submit to state insurance commissioners, and we report what they actually filed. That data is public, but it’s buried in PDFs and spreadsheets that most drivers never see.
What we track, state by state
Every US state regulates auto insurance separately. Carriers file rate changes with each state’s department of insurance, and those filings include the average rate change, the number of policyholders affected, the effective date, and the actuarial reasoning behind the change.
We work through these filings on a state-by-state and carrier-by-carrier basis, building out our database one approved filing at a time. As of today, we’re tracking 1,410+ rate filings from 167 carriers across 47 jurisdictions, and our coverage grows every week.
Verifying with real quotes
Filings tell us what carriers asked regulators to approve. They don’t always tell us what the average driver actually sees on a renewal notice. So we cross-check.
Our editorial team runs real quotes against carriers we cover, using representative driver profiles, varied vehicle types, and different state-by-state coverage requirements. When the filed rate change and the quoted price diverge, we surface that gap. When carriers offer discounts that aren’t in the filing summary, we surface those too. The goal is to give drivers a complete picture, not just the regulator’s version.
Why we do this
Insurance pricing changes faster than most drivers realize. The carrier that was cheapest for your profile two years ago may now be 18% more expensive. The carrier you’ve never considered may have just filed a rate cut. Without seeing the filings, you can’t know.
We surface this data so you can see whether your carrier just filed an increase that affects you, compare what carriers in your state have done over time, time your shopping around your renewal date, and understand which carriers are growing or shrinking in your market.
What we don’t do
We don’t model rates. We don’t predict what you’ll pay. We don’t take payment from carriers to rank them higher in our reviews. The numbers we publish are the numbers carriers themselves filed and that state regulators approved.
Our editorial reviews and rate filings are independent of any quote forms or affiliate offers on the site. The data is the data, even when it makes a brand we like look bad.
Sources
- State insurance commissioner filings (via SERFF, the system carriers use to submit them)
- NAIC complaint indices and consumer data
- J.D. Power Auto Insurance Studies
- State DMV and DOI publications