Car Insurance Reviews

Economical Insurance Auto Insurance Reviews

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(223 reviews)
Economical Insurance
1.4 out of 5 stars:
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Fast and friendly

by JP on Nov 22, 2016
4.5 out of 5 stars

I got into a not at fault accident with my company pick up truck, a young kid pulled out infront of me from a side road and I wasnt able to stop in time. I have a small snow plowing and landscaping business. Because it wasn;t my fault they said I would not need to pay any deductible and that everything is covered. They quickly set everything up with my local body shop which was one of their company shops too. The shop gave me a rental but i realised that the rental truck that was provided didn't have a trailer hitch and I couldnt use it for work. I called the adjuster back and explained I need a truck with a hitch for my trailer, otherwise i couldn't pull my trailer with my tools and equipment. The adjuster knew his stuff and said he would arrange a half ton pick up truck just like mine, with a hitch and a bed liner. The adjuster was really friendly and understood that I needed a truck to keep my small business running. The rental company Enterprise, called me within the hour and got me into exactly into the rental I needed, After about two weeks the bodyshop called and told me my truck was ready. I pick up my truck and everything was repaired beautifully. I was able to continue on with my business and life without a hitch. I've been with Economical for 16 years and the one time I got into an accident they really took care of everything and then some. I could't have asked for anything more.

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Horrible Claim Experience

by Behzad Qazi on Oct 8, 2016
1 out of 5 stars

Claim #1193XXX

I got in a no fault accident on my side. The car was brand new - I literally bought it 27 days before the accident. I paid $23,500 for the car.
The car was totalled - air bags went off etc. I asked for a cash out so I can buy a new car. Yet I was refused.

Instead of getting a cash out for 23,500 plus tax ( about 26,000). The insurance company repaired the car for about $23,000 plus paid $3000-4000 of rentals etc. Which totalled more than what the car was worth.

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Complete penny pinchers

by eric-the-red on Sep 19, 2016
1 out of 5 stars

This insurance company is by far the worst I had to deal with. The basically steered me to go to a "preferred shop" by claiming that my repair claim wont be guaranteed or that I may not be fully covered and extra prices might be charged to me.

So I went with the shop that they suggested and when I received the car it was so poorly reassembled and they didn't do all the work. They also used a non certified aftermarket part even though I was told verbally that it would all be OE and everything would be fixed to my satisfaction. They played the "You signed the agreement" card to try to wipe their hands clean.

When I complained the insurance company told me I was ungrateful and selfish for complaining. They didn't take my complaint seriously until I told them that I was forced to go there and that if they don't restore my car to pre-accident condition that I would be following suit for both them steering me to a preferred shop and approving non certified parts onto my car. Not long after they agreed. I know its mostly the body shop I went to that should be blamed but I have to blame the insurance company for forcing me to go there and not taking responsibility and pushing the blame over to me.

I have since changed companies and even though most companies are the same the one I am with now is a little better.

Remember to always go to a dealership with their own body shop that only uses OEM parts. NEVER agree to use a preferred shop.

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vehical collison

by ello on Aug 3, 2016
1 out of 5 stars

This is hands down the worst experience I've ever had with any type of company. The people who work here are rude. I was told to get a rental then later told they are not going to cover the rental so now I'm down 4500.00 for a rental. I have been waiting 3 months now for my claim or to even find out what is going on with my claim but am told every single time that its under investigation. These people are very I'm going to say special because i cant swear. I do not recommend this insurance company to anyone. Please save yourself the headaches and go somewhere else - these people are not competent.

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WORST COMPANY EVER

by Allison on Jul 5, 2016
1 out of 5 stars

Don't ever get involved with this company. They put your rates through the roof and try to charge you way more money than you should be paying! I am paying over $300 less per month with Desjardins than with Economical for the same car in the same address with the same work distance and the same drivers. Economical comes with two hour long holds and unexpectedly high rates which they will refuse to explain to you. I have spoken to managers and still they offer no explanations for any changes in price other than vague statements. I have also been hung up on by brokers they use in KTX. (Whose customer service is horrific as well by the way) NEVER trust this company for your insurance. EVER! Absolute bullshit service. I'm very pissed off at this company.

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bad experience twice

by andy on Jun 28, 2016
1 out of 5 stars

both times I was not at fault and they tried to charge me. second time my car was written off and they gave me two weeks to have a new one or they would cancel my policy and my rates would double. very rude would not listen to me hung up on me multiple times and would not call back. I know all insurance companies are bad but they really have made my life hell. my suggestion is to avoid cowan insurance brokers and economical as a company

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WASTE OF TIME!!!

by the mad guy!!! on Jun 24, 2016
1 out of 5 stars

There is no rating for this company! Just over a month ago i had my 2004 chevy silverado stolen, it was done up, really well taken care of and had very low km, i valued this truck at around 11 grand, they offered me 6000 dollars because i didn't have receipts for all the work done because i did a lot of it myself, i refused expecting them to offer a little more but nope, they sent me a dispute package and told me to get an appraisal myself, so i spent $180 bucks to get that done and what do you know after taxes the truck was appraised for just about 10 grand, so thinking i'd finally get a reasonable offer i sent that in to have they're appraiser look at it, they offered me only $400 more than the first offer, how could they offer me so little when the information proving its worth more is right there, they're appraiser valued the parts on the truck nowhere near what they were worth, $30 bucks for $200 tinted windows, $40 for a $3-400 dollar center console, ridiculous!!!!! all they want is your money and they want it right away, but when you want the money they don't wanna give you a penny! I insured 3 vehicles and my house with them and the price was reasonable but they aren't worth my money, I will definitely be leaving them

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Economical - Liars & Scammers!

by Sherry on Mar 24, 2016
1 out of 5 stars

They deserve less than 1 star, but unfortunately 0 stars is not an option!

I was involved in a hit and run accident in which my car door was dented. I spoke to people at the insurance company 4 times, while I was debating whether or not to make a claim. Each time, they promised me that because it was a hit and run, my rates would not go up. I was responsible for the deductible but that was it.
I asked them if I could just try and knock the dent out myself, and they said that I could definitely not do that because then if it didn't work, the adjuster might deem it to be not from the accident and it wouldn't be covered. They advised me to get it fixed as soon as possible.
I went ahead on their advice and got it fixed.

The day I was due to pick the car up, someone from Economical called me and said that they were wrong, and that now they had decided that I was at fault in the hit and run, and that my rates would go up accordingly because I had made a claim. I told him that I never would have put in the claim knowing that, and that they promised me this wouldn't happen. I asked him if he could go back and review our phone calls as they were "recorded for quality assurance". He said he would. I asked him if he could send me a copy, and he said he could not do that as they were for internal use only. I asked about the "Quality assurance", and he responded "that is for OUR quality assurance, not your quality assurance".

I then told him what one of his workers had said about the knocking out of the dent, and he directly contradicted what I had been told by someone else. He said that I should have tried to knock the dent out myself, and they still would have covered it.

They basically encouraged me to make a claim, promising me that it wouldn't make a difference to my rates, and then directly went back on their words. I am immediately switching insurance companies, and I will forever suggest to my friends that they do not use Economical!

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Disgustingly Incompetent

by In Disbelief on Dec 2, 2015
1 out of 5 stars

My parents put me on their insurance policy so that I could practice for my G2 while I had my G1. Not only was the insurance ridiculously pricey, but they tried to scam my parents into paying for my insurance after I switched companies. My parents called in to ask about the process for removing me from the insurance, and even asked if they needed to change ownership before or after. Then, they wrote on their first bill after their term was up that I was no longer on their policy and had my own. Now, two months later they are trying to charge my parents the cost of insuring me for 2months as primary driver on my vehicle. First, this is crazy as I own the vehicle now, and it is impossible for my parents to insure it since they do not own it. I do not live with my parents, I live 30 mins away. Also my parents informed them I was to be removed from the policy TWICE- in writing, and on the phone two months ago. Now they are demanding proof of my new insurance or they are going to charge my parents almost $600. I sent in a copy of the pink slip to my new insurance policy with the date and company and my name and vehicle description showing. I blocked off my address and policy number because I do not think that is their business. They told me that was sufficient, and it would be dealt with, then the next day called and said they needed my policy number. I asked why and what they were going to do with it and they said nothing. I asked to speak to a manager and 5 days later have not been able to talk to one. This company is a scam. Choose someone else for your car insurance! It is really expensive and the customer service is abominable!

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Really went to bat for us

by Raff on Sep 24, 2015
5 out of 5 stars

We insured our Nissan Xterra Off-road with economical after a big blowout with AMA (they cancelled our insurance (& didn't notify us) because they tried to take whole annual premium out at once, instead of monthly payments. Obviously it was NSF.)
About 4-5 months after signing with Economical, my husband had his first accident (ever) when he had black ice, slid off the road and hit a tree.... On December 22 at 10pm. Economical (and everyone else) was closed for the holidays so we filed police report and waited until they reopened to file a claim. They were polite to deal with and were understanding of the situation. They took time to explain the process to us and make sure we were comfortable as we had never had to do an insurance claim before and really had no clue what are were doing. They recommended we deal with one of thier preferred garages (Boyds Autobody) for the repairs so we agreed and the vehicle was picked up by a flatbed in January when the shop opened be the adjustor gave his numbers.
From that point on, we lived a nightmare. Anything that could go wrong, did go wrong. The shop had trouble finding parts, then the new hood they ordered was cracked, they couldn't find the special tools they needed, the paint shop was overbooked, they found extra damage to the vehicle frame....

Eventually it has been over 2 months and we still didn't have our vehicle back. The rental cars through insurance had run out and the repair shop "doesn't do loaner cars anymore" so we're were stuck borrowing a family members car. We were also supposed to be getting weekly updates from the shop, and tha just want happening so we would pop in every once in a while to get an update (for the first 1.5 months, the vehicle didn't move. Husband marked the tire with chalk because he didn't believe their BS).

Finally got our SUV back after 2 months after a pop in visit & they said they "forgot to call to say it was ready". We got the keys, got in, started it & looked up to see them lock the door & turn the lights off. We then spent 2 days using a vehicle with no heat in -30*C weather waiting for the shop to open on Monday. They told us they forgot to reconnect something with the heater so that was fixed but it still was running way to high - 1000rpm at idle....
Apparently that was due to the engine being cold....

We were extremely leery about it so about a week later, husband took the vehicle to our Nissan dealership to have their repair guys give it a boo. Turns out they put a n improperly sized fan belt on....
Husband called me from dealership and said they were refusing to let him drive it off the lot, I called insurance claim person (side note, during this whole thing, were actually got swapped out to 3 different claims people, but everyone left really good notes so it wasn't a problem) and asked what to do, they said call Boyd's and listen to those instruction; Boyd's said dealership were idiots and to drive out over, even agreeing to all liability of anything happened on route.

On route to Boyd's, the belt blew on the highway, causing a loss in all power steering and braking. The belt ripped off the fan, smashed the radiator and generally undid everything they had just fixed. By sheer luck , husband drifted it into a roadside turn out were I had a very loud, vey heated conversation with Boyd's and they sent a flatbed. Next call was to insurance claims person who immediately apologized and said she was escalating it internally.
The next day, I got a call from the Western Canada VP or Economical Insurance who apologized profusely & essentially asked what we're wanted to do. We weren't comfortable with Boyd's touching the vehicle again so he arranged to have it sent to our dealership for the repairs, a complete review of all of Boyd's work and said that they would be pursuing Boyd's for reimbursement of the cost of this, and Boyd's would be providing us with a rental vehicle until the dealership finished the work.
He also asked for my permission to have a rep from Boyd's get in touch to get details directly from me, which I agreed to. The next day, I spent about 2 hours in a conference call with the Western Canada VP of Economical and the VP of Boyd's Autobody's Canadian branch.
When we picked up our vehicle from the dealership, we found out that they don't actually deal with insurance companies, but Economical had explained the situation and had a money write sent over that morning to pay them before we picked it up.
I was later informed that the manager at the repair shop had been fired over the mess and Boyd's was on Economical's s**tlist as a result.

Couldn't believe how hard the insurance company fought for us, especially only after a couple of months on the policy.
Ooh, and did I mention when it came time to renew the policy the next year, out premiums actually went DOWN!

We have since added a second vehicle to the policy and have our house insurance with them as well.

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