2021 - Apparent Insurance Review: Car Insurance Options and Costs

If you live in Texas, you are stoked, because Apparent Auto Insurance is currently only licensed to sell insurance to Texas residents.  

Apparent Insurance Company opened for business in early 2019.  But they are backed by a very stable, well known name in the insurance business, the Admiral Group.

Apparent Insurance is based out of Virginia, selling to customers in Texas, and hopefully has plans to expand operations nationwide.

Apparent’s Website Is Really Nice

Apparent Auto Insurance uses a simple to understand website to allow potential customers to understand the coverage and any discounts.  

We love their easy to understand language.

Apparent Car Insurance primarily deals in consumer auto insurance policies and issues homeowner and renter policies, motorcycle coverage, and life insurance. 

The difference is their mission-based focus, catering to parents with children at all stages of life.

For the mighty Apparent team, their efforts and ambition root in protecting families rather than writing policies. 

Yes, they focus on the numbers, just not policy numbers or profits but "insurance for families."

Even in the company's infancy, its mission was undeniable as "an insurance company designed by parents, for parents." 

And, like any other startup, its leaders hoped to nurture Apparent Insurance to grow and mature into a high-functioning and profitable company.

 Their connection with parent-company, Admiral Group, should assist in expanding into other U.S. states. "The Admiral Group covers over six million people across seven countries."

How Does Apparent Insurance Coverage Work?

In this Apparent Auto Insurance review, we focus on the interest of American families. 

Car insurance is a topic that hits home, as the world has been hunkered-down in the last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Limits of Liability and Property Damage Coverage

Liability Coverage is required in almost every state.  It is definitely required in Texas.

Apparent Auto Insurance does a great job of describing this coverage on their website.

Insurance is a foreign language to most people, so their approach is a breath of fresh air.

If you have kids, you probably want to protect yourself from any at fault accidents, so choose your limits of liability wisely.

For Example;  if you have a teenager at home and they are driving your car, its going to be expensive to buy insurance.

However, you may want to double down on that expense by increasing your liability coverage.

As you know, even the most responsible teens are very inexperienced behind the wheel, so they can easily cause a really bad accident.

If the damages they cause exceed the liability coverage you carry on the policy, the extra costs to repay those other parties your son or daughter hurt will come out of your bank account.

Apparent Liability Insurance Options

Apparent Insurance Company is going to give you some options when it comes to this coverage, which pays for damages that you cause to other people with your car.

Since Apparent Car Insurance is only available in the state of Texas, liability and property damage coverage helps to protect you in cases where no party received a ticket of violation, no party was at fault, or it was a single-car accident, but property damage occurred.

Property damage includes parked cars, city street lights, and any damage caused to property not involving another driver operating a vehicle on a public street.

Apparent liability insurance coverage will also pay to cover any lawsuits brought against you by another party. 

For the uninitiated, trying to figure out what the limits of coverage are on an auto insurance policy is really difficult. 

An example might look like 250/500/250. 

What that means is you have $250,000 in bodily injury coverage per individual, $500,000 in bodily injury coverage per accident—regardless of how many people were injured—and $250,000 in property damage coverage per accident.

What does this mean in plain English?

This example might help…

If you hit another car with your Ford F-150 and you send 3 people to the hospital, you will have $250,000 per person in medical expense coverage.

This limit tops out at $500,000 for the entire accident, so essentially, you have $500,000 to pay for the medical bills of all three of your victims.

Then the policy will also pay up to $250,000 in property damage.  

So if you cause a 4 car pile up on the Interstate, your policy is going to pay up to $250,000 to repair the other vehicles you wrecked.

Apparent Comprehensive Insurance Coverage

This coverage is often elective unless you've financed the vehicle. 

Everyday things associated with extensive damage include "acts of God," like floods or hail damage, hitting an animal, or someone breaking into your vehicle.

Apparent Collision Insurance Coverage

It occurs when you, as one driver, become involved in an accident with another car operated by its driver. Collision coverage pays for the repairs or replacement of your vehicle.

Uninsured (UM), Underinsured (UIM), and Uninsured Motorist Property Damage (UMPD)

All three of these coverage types help protect you and your family against drivers that may not carry enough insurance or no insurance.

Deductibles

Like most car insurance companies, Apparent Insurance Company will let you choose the deductible for your Comprehensive and Collision coverage.

The higher the deductible, the lower the premium.

Something that is unusual about Apparent:  They have a deductible for Uninsured Motorist bodily injury coverage.  Most car insurance companies don’t have a deductible for this coverage.

What does that mean?

Well, if someone hits you and they don’t have auto insurance, your policy will pay your medical bills.  

If you have a deductible, that would mean your medical bills are only covered after the deductible is met.

So you have a $25,000 hospital bill and a $5,000 deductible?  Then Apparent is only going to pay $20,000 of that bill.  Make sense?

Deductibles are associated with Collision and Comprehensive coverage. 

But as I mention above, they also throw one on the Uninsured or Underinsured motorist coverage too.

The claims adjuster at Apparent will just reduce your settlement offer by your deductible amount.

Apparent Insurance also offers extended coverage on:

In Texas, Personal Injury Protection and Med Pay coverage are optional.  

As are the other coverages they offer as “extras”.

 PIP is just additional coverage to you and other passengers who might experience lost wages, funeral expenses, and childcare services. 

Additionally, it can extend your medical coverage from an accident.

Med-pay on-the-other-hand helps to cover medical expenses no matter who is at fault. 

Coverage varies from state to state, so check what those coverages include and what deductibles you are responsible for covering upfront.

Apparent Auto Insurance Company offers new and existing clients easy access to customer service or by using an online account.

 But, Apparent Car Insurance Company is not yet available to individuals and families living outside of Texas. 

Does Apparent Offer Car Insurance Discounts?

Let's touch on how you can save additional dollars in this Apparent car insurance review.

They have big tips and a wide array of discount opportunities.

Apparent Insurance Review can also help you save on low mileage discounts and save you for paying your billed premiums in-full.

The easiest and most commonly offered industry discount you'll receive from Apparent is bundling all your insurance with Apparent. 

You can save up to 25% with the Apparent multiple car discount and even more when you bundle homeowners, renters, or life insurance.

How Much Does Apparent Auto Insurance Cost?

Since Apparent insurance costs are commonly restrictive to state legislation, you will need to find an agent who can help you with a quote.

What's the Cost to Add My Teenager to My Auto Policy?

When your teen is ready to begin driving on their own, Apparent insurance costs will likely rise. 

So, to find out how much your new driving teenager is going to cost, call an Apparent customer service representative.

They will walk you through the rate changes and talk with you about the multiple ways you can protect their lives and save you money.

Cool Apps that Help Moms and Dads Manage Teen Drivers

A couple of the most popular ways is to add a teen driver app to provide you with parental peace of mind.

Apparent partnered with Bouncie to offer you real-time insight into your teenagers' driving habits—from speeding, hard braking, or sudden stops. 

The app also monitors vehicle fuel levels and battery life.

An Apparent representative will also share with you additional ways to save by upgrading your plan to include accident forgiveness.

 The investment may be worth your child's life to do Bouncie and the accident forgiveness.

Tow Truck Tracking App

Apparent’s partnership with Urgent.ly allows parents to know where their teen driver after an accident or any other instance that requires a tow truck.  

If my daughter was being towed home by some random tow truck driver, I’d want to know the details, so this is a great value add option, completely unique to Apparent!

Teen Drivers Are At Risk...

The statistics on teen drivers are statistically more significant, and the numbers are staggering when it comes to young inexperienced teen drivers.

In 2018, 18% of female teen drivers and 30% of male teen drivers were involved in fatal car crashes.

This is a tragic stat, that should be conveyed to all teen drivers.  They get excited and make mistakes that can end their lives. 

Pros and Cons of Apparent Car Insurance

Apparent Insurance Pros

Cons Of Apparent Car Insurance

What Are Apparent Insurance Review Financial Ratings?

Since the Admiral Group is the parent company of Apparent, we'll look to the Admiral's financial ratings last released in 2017.

As of 2017, they earned an 'A+' for insurer financial strength (IFS) and an 'A' on Issuer Default Rating (IDR), as provided on the Apparent website.

Also, as shown on the Apparent website, their parent company Admiral Group holds a capital score of "extremely strong."

Apparent Insurance Reviews & Complaints

Of the Apparent Insurance reviews appearing on the company's website, all reported five star-ratings and were verified as Apparent insurers by a third-party review app.

 Here's what those Apparent insurance reviews said.

"Best Rates"

In August of 2019, a customer wrote, "I went online to start getting some quotes. I shopped over 12 different companies, including some of the big-name insurance companies, and no one could come close to what I got from Apparent."

"Excellent Service"

This customer had this to say in June 2019: "Apparent insurance is the best company because it has excellent service!"

"Easy-to-Use and Great Rates"

On May 29, 2019, the Apparent customer recorded having "the experience of signing up has been great, and rates were very competitive."

"Best Insurance Ever"

On April 2, 2019, this Apparent insured disclosed, "I'm so very glad I found you!! You are the best insurance company I have ever seen!! Just a down-right awesome company!! I am a very happy customer!!"

Apparent BBB Reviews

Despite the A+ rating and good-standing Apparent holds with the BBB and no record of having any complaints, a few unhappy customers consistently gave Apparent one-star ratings on the Austin, Texas, BBB website. The BBB did not independently verify these customers.

Here is what those customers reported in their Apparent insurance review.

Experienced an Increase in Premium

The most recent post appeared on September 9. The customer reported having "signed with Apparent, experienced an increased premium of $90 after 30-days.

In response, the customer canceled the policy with Apparent and went with a "well-known company." Although the customer reported having $269 taken from their bank account, it was unclear if that was the new insurance company or Apparent.

Disappointed with Apparent Insurance Company Third-Party Claims Adjuster

On July 29, 2020, one customer reported having a complete loss on their vehicle and was utterly disappointed by the Apparent insurance process. 

The customer reported having to deal with "a third party that underestimated the value of my car by playing a math game."

The insurer claimed receipt of "a 14-page report from the third-party claims adjuster, using an entire page to deduct for the base value of the vehicle from an above-average condition. 

Then they carried that number to the front page where they added the above average condition."

They provided an "example of the base value at $5,000, deducting $500 from that value, and the result of $4,500 to page one of the report." 

Claiming the adjusters, "then added the $500 back to the $4,500 negating the purpose in adding the condition adjustment." 

The customer "switched to another company."

Collision and Comprehensive Not Automatically Added on New Financed Car

On July 12, 2019, at the time of this review, the customer was actively insured. 

They reported insuring two vehicles with Apparent. 

The customer began their policy with a financed car, and Apparent automatically added collision and comprehensive insurance.

However, when the customer added a newly financed vehicle, "Apparent did not automatically add collision and comprehensive insurance”. 

Nor did Apparent Auto Insurance Review say anything until I filed a claim with them after hitting a deer with the newer vehicle.”

The conflict stated that Apparent  Car Insurance Review would not provide "coverage for the damage after hitting the deer." 

The customer had written, "instead I'm left with a damaged vehicle and no way of getting it repaired besides out-of-pocket."

There was no indication if the customer found a different insurance company.

Dodo Commentary:

This complaint just sounds like the customer trying to find someone else to blame.  At some point, you have to take responsibility for your own insurance and make sure the insurance company is doing its job.  

Insurance companies aren’t perfect and the people who work for them are definitely far from perfect, so expecting some stranger to have the same interest in making sure your insurance is done right as you do, is a pretty long stretch to make.  

I’d tell this individual to make sure you review the policy when it comes in the mail and make sure the coverage is done to your specifications.  

Rate Increase Without Notice

In May 2019, the insured canceled their Apparent Insurance policy after their rates increased without notice. There was no indication from the reviewer about switching to a different insurance company.

The individual reported "never receiving an invoice for any balance due, nor signing up for auto draft and Apparent charged my account anyway. I would have paid the remaining balance if I had one, but an invoice should have been sent prior to withdrawing the funds from my account."

Should I Choose Apparent Insurance?

Despite the negative claims on the BBB site, overall, Apparent seems like a solid insurance policy that most are satisfied with. 

Their bundled discounts, integrated app for teen drivers, and current expansion nationwide make Apparent appealing. 

It's always a good idea to compare different providers to find which suits your needs and uses, but if Apparent sounds like something you'd be interested in, reach out to them for a quote.