Is Sun Coast legitimate?
Yes. Sun Coast is licensed to sell car insurance policies from other insurance companies in 11 states: Arizona, Alaska, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington.
If you’re having trouble finding affordable coverage due to credit challenges or negative marks on your driving record, you may come across Sun Coast General Insurance Agency. This small insurance broker sells policies from several equally tiny insurers. It has a relatively small footprint based primarily in the western U.S.
You can purchase a policy with Sun Coast even if you don’t have trouble finding other coverage, but it may be more expensive compared to national companies. Here’s what you need to know about Sun Coast car insurance reviews, ratings, and availability.
The average cost of Sun Coast auto insurance is $98 per month for liability insurance and $168 per month for full coverage. Compared to the national averages of $103 per month for liability only and $182 per month for full coverage, Sun Coast auto insurance is similar.
But your quotes may be higher or lower depending on your driver profile, which includes your age, driving record, location, vehicle, and more.2
Insurers that sell policies through Sun Coast generally feature liability coverage that you need to meet your state’s legal requirements to drive. They also sell full-coverage insurance that most lenders require if you’re financing your car.
Sun Coast mentions that some of the policies it sells may also offer “optional coverages,” such as roadside assistance, but it doesn’t provide any details on what these other coverage options might be.
Each of the states where Sun Coast is licensed has its own minimum car insurance coverage requirements you’ll need to purchase in order to drive legally. In most states, you’ll need to purchase a certain amount of bodily injury and property damage liability coverage to reimburse injuries and damage if you cause an accident.
The amount of coverage you need to buy — and the risks in each state, such as snowy weather, hurricanes, or automobile theft — combine to make policies more or less affordable in some states. Here’s the average cost of Sun Coast car insurance in different states:
Sun Coast offers comparatively cheaper rates for many drivers with dings on their driving record. Insurers can look up your driving record, and each infraction — such as speeding tickets, at-fault accidents, or driving under the influence convictions — can cause your rates to increase. Some insurers may even decline to offer you coverage if they find too many unfavorable marks on your record.3
The table below shows Sun Coast’s average costs based on driving history.
Your age has a strong influence on your risk of getting into a car accident, and that’s why teenagers pay more for car insurance. Drivers in the latter half of middle age tend to pay the lowest amount because they benefit from many years of safe driving experience and still have good mental and physical conditions to navigate road challenges.
Here’s how much Sun Coast charges drivers, on average, depending on how old you are:
You can get a quote for an insurance policy through Sun Coast by comparing your options through Insurify. This gives you an advantage by expanding your options beyond the handful of insurers that Sun Coast works with; you can compare your rates with mainstream insurers too. Here’s how to do it:
Click on “Compare quotes” on Insurify’s website to start the process.
Provide your ZIP code to limit your options to insurers available in your area.
Enter details about your car’s make, model, mileage, and age.
Enter specifications for how you use your car, including how often you drive it.
Specify whether you lease or own your car.
Enter your personal information.
Receive a list of the cheapest quotes from among the 70+ insurers that Insurify works with, including Sun Coast.
Finalize your purchase or get personalized assistance from an Insurify agent.
Making sure you’re eligible for all the discounts your insurer offers is one of the best ways to save money on car insurance. The companies that Sun Coast offers policies from each have their own discount options, so you’ll need to check with your agent.
However, Sun Coast does note a few discounts that may be available through the insurers it contracts with:
Sun Coast doesn’t specify whether it offers extra bundling discounts if you purchase other types of insurance policies through its agency. It’s fairly common for insurance companies to offer discounts if you package accounts together, however. Sun Coast is licensed to sell products from other insurance companies in the following categories as well:
Mexico auto: Covers your car if you take a road trip to Puerto Vallarta and beyond
Yacht: Offers different coverages depending on how you use your yacht, such as for business or pleasure
Boat: Covers recreational and commercial vessels
Watercraft: Covers personal recreational watercraft, like Jet Skis and sports wave runners
Commercial auto: Covers commercial lines for cars and delivery vehicles
It’s helpful to see what customers and independent reviewers have to say about an insurance company when making such an important decision. Unfortunately, given Sun Coast’s small size and the fact that it only sells policies from other companies, there’s not much information available about it online to make valuable insights.
A few customers have left clues about how well Sun Coast serves them on Google and Yelp. A common pain point seems to be getting in contact with someone at the company when you need to file a complaint, ask a question, make a payment, or even just get a quote. However, customers do note that policies are often very cheap.
Sun Coast has a noticeable absence on sites like Trustpilot and the Better Business Bureau (BBB). However, the BBB offered an A+ rating for Sun Coast, even if it has no actual customer reviews on its public profile.
Independent organizations like AM Best and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners rate insurance companies for their financial stability and their complaint volume. Since Sun Coast isn’t actually an insurer and only sells policies for other underwriters, it doesn’t have these ratings.
Sun Coast works with many insurers and may offer you good rates, but you can also seek out quotes on your own to ensure you actually are getting the lowest pricing. Consumers have plenty of options to choose from in the highly saturated car insurance market.
Like Sun Coast, Auto-Owners is a smaller regional insurer. It offers policies in only 26 states (as opposed to 11 with Sun Coast). Many of these states overlap, but there are some noticeable gaps. Auto-Owners isn’t available in California, for example, while Sun Coast is.
Auto-Owners is also a true insurance company, underwriting your policy directly and therefore offering the most straightforward way to buy insurance. It has many positive independent reviews online and features an excellent A++ AM Best rating for financial stability, the highest possible grade.
You’ll need to work directly with a professional independent insurance agent to get a quote and maintain your policy with Auto-Owners. You aren’t able to obtain a quote online like you can with Sun Coast.
Nationwide is more widely available than Sun Coast. However, Sun Coast sells policies in Alaska and Hawaii, whereas Nationwide doesn’t.
For the average driver, Nationwide is a cheaper option. Nationwide offers multiple ways to save, such as its Vanishing Deductible, well-defined discounts, and mileage-based policies for infrequent drivers.
Nationwide doesn’t specialize in insuring high-risk drivers like Sun Coast does, however.
GEICO is one of the largest insurers in the country, so much more information is available about its car insurance policies versus Sun Coast’s options. GEICO gets consistently high customer satisfaction ratings from independent reviewers like J.D. Power, has excellent AM Best financial stability ratings, and maintains a low volume of complaints with the NAIC.
GEICO also has the financial advantage as well, being one of the cheapest insurers in the country. That said, Sun Coast specializes in high-risk applicants that GEICO may charge more expensive rates for.
If you’re looking for specialized coverage options, like mechanical breakdown insurance or accident forgiveness, GEICO may be a better option. GEICO also offers more discount options, such as 15% off for military members, 22% off for insuring a new vehicle, 15% off for students who receive good grades, and more.
If you get into an accident or suffer damage that the policy you bought through Sun Coast covers, you’ll need to file a claim to use your insurance benefits. As an insurance broker marketplace, Sun Coast only sells policies from other insurance companies that are the actual underwriters and doesn’t handle any claims itself.
If you contact Sun Coast to file a claim, the company will instead direct you to your actual insurance company to complete the claims process. This process may vary depending on the insurance company.
Here are the answers to some common questions about Sun Coast insurance.
Yes. Sun Coast is licensed to sell car insurance policies from other insurance companies in 11 states: Arizona, Alaska, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington.
Sun Coast may be worth it if you’re having a tough time finding affordable insurance due to marks on your record and you don’t mind a company that’s a little more hands-off. Customers report frequent problems with contacting customer representatives.
The average Sun Coast car insurance policy costs $91 per month for liability-only coverage and $168 per month for full coverage.
Sun Coast is privately owned, with Jeffrey S. Yeskin registered as the company’s CEO and president.
Sun Coast may be able to help you get a cheaper insurance policy if you live in one of the states where it operates and have challenges with finding an affordable policy from traditional insurers.