If you are considering traveling to Mexico and want to drive, it is mandatory that you have liability insurance. While you already have auto coverage in the US, Mexican legislation establishes that you need to count on one purchased in this territory.
These are general considerations that you must know before you drive and purchase the car insurance for travelers that best suits you during your stay in Mexico. We prepared a guide about important driving and coverage matters and the best car insurance online to help you with this.
Download La Segura App Android
Auto Insurance Travelers’ Reviews
Even if your U.S. driver’s license is valid in Mexico, your car insurance policy will not cover your trip there. Some companies extend their coverage to include physical damage or other circumstances, but not for civil liability, which is mandatory. Thus, the minimum requirement to drive in Mexico is liability insurance, which is the cheapest option.
You do not necessarily have to rent a car to drive yourself across Mexico’s border zones. To do this, you need a temporary import permit, except if you want to drive to Baja Peninsula which recently changed that permission and you do not need it anymore.
To get your temporary import permit, you must go to the SAT website, pay by credit card, and receive it via courier. It is important to have this procedure done for up to two weeks or sixty days before you travel to Mexico.
To be considered good coverage, this should include collision and material damage, third-party liability, medical coverage, partial loss, theft, legal assistance, and roadside assistance. In terms of quality, the best credit ratings are called AM Best or AM that show a list of insurance plans in different areas. This independent rating provides insurance companies and the public in general with indicators to verify the financial strength of insurance businesses.
Thinking about how and when to get your car insurance for travelers depends on your travel dates, facilities, and whether you prefer the human contact of an agency or the quickness of online methods. Before you prepare for your trip, you must do general research to be aware of time lapses in processes and the manner in which you can make them happen.
Purchasing insurance online will allow you to be covered before you travel to Mexico and be prepared for any last-minute inconveniences. It will also reduce the various costs associated with agency intermediaries. While agencies commonly offer more customized insurance plans, some online insurers do not offer specific packages based on certain needs and requirements as part of the automated processes that are required to meet them. The major coin, in this case, is that you can only purchase car coverage once you enter Mexico, and it is not granted that you find the best one on your first day.
However, a car insurance app provides you with quick steps to quickly agile the paperwork related to purchasing, especially if you do not have the time to do it. In addition, it presents online quotes with an average of prices to help you find options that fit your needs. To use these quotes, you must enter your travel dates, driver’s license, type of vehicle, and the price that you are willing to pay. Having said that, here are our options for travelers in Mexico getting their car insurance online.
La Segura Mexico Insurance App
Considered a more customized service and insurance option, La Segura Mexico Insurance provides different driver profiles and vehicle types to give you the combination that best suits you and your needs. As a car insurance app, it allows you to quickly check policies and terms before you purchase and during insurance use. You will also be able to extend your coverage quickly and at a good price if you need it.
La Segura Mexico Insurance App also takes seriously the information that you provide, so its systems work with protected and encrypted information while preserving your preferred payment methods. Regarding car insurance online quotes, this service allows you to compare and analyze different insurance levels, so you can find the best based on your needs, profile, and what you are willing to pay.
Aside from real-time procedure tracking, the La Segura Mexico Insurance App lets you do important tasks in a friendly interface. These include programming your policies in advance to cover all your needs and sharing policy documents with anyone else you need.
Additional services are displayed in the app menu allowing direct calls to report accidents and a record of where and how they occurred. La Segura App furthermore offers an emergency guide to know what to do if you are in an accident.
BestMex
BestMex is a US-licensed car insurance company that works alongside AM companies like GNP, Mapfre, Qualitas, and HDI that are highly rated and qualified. The insurance industry has more than 28 years in the market combining competitive prices and discounts with experience and good perceptions. This business provides full, extended, and/or liability coverage on flexible policy terms.
Like other services, BestMex offers a tracking system for claims online and customer support 24 hours, 365 days a year with free calls. It also offers remote help on the website without having to wait longer than just clicking on the interests section. This is settled in US dollars.
In addition to services, you can make a temporary importation of your car using Banjercito, which is the only institution that can issue car importation permits under official permission from the government. In terms of travel and granted driving, BestMex provides recommendations regarding road safety, traffic, and rules for the public to follow.
When purchasing car insurance online, you will find promotions and discounts per region, annual, among others, according to your needs. As BestMex is an online service, neither will you have to pay poor agency expenses, nor will you have to pay a policy fee for the vehicle that you want to tow.
It also offers as a top benefit its privacy commitment which includes limited access and security measures regarding your personal and privileged information against third parties, unauthorized use, or disclosure of your private information.
In terms of price, they offer you real-time quotes with specific details for you to compare and analyze the pricing of different types of car coverage. In addition, you will receive a full refund when canceling before the effective date, if needed. Once you pay for the coverage that better suits you, you will immediately acquire an insurance plan that allows you to get it just minutes before you cross or travel to Mexico.
MexPro
From basic insurance known as a liability to a full one that offers additional coverage, MexPro works with A-rated businesses that include ABA Seguros, Grupo Nacional Provincial (GNP), and El Aguila Compañía de Seguros. With more than 20 years in the insurance industry, this business has automatized options on its website, so you can still make transactions quickly.
You can report a claim through MexPro and follow up with the insurance company in the process. But their star product is their quote, patented system that not only requests basic information, but additional information to find the most specific car insurance online that best suits you. If you have a promotional code, you can enter it here for a lower price. In terms of security procedures, this business works with SSL encrypted websites and quote forms, so they promise never to retain your credit card information.
While MexPro offers the option of chatting with its staff, it has other benefits when it comes to refunds. If you buy a Mexico Tourist Auto policy and you cancel it before using it, you will receive a refund minus a cancellation fee equal to half the agency fee; but if you qualify as a Mexico homeowner, you will receive a refund minus a cancellation fee.
Counting on this online service, you can get multiple coverage options for six months or throughout the year. With these, you can receive significant discounts. The same happens if you add a towed unit, which includes motorcycles and boats.
As an additional service, MexPro allows you to quote travel insurance when you need it. With at least 12 options, you can get anything from individual to family groups to road or water trip insurance quotes under the International Insurance Group. As with travel plans, this business provides medical evacuation, emergency medical, and trip cancellation coverage alongside Travel MedEvac.
GEICO
This car insurance service with more than 75 years on the market is licensed in the U.S. under the International Insurance Group, Inc, and is provided alongside highly qualified companies such as Grupo Nacional Provincial y El Aguila Compañia de Seguros.
As for the coverage, there is an expense limit of MXN$500,000 in liability that includes physical damages for the body and property, robbery, vandalism, and medical expenses which can be customized with low deductibles. As a service provider, GEICO provides comprehensive car insurance, emergency assistance while on the road, and rent refunds if this is the case. These policy terms are flexible and include daily, biannual, and annual.
These policies not only cover cars, but also motorcycles, SUVs, recreational vehicles (RVs), and boats. As a service, GEICO includes 24/7 customer support with a satisfaction rating of 97% across its webpage and app and an online quote to compare and analyze different prices based on different types of insurance. In pricing matters, online car insurance is perceived as a low-cost option with insurance discounts from which new clients report average annual savings of over MXN$500.
In regard to the latter, GEICO offers discounts of 5% to 25% on vehicle equipment, records and habits of the driver, driver’s education, driver’s affiliation, client’s loyalty to the military, seniors, federal employees, student drivers, members, and employees of certain insurance affiliated organizations.
According to the business, you can save up to 15% if you choose an economic policy and up to 25% when insuring multiple vehicles. You have the option of having multiple policies discounted if you combine car and housing insurance.
Novamar
As an affiliate company of Novamar Insurance Group, Inc., this company has a combined experience of more than 100 years in the industry. It has regional offices in Puerto Vallarta, San Miguel de Allende, Los Cabos, Cancun, and Mazatlan if you want to go to an agency, and you will travel to these places.
These car insurance online plans include cars, trucks, vans, RV’s, and motorcycles with liability, standards, and full coverage options under the A-rated Qualitas program. While Novamar has agencies in Mexico for localized assistance, it has an in-house claims assistance department to ease the process.
For other services, you can get partial or total loss coverage and find premiums up to 35% lower to reduce your costs. You can compare all of these prices with the online quote that the webpage provides. Aside from auto insurance, you can get a boat, health, home, and travel coverage if you are interested.
Final Recommendations
We recommend completing all of your travel specifications before you quote or choose a car insurance plan because small details can potentially affect the final price of your car coverage. Additionally, we suggest defining the type of travel that you want to do to reduce costs related to insurance if you drive your own car or if you rent one in certain areas, for example.
For family trips or those for long stays, full insurance may be better suited for major protection that also includes more passengers and discounts on time and other combined insurance. Alternatively, liability coverage may fit better if you are planning a simple trip with a short stay.
After this auto insurance travel review, take the final step and purchase car insurance in Mexico through an app with all the benefits that you need to have a great stay in Mexico.