Go to a broker. I recommend Garrity in the Fresh Pond area.

Re: inspection with a wreck - when I had damage, I called my carrier and they sent someone to my home to assess the car. I reckon they'd send someone to wherever a vehicle is towed, if the car isn't driveable.

I've used two online firms (Progressive and Geico) and one mom-and-pop while living in Cambridge. I have no clue why there isn't a bigger national-firm presence! I can tell you that when my car got hit by a truck--a no-fault accident with serious damage--Progressive communicated directly with an in-network auto shop to assess repairs. The experience of getting in a serious accident was horrible, but my insurance experience was ok. It didn't matter to me that there was no field office. I got my car fixed & my record cleared, which is what I wanted.

I left the mom-and-pop shop, which was also fine, because this past year my insurance doubled in price for no reason. After confirming that I wasn't misinterpreting anything, I bailed for Geico. Based on the convo with the insurance agent, I think it's a tough year for the mom and pop shops, and they're getting more expensive across the board. But YMMV.

people go to a physical agency to get insurance? Liberty Mutual is a huge local insurance company. Or just do Geico, Progressive, USAA (if you can), Amica, or a hundred others. When you get in a wreck, you call them and they send out an assessment agent or you take it to one of their authorized shops

On Geico. I liked not having to meet with someone in person, I could do the whole thing while lying on the sofa.

Only incident I had was a chipped windshield, and that was covered as no fault with no problems and no issue getting it done.

Thanks everyone! This is helpful info. I am a bit nervous about using a new way (to me) of doing insurance and don't want to screw it up.

Sometimes your employer might have a relationship with an insurance company. It would be worth checking out.

*calls one of the mentioned companies*

"hi, I have a car and I need insurance"

"cool, here's how it works..."

*pays them*

*has insurance*

​

that's pretty much all there is to it

I believe it's a historical artifact. MA used to have stricter regs than other states on what insurance companies could charge and some of the larger companies in the past (like GEICO) didn't want to submit. I don't know what changed, but more national companies are now offering policies.

When my car insurance rate was going to increase, my broker proactively shopped around for better rates from other carriers and got me a bundled deal with condo insurance that saved me hundreds.

If you're getting home or apartment insurance, you can get a bundled deal from the same carrier that will be cheaper than if bought separately.

I believe this is correct. As I recall, exactly zero national insurers operated in the state prior to deregulation, which began in 2007. The regulation was really extraordinarily strict. Pricing was fully specified by the state, including the points model for moving violations etc. Discounts could be offered to affinity groups, but only to the extent that they were actually profitable.

Here's a 2009 AG report on deregulation: https://www.mass.gov/doc/autoinsuranceexecsummarypdf/download

I have had insurance for 30+ years on 5 houses, 7 cars, 1 boat, and 1 diamond ring and I have never set foot inside an insurance company’s office and it has been fine. You can do it!

I think most of the national insurance companies are here, aren't they?

If you get into an accident, exchange insurance information with the other driver (calmly) and then call your insurance company. You make a claim with the insurance company, and then they either send an adjuster out, and/or they give you a list of preferred garages to take it to.