Sea Harbor Insurance: Reviews, Coverage, And Cost – Quartz

It can be difficult to choose the best house insurance. There are many businesses fighting for your business, so it’s important to pick one that provides reasonable pricing, extensive coverage, and first-rate customer service. One reputable company that specializes in serving condo owners, renters, and homeowners is Sea Harbor Insurance. Whether you are a first-time renter or a seasoned homeowner, Sea Harbor customizes its policies to meet your unique requirements.

This in-depth analysis delves deeply into Sea Harbor Insurance, examining its features, strengths, and drawbacks to help you decide if it’s the best option for you.

Overview

Sea Harbor Insurance was founded in 1997 and has a solid history of offering comprehensive coverage for a range of property types. They are a division of the reputable managing general agent in the insurance business, Pearl Holding Group. Through this partnership, Sea Harbor is able to take advantage of Pearl Holding Group’s knowledge and assets, guaranteeing that policyholders receive excellent care.

Providing a wide range of coverage options for renters, homeowners, and condo residents is a top priority for Sea Harbor. They are especially well-known for serving high-value properties by offering higher coverage limits for homes and personal items. Their dedication to offering cheap prices guarantees that you can obtain the necessary protection without going over budget.

Coverage

Sea Harbor Insurance offers a diverse range of coverage options to safeguard your property and belongings. Here’s a closer look at the types of coverage typically included in their policies:

• Dwelling Coverage: This covers the structure of your home (walls, roof, etc.) in case of damage caused by fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered perils.
• Personal Property Coverage: This protects your belongings (furniture, electronics, clothing, etc.) in the event of a covered loss.
• Loss of Use Coverage: If your home becomes uninhabitable due to a covered event, this coverage helps with additional living expenses like hotel stays or rental costs.
• Liability Coverage: This protects you from financial responsibility if someone gets injured or their property is damaged on your property.
• Additional Coverages: Sea Harbor offers various add-on coverages to customize your policy further. These may include flood insurance, earthquake insurance, and additional coverage for valuable items like jewelry or artwork.

Key Points:

• Sea Harbor offers auto insurance in only Florida and California.
• Pearl Holding Group, Sea Harbor’s parent company, receives low scores from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and has mostly negative reviews from customers.
• Sea Harbor carries a B, or Fair, financial strength rating from AM Best.

It can be tempting to choose the least expensive insurance provider when considering options for auto insurance. However, evaluations of Sea Harbor Insurance are overwhelmingly unfavorable. While Sea Harbor offers affordable options for basic insurance coverage, prospective policyholders may want to consider other options given its unfavorable customer feedback.

It’s usual to find negative evaluations of auto insurance providers. Generally speaking, drivers don’t take the time to mention when insurance is functioning properly. Nonetheless, policyholders are more likely to file complaints, and the claims procedure can be stressful. We’ll examine more closely in this post to determine whether Sea Harbor Insurance is worthwhile.

If you’re looking for the best car insurance coverage, you can enter your zip code into our easy-to-use tool above to get free quotes from top providers.

Sea Harbor Insurance Overview

Sea Harbor Casualty Insurance Company is a home and car insurance company also known by its Texas-based parent company, Pearl Holding Group. Sea Harbor offers home insurance policies in several states, but it only offers auto insurance in California and Florida and is headquartered in Tallahassee. It claims to specialize in offering homeowners insurance and auto coverage to those who live in coastal areas.

The car insurance company has an AM Best financial strength rating of B (or Fair), meaning that it isn’t likely to go out of business anytime soon, but it also doesn’t have the strongest finances in the industry. Some Sea Harbor Casualty Insurance reviews claim that the company is a scam, but it is a legitimate insurer with a stable revenue stream.

Sea Harbor Coverage

Auto insurance coverage offered by Sea Harbor includes:

• Liability coverage: Liability auto insurance pays for damages to vehicles in the event that you are responsible for a car accident. Most states require a minimum amount of liability coverage.
• Collision coverage: Collision insurance pays for damage to your vehicle in the event of a collision.
• Comprehensive coverage: Comprehensive car insurance pays for damage to your vehicle that’s the result of non-collision events, such as severe weather or theft.
• Personal injury protection (PIP): Sea Harbor personal injury protection covers 80 percent of your medical bills and 60 percent of loss of income that results from an accident. It will also pay out a death benefit if necessary.
• Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: Uninsured motorist coverage will help pay for damages to your vehicle if you get into an accident with someone who doesn’t have insurance.

According to Sea Harbor insurance reviews, coverage is very limited. Customers claim that Sea Harbor doesn’t usually cover the full cost of damages. The company may meet its legal obligations to customers, but attempts to pay out as little as possible, according to some reviews.

Sea Harbor Auto Insurance Cost And Discounts

There is no fixed insurance price for everyone. Depending on the state you live in, your premium rates may be based on some of the following factors:

• Age
• Vehicle make and model
• Gender on your driver’s license
• Marital status
• City
• Credit score
• Driving record

Based on Sea Harbor Insurance reviews, the company offers relatively cheap auto insurance. Sea Harbor seems to specialize in providing customers with the minimum legal insurance coverage at the lowest possible insurance rates.

Sea Harbor doesn’t have any car insurance discounts listed on its website. To learn about discount eligibility, talk to a Sea Harbor insurance agent. Its website lists phone numbers and other contact information for agents near you.

Your cost also depends on your coverage. How much car insurance you need is also different for everyone. Each state sets its own minimums for coverage, but they’re often low and may not provide enough protection in the event of a severe accident. While cost is certainly a factor, the whole point of auto insurance is to be protected.

Sea Harbor Insurance Reviews

The Better Business Bureau (BBB) rates how well a company deals with customer complaints. The BBB gives Sea Harbor a D rating, which is considerably low. Sea Harbor has closed 288 complaints in the past three years, 75 of which were filed in the past 12 months. Parent company Pearl Holding Group Inc. also has a D rating with the BBB.

There are few positive Sea Harbor Insurance reviews. We found one in which the customer seemed more satisfied with the mechanic that fixed his car than with Sea Harbor itself. Other Sea Harbor reviews commonly referred to the business as a “scam.”

Many Sea Harbor reviews describe the claims process as long and challenging. Customers regularly encounter hour-long hold times and are ping-ponged between agents and adjusters for weeks. Some customers even had to leave multiple voicemails or wait for months before their insurance claims were processed.

On the Pearl Holding Group BBB page, a two star-rating (out of five) was the highest rating given by any reviewer.

Sea Harbor Insurance Technology

Sea Harbor Insurance doesn’t have a mobile app on which customers can review policy details and manage insurance claims. Today, such convenience is a standard offering among most major insurers. While not necessary, a policy and claims mobile app is a nice convenience that modern customers have come to expect.

Sea Harbor Insurance: Our Take

We give Sea Harbor car insurance 3.4 out of 5.0 stars. Sea Harbor Insurance reviews indicate that the company is a cheap way to insure your vehicle in Florida, but the coverage is limited and reviews of the quotes and claims process are poor. There are certainly better options for cheap Florida car insurance.

We’ve reviewed the best auto insurance companies in the industry and have a couple of recommendations for you to consider over Sea Harbor. There is no one best choice for everyone, which is why it’s a good idea to compare car insurance quotes from multiple insurers.

To collect and compare free quotes from providers available in your state, use the tool below.

USAA: 4.5 Stars

According to our research, USAA is one of the best low-cost insurance options. The only downside to USAA is that it is only available to military service members and their families. The J.D. Power 2023 Auto Claims Satisfaction StudySM also awarded USAA a top score of 900 points out of a possible 1,000, and the J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Insurance Shopping StudySM gave USAA 874 out of 1,000 points (second among large insurers). Although technically unranked by J.D. Power due to eligibility restrictions, these scores paint a positive picture.

Read our USAA auto insurance review to learn more.

Progressive: 4.5 Stars

If you aren’t able to buy an insurance policy through USAA, Progressive is a great alternative. Progressive is a full-service company with strong customer service and easy claims filing services. Progressive also has a generous accident forgiveness program. Small accidents resulting in payouts of less than $500 will not increase your premiums. If you have been a Progressive customer for five years and maintain clean records, you will also be forgiven for one accident over $500. Other Progressive discount options include the Snapshot® safe driving app, policy bundling, and a deductible savings bank.