OTTO Insurance Review – A One-Stop Shop or Not?
Joy Wallet is advertiser-supported: we may earn compensation from the products and offers mentioned in this article. However, any expressed opinions are our own and aren't influenced by compensation. To read our full disclosure, click here.
If you’ve tried shopping around for any type of insurance, such as auto or homeowners, you know how easy it is to get overwhelmed retrieving quotes from multiple insurance companies. It might make it easier for you if you have one website to visit and find out which providers offer insurance coverage in your area — knowing where to start.
What’s not so great, however, is submitting your information through these sites only not to find exactly what you’re looking for or getting bombarded with constant emails and rate quotes. If you choose to go this route, you want to make sure your information is safe and relevant to what you need. With such a crowded marketplace, can OTTO Insurance stand out and offer anything other than empty promises?
Jump To
What is OTTO Insurance?
OTTO Insurance, based in Miami Beach, Florida, is not an insurance provider but rather a lead generation website. The idea is that you submit your personal information through OTTO, and the site finds insurance companies available in your area and will likely work with you. The goal is to match you to the best insurance company and save money.
OTTO offers this as a company comparison tool for auto, pet, homeowners, life, and commercial insurance. Still, it’s important to point out this differs from a quote comparison tool. You’re not quoted rates through OTTO; instead, OTTO connects you to various insurance providers.
OTTO is not accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and only 2.1 stars on TrustPilot. Unfortunately, 89% of customer reviews have given the company one star.
Use Home Insure to Find Affordable Home Insurance
- Get Home (or Rental) Insurance as Low as $19/Month
- Compare rates in minutes
- No cost or obligation to check
- Rates subject to qualification and approval
How does OTTO Insurance work?
The first step involves going to the OTTO website and selecting which insurance product you’re shopping for. Once you decide, you simply click once to get started. The first information needed is your zip code so OTTO can pull the most relative providers available in your area.
For example, for car insurance, you must enter your vehicle's make, model, and year. Once you’ve submitted this information, OTTO will let you know which companies they can get quotes from. In my zip code and vehicle information, OTTO informed me it could connect me to State Farm, Progressive, GEICO, Allstate, Farmers, USAA, AAA Insurance, Liberty Mutual, and other big insurance names we recognize. OTTO works with a wide variety of carriers, including both national and regional ones. This also means once you’ve entered your info, you can expect a bombardment of solicitations from agents and companies who know you’re in the market for a new policy.
It’s a similar process for each of the insurance categories. You answer several questions related to the category, and once input, OTTO offers you a snapshot of the companies you might be able to work with. If you decide to proceed, the insurance companies or agents contact you directly to start a formal quote process.
During the process, you can call the customer service number for help and connect to an agent. As I worked through the matching process online, I was shocked at how quickly OTTO retrieved the information and how user-friendly the interface was.
Features
Comprehensive insurance categories
OTTO collaborates with various national and regional carriers, covering an extensive range of insurance types beyond auto insurance, including life insurance, homeowners insurance, commercial insurance, and even pet insurance, offering potential customers a broad spectrum of options. (Unfortunately, OTTO does not provide renters insurance.)
Bundling options
Notably, OTTO enables customers to explore the possibility of bundling these insurances, such as auto and homeowners, under a single provider. This feature is particularly advantageous for those seeking to streamline their insurance affairs and capitalize on the financial benefits of bundling, making OTTO a convenient portal for managing and potentially reducing the costs of multiple insurances.
Easy-to-navigate website
Thanks to its user interface, entering your information into OTTO's matching tool only takes a few seconds (literally). The tool needs the basic information you provide to match you to providers offering coverage in your area.
Live customer service
If, for some reason, you run into any questions during the process or prefer not to input your personal information online, you can call OTTO and speak to a live agent for further assistance. You can also email; the website claims you’ll receive a response within 48 hours.
Free to use
OTTO is free to use, so you don’t have to input any account or other sensitive financial information. You’re also not getting a quote from any insurance providers through OTTO. You’re simply getting matched, which means no commitment is needed when working with OTTO.
Who does OTTO work best for?
OTTO is ideally suited for anyone unsure where to start with their insurance policies. Perhaps you know you need to compare multiple providers, but you’re unsure who offers coverage in your zip code and what kind of coverage you need. It’s also ideal for anyone who prefers getting multiple quotes from carriers – a tried and true method for receiving the most value for your policy and getting the exact coverage you need. The good news is it’s free to use, but they don’t access financial information, like your credit score or account information.
Who shouldn’t use OTTO?
If you don’t like receiving solicitations from insurance companies through email or phone calls, you might prefer to use another method for comparing companies. Once you submit your information, you will receive messages from eager insurance companies and insurance agents trying to snag your business.
It’s worth mentioning you can opt out of OTTO at any time. If you email OTTO, they will remove your information, and you’ll stop receiving solicitation emails and calls within 48 hours.
You should also avoid OTTO if you don’t like inputting your information twice. When you use OTTO, you must input personal information, such as your marital status, when looking at life insurance or details about your home when comparing homeowners insurance providers. However, this info is so that OTTO can match you to potential providers. Once matched, you’ll have to input the information again when working with the carrier.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Partners with reputable national and regional insurance carriers.
- User-friendly interface.
- Live customer service option or email.
- Multiple insurance categories available.
- Free to use, no credit check.
Cons
- Doesn’t provide an actual quote.
- Shares your information with agents, which means you’ll receive marketing calls and messages.
- You only see information from OTTO’s affiliates.
Use Home Insure to Find Affordable Home Insurance
- Get Home (or Rental) Insurance as Low as $19/Month
- Compare rates in minutes
- No cost or obligation to check
- Rates subject to qualification and approval
OTTO Auto vs. competitors
How does OTTO compare to other insurance sites that offer actual rate quotes?
Company | Offers actual rate quote | Types of insurance | Pulls credit score |
OTTO | No | Auto, home, life, pet, commercial | No |
Gabi | Yes | Auto, home, renters, umbrella, landlord | No |
The Zebra | Yes | Car, home, renters, life, pet, motorcycle, commercial, small business, recreational | Yes |
Insurify | Yes | Car and home | No |
Gabi
Gabi is a trusted ally in the insurance world, simplifying finding the right coverage for your needs. They're not an insurance company but a savvy insurance comparison website that works tirelessly on your behalf. With Gabi, you can kiss goodbye the hassle of multiple insurance quotes and endless forms. They'll do the legwork for you, scouring the market to find the most competitive rates and coverage options from top insurance providers. Whether it's auto, home, renters, or other types of insurance you're seeking, Gabi's user-friendly interface and expert guidance make insurance shopping a breeze.
The Zebra
Zebra is your go-to destination for simplifying the insurance shopping experience. They're not an insurance company but a trusted insurance comparison platform with your back. When it comes to auto, home, or renters insurance, The Zebra makes finding the perfect policy a breeze. Their user-friendly website lets you easily compare quotes from various top insurance providers, ensuring you get the best coverage at the right price. With The Zebra, you can wave goodbye to the frustration of navigating multiple insurance websites and confusing jargon. They're all about clarity and helping you make informed decisions about your insurance needs.
Insurify
Insurify has revolutionized insurance shopping by leveraging advanced technology to provide you with personalized quotes from top insurance companies. With a few simple clicks, you can compare quotes for auto, home, renters, and other types of insurance, ensuring you make the right choice for your unique circumstances. Insurify's user-friendly platform is designed to save you time and money, helping you navigate the complex world of insurance effortlessly.
FAQs
Is OTTO Insurance legit?
OTTO Insurance is a legitimate company and not a scam. It is based in Miami, Florida, and agents are available nationwide. However, it’s important to note that it’s not an insurance provider or a quote comparison tool. Instead, OTTO connects users with potential insurance providers. You simply provide basic information to OTTO, and then you’re matched with companies.
Does OTTO offer commercial insurance?
OTTO offers a service to connect users to commercial insurance providers. OTTO doesn’t offer insurance policies or rate quotes but instead connects you to commercial insurance providers available in your area that may fit your needs well.
Can you negotiate your insurance rates?
It makes sense someone might assume they can negotiate insurance rates. After all, we can negotiate auto and home prices in many cases. However, it’s unfortunate you can’t negotiate insurance rates. What you can do, however, is compare multiple insurance providers when possible. Going through an entire quote process and selecting your exact coverage needs is the only way to know you’re getting the best rates for the quality coverage you want.
Use Home Insure to Find Affordable Home Insurance
- Get Home (or Rental) Insurance as Low as $19/Month
- Compare rates in minutes
- No cost or obligation to check
- Rates subject to qualification and approval
The bottom line
While OTTO offers an easy website to navigate, you may be better off simply going directly to each insurance company you’re interested in and getting actual quotes. OTTO doesn’t provide any rate information but instead connects you with insurance providers available for coverage in your area. The effort to input this information and weed out solicitations may not be worth it. However, if OTTO does end up connecting you to an insurance provider you might not have originally thought of or were unsure about rates, it’s possible you could save money down the road by choosing one of the providers OTTO matched you with.
Joy Wallet is an independent publisher and comparison service, not an investment advisor, financial advisor, loan broker, insurance producer, or insurance broker. Its articles, interactive tools and other content are provided to you for free, as self-help tools and for informational purposes only. They are not intended to provide investment advice. Joy Wallet does not and cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information in regard to your individual circumstances. We encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific investment issues. Featured estimates are based on past market performance, and past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.
Our site doesn’t feature every company or financial product available on the market. We are compensated by our partners, which may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on our site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice. Our editorials are grounded on independent research. Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services.
We value your privacy. We work with trusted partners to provide relevant advertising based on information about your use of Joy Wallet’s and third-party websites and applications. This includes, but is not limited to, sharing information about your web browsing activities with Meta (Facebook) and Google. All of the web browsing information that is shared is anonymized. To learn more, click on our Privacy Policy link.
Images appearing across JoyWallet are courtesy of shutterstock.com.
Writer
Sara Coleman is a former corporate gal turned creative entrepreneur. She began writing professionally several years ago and now contributes to multiple websites, blogs, and magazines. She’s also an avid reader and can’t resist a great historical fiction novel. Sara holds a BA in journalism from the University of Georgia and can be found supporting her Bulldogs every chance she has. She resides in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her wonderfully supportive husband and three children. When she’s not ushering her kids to sports and dance lessons, she can be found creating content for her own website, TheProperPen.com.
Share this article
