Is National General Auto Insurance Good for New York Drivers?
Last Updated on October 4, 2026 by James Shaffer
National General is an Allstate company that sells auto insurance in New York and throughout the United States. It offers the standard coverage New York drivers need, along with optional features, discounts, telematics, online account access, and a mobile app. However, exact coverage options, discounts, eligibility, and rates can vary by underwriting company and policy.
If you are considering National General, the most useful approach is to compare a quote using the same coverage limits and deductibles you would request from competing insurers. This review looks at National General’s current offerings and the factors New York drivers should consider before buying a policy.
At a Glance
- Part of Allstate: Allstate completed its acquisition of National General in January 2021, although National General continues to sell policies under its own brand.
- Broad Auto Coverage: National General advertises liability, PIP, uninsured/underinsured motorist, collision, comprehensive, medical payments, roadside assistance, and other optional protections.
- Current Telematics Program: National General’s driving program is called DynamicDrive, which tracks driving behaviors through a smartphone app and may provide discounts where available.
- Check the Actual Quote: National General does not publish one meaningful statewide rate for every New York driver. Premiums and available discounts depend on your driver profile, vehicle, location, coverage, and underwriting company.
- About National General
- What Types of Car Insurance Does National General Offer?
- National General's Additional Auto Features
- Does National General Insure Drivers With Violations?
- Does National General Offer Discounts?
- What Is DynamicDrive?
- What Are National General's Rates Like in New York?
- What Is National General's Customer Service Like?
- National General's Website, App, and Claims Tools
- Is National General Worth Considering in New York?
- FAQs on National General Car Insurance in New York
About National General
National General traces its insurance operations back to 1920 and is based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Today, it sells personal and commercial vehicle insurance, homeowners and renters insurance, RV coverage, and other products through direct channels and a large network of independent agents. National General says it works with more than 55,000 independent agents nationwide.
Allstate completed its acquisition of National General on January 4, 2021. National General remains a separate consumer-facing brand within the Allstate family of companies.
National General has historically served a broad range of customers, including drivers who may not qualify for an insurer’s most preferred rating tier. Its current website specifically notes that it serves drivers ranging from those with clean records to those with tickets. That can make it one company to consider when shopping for high-risk driver insurance, although acceptance and pricing are never guaranteed.
| National General Detail | Current Information |
|---|---|
| Parent company | Allstate |
| Insurance roots | 1920 |
| Primary distribution | Independent agents, phone, and online channels |
| Telematics program | DynamicDrive |
| Financial-strength information | National General currently displays an A+ AM Best rating for listed National General Group companies; ratings can change over time |
What Types of Car Insurance Does National General Offer?
National General advertises the major personal auto coverages New York drivers commonly need. However, New York law determines the minimum insurance you must carry, regardless of which insurer you choose. See our guide to New York car insurance laws and requirements for a broader explanation.
Required New York Coverage
According to the New York State Department of Financial Services, a New York auto policy must include several forms of coverage.
- Bodily injury liability: At least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for injuries that do not result in death. The minimum limits increase to $50,000 for the death of one person and $100,000 for the deaths of two or more people in one accident.
- Property damage liability: At least $10,000 per accident.
- Personal injury protection: New York’s basic No-Fault coverage provides up to $50,000 per person for qualifying economic losses such as medical expenses and lost earnings.
- Uninsured motorist coverage: New York requires at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury caused by uninsured or hit-and-run motorists in New York. Additional supplementary uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage is optional.
The state’s minimum limits satisfy the basic legal requirement, but they may not provide enough protection for every household. Drivers with significant assets or those who simply want greater protection can choose higher liability limits when available.
Optional Coverage
National General’s current auto insurance materials also list several optional or additional coverages. Availability depends on the specific policy and underwriting company.
- Comprehensive coverage: Helps cover qualifying non-collision losses such as theft, vandalism, fire, or weather damage, subject to the policy’s terms and deductible.
- Collision coverage: Helps pay for covered damage to your own vehicle following a collision, subject to your deductible and policy terms.
- Medical payments coverage: National General lists medical payments among its available auto coverages. In New York, this is separate from the state’s required No-Fault coverage.
- Accidental death and dismemberment coverage: National General also lists AD&D among its available auto products, although terms and availability can vary.
National General’s Additional Auto Features
Beyond basic auto coverage, National General currently advertises several additional services and policy features. Not every option is available in every state or through every National General underwriting company, so New York drivers should confirm availability before relying on a feature.
Roadside Assistance
National General offers roadside assistance products that may include services such as towing, battery assistance, tire service, lockout assistance, and fuel delivery. National General notes that certain roadside assistance products are third-party membership programs rather than insurance coverage.
Emergency Expense Allowance
National General currently advertises an Emergency Expense Allowance of up to $500 for qualifying food, lodging, and travel expenses after a covered claim. The exact eligibility requirements are controlled by the applicable policy or endorsement.
Repair and Transportation Options
National General advertises lifetime repair guarantees for qualifying collision repairs completed at participating Gold Medal Repair Shops. Its Custom360 products also advertise options such as transportation expense coverage, diminishing deductibles, full safety glass coverage, accident forgiveness, and auto replacement. These features may not be offered under every New York policy.
Mexico Insurance
National General also sells separate Mexico auto insurance through Mexican insurance-company partners. This distinction is important: a standard U.S. auto policy should not be assumed to satisfy Mexican liability insurance requirements.
Quick tip: If you plan to drive into Mexico, verify that you have a policy issued by an insurer authorized to provide the required Mexican coverage. Do not assume your New York auto policy alone will satisfy Mexican law.
Does National General Insure Drivers With Violations?
National General markets auto insurance to a broad range of drivers and specifically states that it serves people with both clean records and tickets. A serious violation such as a DUI or DWI can still substantially affect your eligibility and premium, and National General is not required to accept every applicant.
Drivers should also be careful with references to SR-22 insurance filings. National General discusses SR-22 certificates in its general insurance glossary because some states require them after certain violations. New York’s normal insurance-verification system instead relies on insurers electronically reporting coverage to the DMV through the Insurance Information and Enforcement System. If another state has specifically ordered you to maintain an SR-22, confirm with both that state and the insurer that your filing obligation will be satisfied.
Does National General Offer Discounts?
Yes. National General currently advertises several potential auto insurance discounts, although eligibility and availability vary by state, product, and underwriting company.
- Multi-vehicle: National General lists a discount for households that insure multiple vehicles.
- Multi-policy: You may qualify for savings by bundling home and auto insurance.
- Pay in full: National General advertises a discount for customers who pay their premium in full when the policy is issued.
- Paperless: National General advertises a paperless billing discount.
- Low mileage: Its current auto insurance page lists a low-mileage discount.
- Safe driver: Some National General products offer savings for drivers who remain free of qualifying accidents and violations.
- Vehicle security: National General also lists discounts associated with qualifying security devices.
Payment arrangements can also affect the cost of a policy, so ask whether an auto-pay discount or other payment-plan savings apply to the particular National General policy you are quoted.
New York Defensive Driving Discount
New York drivers have an additional opportunity that is not unique to National General. State law requires insurers to provide a premium reduction when the principal operator completes a qualifying DMV-approved accident prevention course. The discount applies to specified liability, No-Fault, and collision premiums for three years. You can learn more in our guide to New York defensive driving courses.
What Is DynamicDrive?
DynamicDrive is National General’s current telematics program. It replaces the older SmartDrive terminology found in previous versions of this article.
According to National General, the DynamicDrive smartphone app can measure driving behaviors such as braking, speeding, phone handling, and time of day. National General says participation can qualify drivers for discounts in states where the program is available, with driving performance potentially affecting the discount available at renewal.
Because National General specifically states that DynamicDrive availability varies by state and insurer, New York drivers should verify that the program is offered on the exact policy they are considering before factoring a telematics discount into a price comparison.
What Are National General’s Rates Like in New York?
There is no single National General rate that accurately represents what a New York driver will pay. Auto premiums depend on factors such as your location, driving history, vehicle, annual mileage, selected liability limits, deductibles, optional coverages, household drivers, and applicable discounts.
For that reason, older national rate comparisons are not a reliable way to decide whether National General will be expensive or inexpensive for you today. The New York Department of Financial Services recommends obtaining quotes from several insurers and comparing equivalent coverage.
Quick tip: Compare National General with other insurers using identical liability limits, deductibles, collision and comprehensive selections, and optional coverages. A cheaper quote is not necessarily cheaper if it provides less protection.
What Is National General’s Customer Service Like?
New York’s Department of Financial Services ranks auto insurers every year by upheld complaints per $1 million of premiums. A complaint is upheld when DFS agrees the insurer handled something wrong, such as a late no-fault payment or an improper nonrenewal. The 2025 report covers complaints closed in 2024 and ranks 128 companies. Across all of them combined, the ratio was 0.0341.
National General writes New York policies through several companies, including the Integon companies, New South Insurance Company and Adirondack Insurance Exchange, all named as members of the National General group in a 2023 DFS consent order. Integon National, the largest of them, accounted for most of the upheld complaints.
| Company | Rank (of 128) | Upheld Complaints | Complaint Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| National General Insurance Company | 7 | 0 | 0.0000 |
| National General Insurance Online, Inc. | 21 | 0 | 0.0000 |
| New South Insurance Company | 97 | 5 | 0.0972 |
| National General Assurance Company | 109 | 1 | 0.1645 |
| Integon National Insurance Company | 113 | 47 | 0.1975 |
| Adirondack Insurance Exchange | 72 | 2 | 0.0349 |
Taken together, the six National General companies had 55 upheld complaints on about $388 million of yearly New York auto premiums, a combined ratio of 0.1417. That’s worse than the 0.0341 figure for the whole market. In the previous report (complaints closed in 2023), the same companies had 11 upheld complaints and a ratio of 0.0400, against 0.0275 for all insurers that year.
Those premiums add up to 2.1% of the private passenger auto premiums counted in the DFS report. That share is our own calculation from the DFS figures, not an official market share number, but it gives a rough sense of how much of the New York market National General insures.
DFS points out that the ranking counts only complaints filed with the department, and that one or two extra upheld complaints can move a smaller insurer a long way. Use it alongside price, coverage and claims service, and match it to the company named on your quote or declarations page.
Financial Strength
National General currently states on its corporate website that listed National General Group companies carry an A+ financial-strength rating from AM Best. This is an improvement from the A- rating cited in older versions of this article. Financial-strength ratings can change, so consumers who consider insurance-company financial stability important should verify the current rating for the specific underwriting company named on their quote or declarations page.
National General’s Website, App, and Claims Tools
National General now offers more digital functionality than it did when this article was originally written. Policyholders can use its website to make payments, view policy documents, access account information, and report claims.
The company also has a general NatGen mobile app for iOS and Android. The app allows customers to make payments, view policy information, access a digital insurance ID card, find their agent’s contact information, and reach claims service. This corrects the older claim that National General had no general policyholder mobile app.
National General says claims can be reported online or by phone, with claims reporting available 24 hours a day. Depending on the claim, eligible customers may also be able to use smartphone-based photo estimating instead of scheduling an initial in-person inspection.
Is National General Worth Considering in New York?
National General offers the core coverage New York drivers need, along with several useful optional features, a telematics program, multiple potential discounts, online claims tools, and a mobile app. It also has the backing of Allstate and currently reports strong AM Best financial-strength ratings for its listed group companies.
Whether it makes sense for a particular driver depends primarily on the actual quote and policy terms. This is especially true for drivers with tickets or other underwriting issues, because insurers can price the same risk very differently.
If you are shopping for coverage, get a National General quote along with quotes from several competing insurers and compare the same limits, deductibles, optional coverages, discounts, and underwriting-company name before making a decision.