Is The General Auto Insurance Good for New York Drivers?
Last Updated on October 4, 2026 by James Shaffer
The General is a well-known auto insurer that focuses heavily on drivers who may have difficulty finding affordable coverage in the standard insurance market. That can include drivers with accidents or violations, a lapse in coverage, or less-than-perfect credit.
The General currently sells car insurance in New York, including policies designed to satisfy the state’s mandatory insurance requirements. However, whether it is a good option for you depends on your driving record, vehicle, coverage needs, location, available discounts, and the quote you receive.
At a Glance
- High-Risk Focus: The General specifically markets to drivers with accidents, violations, insurance lapses, or less-than-perfect credit.
- New Ownership: Sentry Insurance acquired The General from American Family Insurance on December 31, 2024.
- Strong Financial Rating: The General’s insurance group carries an A+ (Superior) AM Best financial strength rating.
- Compare Before Buying: New York complaint data and your individual quote are both worth reviewing alongside coverage limits, deductibles, and available discounts.
- About The General
- What Car Insurance Does The General Offer in New York?
- Does The General Offer SR-22 Insurance in New York?
- What Discounts Does The General Offer?
- What Are The General's Rates Like?
- What Is The General's Customer Service Like?
- What Do New York Complaint Data Show?
- How Financially Strong Is The General?
- Who Should Consider The General in New York?
- The Bottom Line on The General in New York
- FAQs on The General Car Insurance in New York
About The General
The General traces its history to 1963 and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. It specializes in the nonstandard auto insurance market, serving drivers who may have trouble qualifying for preferred rates because of accidents, traffic violations, insurance lapses, or other underwriting factors.
One major change from older reviews is the company’s ownership. The General was acquired by American Family Insurance in 2013, but that is no longer current. Sentry Insurance acquired The General on December 31, 2024. The General Automobile Insurance Services, Inc. is now a subsidiary of Sentry Insurance Company, and The General-branded property and casualty products are underwritten by members of Sentry Insurance Group.
| The General Company Information | Current Information |
| Founded | 1963 |
| Headquarters | 2636 Elm Hill Pike, Suite 100, Nashville, TN 37214 |
| Parent Company | Sentry Insurance Company |
| General Information | 1-844-327-9870 |
| Claims Reporting | 1-800-280-1466 |
| Online Contact | The General Contact Page |
| Website | TheGeneral.com |
What Car Insurance Does The General Offer in New York?
The General currently advertises auto insurance in New York. Any policy issued for a New York-registered vehicle must comply with the state’s minimum insurance requirements.
According to the New York State Department of Financial Services, required coverages include liability insurance, no-fault personal injury protection, and uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage.
| Required New York Coverage | Minimum Coverage |
|---|---|
| Bodily Injury Liability | $25,000 per person / $50,000 per accident |
| Liability for Death | $50,000 per person / $100,000 per accident |
| Property Damage Liability | $10,000 per accident |
| Personal Injury Protection (No-Fault) | $50,000 per person |
| Uninsured Motorist Bodily Injury | At least $25,000 per person / $50,000 per accident for New York accidents |
New York’s no-fault insurance system generally provides qualifying medical expenses, lost earnings, and certain other economic-loss benefits regardless of who caused an accident, subject to policy terms and state rules.
Collision and Comprehensive Coverage
The General also offers physical damage coverage. Collision coverage can pay for covered damage to your vehicle after a collision, subject to your deductible and policy terms.
Comprehensive coverage generally applies to covered non-collision losses such as theft, vandalism, fire, falling objects, certain weather-related damage, and contact with an animal.
Neither collision nor comprehensive coverage is required by New York law, although a lender or leasing company may require both while you finance or lease a vehicle.
Other Coverage Options
Optional coverages and benefits can vary by state and program. When requesting a New York quote, check whether options such as rental reimbursement are available and review the applicable limits before buying.
The General also offers an optional roadside assistance plan. The company currently states that the service is administered by third-party providers and is not part of the automobile insurance policy itself. Services may include towing, flat-tire assistance, battery service, lockout assistance, and delivery of gasoline or other necessary supplies. For fuel delivery, the customer may still be responsible for the actual cost of the fuel or supplies. Learn more about how fuel delivery coverage typically works.
Quick tip: Do not assume an optional benefit shown on The General’s national website is automatically available with every New York policy. Coverage, discounts, limits, and eligibility can vary by state and underwriting program.
Does The General Offer SR-22 Insurance in New York?
The General specializes in high-risk auto insurance and can handle SR-22 filings in many states. However, New York itself does not use the SR-22 certificate system.
An SR-22 is not a type of insurance. It is a certificate showing that a driver has the liability insurance required by a state that uses SR-22 filings. Drivers are commonly required to file one after certain serious violations, license suspensions, or uninsured-driving incidents.
The General’s own New York guidance confirms that New York does not require SR-22 certificates. This is important because older explanations can make it sound as though a New York driver would ordinarily obtain an SR-22 from The General. For more detail, see our guide to SR-22 insurance and New York drivers.
If another state has specifically ordered you to maintain an SR-22, contact that state’s motor vehicle agency and the insurer before purchasing coverage. Interstate SR-22 situations can be more complicated than an ordinary New York auto policy.
What Discounts Does The General Offer?
The General advertises several discounts nationally, but availability varies by state and program. Current examples can include savings for insuring multiple cars, owning a home, maintaining recent prior insurance, qualifying student performance, vehicle safety equipment, and certain driver-safety courses.
- Multi-Car: The General states that insuring more than one vehicle may qualify for a discount in many states. Learn more about multi-car insurance discounts.
- Homeownership: Some programs offer a discount simply for owning a home, even when the home is insured elsewhere. See our guide to homeowner car insurance discounts.
- Student Discounts: Depending on the state and program, qualifying full-time students may receive an academic-achievement discount. Read more about good student discounts.
- Prior Insurance: The General currently advertises potential savings for drivers who have maintained recent auto insurance coverage.
New York also has several discounts that apply regardless of which authorized insurer you choose. The New York State Department of Financial Services says all New York auto insurers must provide applicable discounts for qualifying accident-prevention courses and certain safety or anti-theft equipment.
For example, completing a New York DMV-approved Point and Insurance Reduction Program course provides a 10% reduction for three years in the base rate of qualifying liability, no-fault, and collision premiums. The exact effect on your total bill can differ because the reduction does not necessarily apply to every component of the premium.
What Are The General’s Rates Like?
There is no reliable single average rate that tells you whether The General will be cheap for your household. Auto premiums depend on factors such as your location, driving history, vehicle, coverage limits, deductibles, prior insurance history, and other rating factors permitted under the applicable insurance program.
The General specifically positions itself toward drivers who have violations, accidents, insurance lapses, or other circumstances that can make standard-market coverage harder to obtain. That makes it a reasonable company to include when a driver is having difficulty finding coverage, but it does not mean The General will automatically be the cheapest insurer for every good driver or every higher-risk driver.
The most useful comparison is to request several quotes using the same drivers, vehicles, liability limits, deductibles, and optional coverages. Comparing different coverage levels can make one company look cheaper when the policies are not actually equivalent.
What Is The General’s Customer Service Like?
The General provides several digital tools for buying and managing coverage. Customers can request quotes online, access policy information, make payments, and retrieve insurance ID cards.
The General’s mobile app currently supports digital ID cards, payments, customer support, and claims functions. Policyholders can start a new claim, upload photos and information, and view an existing claim from the app.
You can also file a claim after an accident by phone. The General currently accepts reports of new claims 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 1-800-280-1466. The company lists separate business hours for assistance with claims that have already been opened.
What Do New York Complaint Data Show?
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.
The General’s New York policies are underwritten by Permanent General Assurance Corporation.
| Company | Rank (of 128) | Upheld Complaints | Complaint Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Permanent General Assurance Corporation | 117 | 3 | 0.2314 |
Permanent General Assurance Corporation had 3 upheld complaints on about $13 million of yearly New York auto premiums, a ratio of 0.2314. That’s worse than the 0.0341 figure for the whole market. In the previous report (complaints closed in 2023), the same company had 3 upheld complaints and a ratio of 0.2940, against 0.0275 for all insurers that year.
Those premiums add up to less than 0.1% 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 The 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.
The complaint ranking is therefore useful information to consider, but it should be weighed alongside price, coverage, policy terms, claims experience, and financial stability.
How Financially Strong Is The General?
The General’s financial-strength information has improved since older versions of this review were published. AM Best upgraded Permanent General Assurance Corporation and related The General companies to an A+ (Superior) Financial Strength Rating in February 2025 after they became part of Sentry Insurance Group.
AM Best subsequently affirmed Permanent General Assurance Corporation’s A+ (Superior) rating with a stable outlook, effective July 2, 2025. Financial-strength ratings are opinions about an insurer’s ability to meet its ongoing insurance obligations; they are not ratings of customer service or guarantees that an individual claim will be paid.
Who Should Consider The General in New York?
The General is particularly relevant to New York drivers shopping in the nonstandard market. The company openly markets coverage to people with previous violations or accidents, gaps in insurance, and other circumstances that may make coverage more difficult or expensive to obtain.
If you have accidents on your record, make sure you give insurers accurate information when requesting quotes. How an accident affects a policy depends on the circumstances, fault determination, applicable New York rules, and the insurer’s rating plan. Our guide to a not-at-fault car accident explains some of these distinctions.
Drivers with clean records should still compare The General if they receive a competitive quote, but they should also shop standard-market insurers. The same applies to higher-risk drivers: specializing in nonstandard insurance does not guarantee that The General will offer the lowest rate.
Quick tip: When comparing quotes, check the name of the actual underwriting company shown on the quote or policy declarations page. The General is an insurance brand and agency, while policies can be issued through specific underwriting companies within its insurance group.
The Bottom Line on The General in New York
The General remains a legitimate option for New York drivers, particularly those who want to compare nonstandard insurers after accidents, violations, insurance lapses, or other underwriting challenges. The company offers online quoting, digital policy management, a mobile app, 24/7 new-claim reporting, and an A+ (Superior) AM Best financial strength rating through its insurance group.
There are also reasons to compare carefully. New York’s latest published complaint-ratio report places Permanent General Assurance Corporation toward the lower end of the statewide ranking, although DFS cautions that complaint rankings can fluctuate substantially for companies with smaller New York premium volume.
The practical approach is to get quotes from The General and several other New York insurers using identical coverage limits and deductibles. Then compare not only the premium, but also the available optional coverage, discounts, payment terms, claims tools, and the underwriting company behind the policy.