Gabi
Gabi is an insurance brokerage/agency owned by Experian. They build software to help buyers compare different insurance policies, but sometimes don't go far enough in their comparisons to ensure users get the best price.
April 23, 2024
By: Gabriel Botelho
Insurance Types
Auto
- Introduction to Gabi Insurance
- What Kinds of Insurance Does Gabi Offer?
- Does Gabi Sell Auto Insurance?
- Does Gabi Sell Homeowners Insurance?
- How Does Gabi Insurance Work?
- Pros and Cons of Gabi Insurance
- Customer Reviews of Gabi Insurance
- Get Customer Support Or File A Claim For Gabi Insurance
- Frequently Asked Questions
Introduction to Gabi Insurance
Gabi is an insurance brokerage/agency headquartered in San Francisco, California and owned by Experian. As Coverager describes in this review of Experian's required regulatory reporting, Gabi was purchased in 2021 in a bid to expand is presence in the "auto insurance vertical". The article goes on to describe Gabi, first formed in 2016, as a "mobile-first" shopper and a triumph for getting "Distribution right" [sic].
As expressed in our comparison between shopper tools like Gabi, and PolicyGenius: [these tools] do not go far enough in making comparisons easy and transparent for users. They don't ensure you have the correct coverage and stop short of searching the market for the best policy (instead searching the subset that can pay them.
What Kinds of Insurance Does Gabi Offer?
Gabi shops for a range of consumer insurance products. Their "Compare Insurance" tab lists auto, home, umbrella— sometimes called excess liability— renters, and landlords as options for search. Some of these options are recent additions.
Does Gabi Sell Auto Insurance?
Kind of! Gabi itself won't sell you auto insurance, but they will help connect you to an agent or company that can.
After you have a call with an agent or purchase online you should be able to purchase auto insurance from one of the many carriers they work with. At one point, Gabi boasted of working with "40 providers" to help buyers compare quotes, but it is unclear across what combination of lines of coverage and states these providers can offer real quotes.
Does Gabi Sell Homeowners Insurance?
Yes, Gabi does help sell homeowners insurance as an agency. They can help you to find standard coverage for any homes and other structures you might own though the search will be limited to only carriers they partner with. It depends on the final carrier selected, but liability or personal property coverage should be available via most policies findable through Gabi when required and available.
Does Gabi Sell Liability Insurance?
As a broker, Gabi can help you find liability insurance in one of two ways The option to purchase added liability protection should be available across almost all of their property insurance offerings.
The second way is via excess liability or Umbrella insurance, liability coverage beyond what traditional policies will cover to protect buyers' wealth when it exceeds those limits. To purchase this coverage Gabi requires you to bundle with an auto policy and search for both simultaneously.
How Does Gabi Insurance Work?
Gabi is a subsidiary of Experian that focuses on sales to mobile-first buyers for all the lines of insurance they serve. By offering a shopping experience, that some buyers enjoy, Gabi has made major progress in the insurance sales process with its mobile app and online quoting process. For many, it will still result in a call with a broker in order to finalize a quote or purchase. Some will be open to trying Coverage Cat to help provide a better aligned and robust buying experience.
Pros and Cons of Gabi Insurance
Pros
- Better buying experience than most, but not all online insurance shoppers
- Can't guarantee final price since its a broker not an underwriter
Cons
- Customers often still have to call to get quotes / purchase
- Can't guarantee final price since its a broker not an underwriter
- Owned by a company with a bad record of data stewardship
Consumer Reviews of Gabi Insurance
From reading consumer reviews from four years ago its clear that Gabi was once a helpful insurance service that offered better quality than most comparison tools on the market at that time with a few hiccups. Unfortunately, recent reviews are very negative. It seems from reading across a number of sources that bad agent incentives and sub-par customer service have customers feeling like service has degraded since the Experian purchase.
WARNING! BAD PEOPLE! I purchased an auto insurance policy through an ad I saw from Gabi Insurance. They bound the wrong auto policy coverages through Allstate with coverages I never elected, like PIP. They left off towing and rental. I learned this too late last week when I was rear ended and need to use my rental/towing coverage. No one answers the phone at Gabi. You have to leave a message and wait to see if someone returns your call. Eventually, a day later, an uniformed and unimpressive young lady called and essentially told me "awe, too bad, so sad" , call Allstate to see if they will help you because Gabi Insurance won't get involved. WTF! Well, I did just that. Gabi insurance just wants your money. You are nobody to them. Gabi Insurance will not call you or help you when you have a claim. Your asking for more problems if you go with Gabi Insurance as your agent.
We first contacted Gabi back in early 2019 when LiMu had suddenly raised our renewal premium by over $600 (>30%). Previously, our rates may have gone up slightly @ each renewal, but nothing dramatic, even during the 7 years following an accident claim we had in 2012.
So we were pleased when Gabi offered us comparable coverage at a lower premium through Safeco (ironically, also a Liberty Mutual company). It saved us nearly $1k for that year, so we jumped at it. We were also pleased when our Gabi representative promised that they would continue to monitor the market prior to each annual renewal and let us know if they found other savings available for us.
We have never had any claims with Safec and our premium through Gabi only increased slightly at renewal in 2020 and again in 2021. Since Gabi never notified us of better rates prior to these renewals, we assumed they hadn’t been able to find any savings for us and let our policy automatically renew. Then, just prior to our 3rd annual renewal in early 2023, Safeco notified us that our 2023 premium would be going up by nearly $1500 to $4K per year, (over 50% higher than it was in 2022. I immediately sent a message to Gabi through their website asking whether they had found better rates to offer us, but I never heard back. With the renewal date approaching, I decided to shop around myself and was quickly able to find some other insurers offering comparable coverage for significantly less than Safeco's renewal.
I was especially surprised when I got a quote directly from Liberty Mutual that was nearly $2K/yr lower than Safeco's, so we signed back up with Liberty and canceled our Safeco policy with Gabi prior to renewal.
The lessons we learned were:
1) Always do your own research prior to renewal, and
2) Don't expect Gabi to look out for you.
Although we might consider checking back with Gabi at some point in the future, but I would never again count on Gabi to offer us better rates once they've sold us a policy. Continue to do your own homework.
Third time was right!I kept seeing the commercial about Gabi and wanted to give these guys a chance. I tried a bundled home-auto a first time, the prices that came back were about 35% less than my current bundle, but after a week a policy re-evaluation came back and was 20% more.. I passed. I changed my mind a couple of months later and tried a second time, but long sRead more about I kept seeing the commercial abouttory short, different insurance and same outcome. Then in June I thought even for 10-15% I should switch so I submitted a third time (always the same data) and this time with Farmers. The quote from Gabi was with Farmers, 40% less than my insurance. The difference is Farmers sent a matching contract, without review, which I signed. As is usual, à home inspection happen and did not change the quote as everything was accurately provided to Gabi. Worth it!
Experian/Gabi - Based on their quote I switched my Auto and Homeowners to a company they recommended and paid for a year in advance. 2 months later they billed me for additional $$ saying a discount was wrongly applied and has been removed so I owe more. NOT my fault. I spent hours trying to get help, "supervisor" of customer service didn't even make the effort to call back - just emailed saying the request was denied. NOT RECOMMENDED.
I just wanted to see quotes on their website. It didn't show me any but they sure were quick to send my number to every scam insurance company bc I received about 20 calls the same day. Don't give them any of your info.
Avoid this company contacted them to see about a cheaper auto policy they quoted me a price that was incorrect the agent would input incorrect information just to sell the policy only to have your policy updated a month later and 125 dollars more than what you where quoted and agreed to all so they can make their commission
Get Customer Support For Or File A Claim With Gabi
Customer support for Gabi insurance is only available via the app or via email [email protected] address. The implication is that buyers are expected to troubleshoot most insurance problems directly with their final carriers.
Alternatively, if you purchased your policy through Coverage Cat we can help with insurance support (troubleshooting, claims, etc.) to carriers on your behalf and help advise how you should manage your claims situation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I Buy Gabi Insurance?
If you want a comparison tool to buy insurance online there are worse choices than Gabi. It can be an okay alternative for a lot of people and is certainly better than going with the first carrier you can think of or local captive agent you know.
Is Gabi a Real Insurance Company?
Yes, Gabi is a legitimate insurance broker. It helps other insurance companies sell their policies. It's owned by Experian a company with over $6billion in revenue.
How Does Gabi Insurance Make Money?
Gabi Insurance gets a commission whenever you buy insurance through one of its suggested buyers. It tries to stand out for its buying experience and large carrier network relative to other insurance shopping tools.
Is Using Gabi Worth It?
Gabi is another insurance comparison tool, and one that can be a good alternative if Coverage Cat is not available in your state. Challenging though it may be the only way to figure out what the best comparison website is might be to test them all. Or, if you're feeling lazy, just use Coverage Cat.
Reviewed By
Max Cho Licensed Insurance Agent
I’m Max, the founder and CEO of Coverage Cat. Insurance has been a big part of my life since I lost my two front teeth in an accident and had to advocate for myself to get them replaced. Previously, I worked at Google, Microsoft, and at Two Sigma.
Licensed NPN 20377411 | Agency NPN 20397593
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