I totally get what you mean about the miles sneaking up on you. I’ve been looking into these pay-per-mile options too, and the “savings” calculators always seem optimistic. Once you factor in the base rate (which is higher if your car’s newer—found that out the hard way), the numbers just don’t look as good. The fine print is a bit much, honestly. I’m starting to think unless you’re barely driving, traditional insurance might actually be simpler in the end. The unpredictability stresses me out more than I expected.
That base rate thing caught me off guard, too. With my car, the “discount” basically vanished once they factored in the value. Honestly, for higher-end vehicles, the math rarely works out unless you’re barely driving at all. I’d rather pay a bit more for predictability than stress about every extra mile.
Yeah, I ran into the same thing with my BMW. The per-mile rate looked good at first glance, but the base fee for a “luxury” car was wild—almost wiped out any savings. Guess they figure we’re all driving around like we’re in a Fast & Furious movie? Honestly, I just stick to a standard policy now. At least I know what I’m paying each month, no matter how many random coffee runs I make.
Guess they figure we’re all driving around like we’re in a Fast & Furious movie? Honestly, I just stick to a standard policy now. At least I know what I’m paying each month, no matter how many random coffee runs I make.
That’s exactly the vibe I got when I tried to get a quote for my Accord. I mean, it’s not exactly a “luxury” car, but apparently, if you drive more than to the mailbox and back, the per-mile plans start looking less like a deal and more like a math test you can’t win. I commute about 40 miles a day, so by the time I added up the base fee and the per-mile charge, it was like—congrats, you’ve just invented a more complicated way to pay the same (or more) as a regular policy.
I did try Metromile for a few months, just to see if it would actually save me anything. Spoiler: it didn’t. The app was kind of fun at first—tracking my trips, showing me little maps of my daily grind—but the novelty wore off fast when I realized my “savings” were basically enough for a fancy coffee… maybe two if I skipped the whipped cream. And don’t get me started on the “luxury” surcharge. My car has cloth seats and a dented bumper, but apparently, it’s still a VIP in the eyes of insurance algorithms.
Honestly, I get the appeal if you barely drive or have a second car that sits around most of the time. But for anyone with a regular commute (or a caffeine habit that requires frequent detours), the standard monthly policy just feels less stressful. At least I don’t have to do mental gymnastics every time I want to take the scenic route home.
Maybe if they ever come up with a “per-coffee-run” discount, I’ll reconsider. Until then, I’ll just keep paying the flat rate and pretending my Accord is a luxury sedan—at least in the eyes of my insurance company.
I get where you’re coming from, but for some of us with “weekend driver” cars, the pay-per-mile thing actually works out. My old ‘72 Cutlass barely sees daylight except for car shows and Sunday spins, so the standard policy always felt like overkill.
That’s me to a T. The math isn’t great for daily commuters, but if your ride spends more time under a cover than on the road, those per-mile plans can be a decent deal—at least until they start tacking on “classic car” surcharges.“I get the appeal if you barely drive or have a second car that sits around most of the time.”
