Sonnet’s Rating
Financial Strength
Services Offered
Customer Service
Insurance Rates
Carsurance Verdict:
Sonnet provides insurance via the web, offers the best online tools, and is financially sound. However, it’s rates are among the most expensive. If that’s not a deal-breaker for you, it’s worth a try.
3.5
Pros
- Superb online tools
- Fully customizable auto insurance plans
- Reliable customer service
Cons
- The competition offers more discounts
- No mobile app
- Only available online
- More expensive than average
Sonnet Insurance is a 100% online-based Canadian company that specializes in offering insurance that’s straightforward and fast. A part of the Economical Insurance Group and headquartered in Waterloo, Ontario — one of Canada’s biggest tech hubs — Sonnet caters to the whole of Canada.
To determine the quality of the company’s car insurance, we analyzed its various reviews and considered its performance vis-à-vis its competitors in customer service and financial strength departments.
We also got a Sonnet car insurance quote to check its affordability, besides taking its various discounts into account.
So what’s the verdict? Is Sonnet right for you?
Read our detailed review so you can decide for yourself.
Product Overview
Sonnet, one of Canada’s top direct-to-consumer insurers, projects itself as an affordable auto insurance company, something that more than one Sonnet review confirms. The insurer has a good track record in customer service and offers various benefits, such as the following.
Features
Fully Customizable Insurance Plans
With Sonnet, you get auto insurance that’s tailored specifically for you, not people like you. It offers three bundle plans, all of which are fully customizable. This means you pay only for coverage that you need, and not a penny more (or less).
Easy, Hassle-Free Claims Handling
The Sonnet insurance claims process is fast and easy. You can place calls using a special 24/7, hotline number: 1-844-766-6834.
As per Sonnet’s website, it has a team of 600 specialists ready to lend you a helping hand in your moment of distress. For repairs, you can choose one of Sonnet’s prescreened repair centers, where body, part, and paintwork is guaranteed, provided you are the owner of the vehicle.
Online Tools
Sonnet Insurance reviews reveal that it has one of the most eye-catching, intuitively-designed, and user-friendly websites. What’s more, its website also boasts a high-quality blog section.
However, Sonnet doesn’t offer a mobile app as of yet, but that’s not a big deal. Since its website is fully mobile-responsive, you can easily access it and do things (like getting an online quote or buying coverage) on-the-go.
Signature Feature — Outstanding Online Quoting Tool
When you land onto Sonnet’s website, the first thing that catches your attention is its promise to have your car covered within 5 minutes. Guess what, that’s really the case, as we found out in our Sonnet review.
While most Canadian auto insurers offer online quotes, Sonnet’s web-based quoting tool is a class apart. Neatly organized and quick as a wink, it finds you the right coverage within minutes, even though it asks for more details than other tools.
Financial Strength
Sonnet is in good health, financially speaking, as confirmed by A.M. Best rating of “A−” (Excellent) achieved by its parent company, Economical. This indicates that you can rely on the company to pay claim expenses without any fuss.
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Types of Insurances Offered
Sonnet Insurance offers three bundle plans — the Essential, the Preferred, and the Ultimate — which include standard coverages in the Canadian car insurance industry, plus some more. The best part is that each of these plans is fully customizable, so you can drop the coverages you don’t need with a simple press of a button.
Additionally, you can purchase the following optional coverages from Sonnet:
Rental Costs
Sonnet Insurance reviews reveal that the insurer will take care of you in case of a comprehensive claim, excluding theft, or an at-fault accident. This means that the company will cover the expenses of the rental vehicle you use while yours is being repaired.
Non-Owned Vehicle Coverage
It provides protection against the loss or damage of any rented or borrowed vehicle.
Roadside Assistance
Sonnet has your back covered if your car breaks down. This optional coverage will reimburse you up to $50 for emergency services, such as towing, flat tire service, fuel delivery, and battery jump-start.
New/Used Vehicle Replacement
Sonnet Insurance Canada helps ease the financial burden of having to replace a new or used car that has been totalled. It will pay you money for a new or used car of the same model as yours and not its depreciated value. The reimbursed amount, however, will not include the deductible.
Hit-and-Run Deductible Waiver
If you’re a victim of a hit-and-run, Sonnet Canada will waive off your deductible up to $1,000, provided you report the incident within 24 hours or so.
Accident Forgiveness
Sonnet won’t hike your premium after your first at-fault accident if you have maintained a clean record for the last 6 years.
Ticket Forgiveness
With ticket forgiveness coverage, you can protect your clean history and car insurance premium! When the time comes for insurance renewal, this Sonnet company policy will pretend that your first minor ticket never happened. This basically means that you will not have to pay extra for car insurance because you made a small mistake.
Automatic Driver-Vehicle Assignment
If you have insured multiple vehicles with Sonnet, it will automatically assign you to the car with the lowest premium, irrespective of which vehicle you drive most often.
Sonnet Customer Service Ratings
Sonnet doesn’t feature in J.D. Power’s 2019 study for Canada, nor is it accredited to Better Business Bureau, a non-profit organization that ranks businesses on their ability to handle customers’ complaints.
However, The Economical — Sonnet’s parent company — enjoys the second-highest rating of “A” on BBB’s website. It also puts in a good show in J.D. Power’s Canada study for Ontario, the only province in which it got ranked. The Economical earned four stars and ranked fourth overall in this region.
However, Sonnet auto insurance reviews on Insureye, an independent car insurance review site, are not flattering. Here, Sonnet could only manage a score of 1.6 out of 5. That said, reading too much into this performance might not be the best approach. The reason being, there is a clear negative bias on such websites as most people take the time to write an online review when they have an axe to grind.
Available Discounts
Sonnet car insurance reviews show that the insurer offers several discounts, but not as many as some of its competitors, like The Personal.
- Multiple Vehicle Discount — Insuring two or more cars with Sonnet can result in more savings on your insurance.
- Winter Tire Discount — According to winter driving statistics, winter tires help you stick to the road a lot better and thereby reduces the risk of an accident. Because of this, car insurers, including Sonnet Auto Insurance Company, reward drivers who install certified winter tires during the cold season.
- Retiree Discount — Are you a retiree and looking for auto insurance in Ontario? Well, here’s some good news for you. Sonnet offers a special discount to retirees in Ontario, which means you will pay less for coverage.
- Bundle Discount — Most insurance companies that offer home and auto insurance offer this discount, and Sonnet is no different. Bundling Sonnet home insurance and auto insurance can help you score a hefty discount on both policies, besides making it easier to manage payments.
- Good Driving Discount — This is another discount you expect from top auto insurers, and Sonnet doesn’t disappoint. Like other reputable car insurance companies in Canada, it rewards safe driving. You can score a hefty discount if you haven’t had any claims recently.
Sonnet Car Insurance Rates Comparison
Sonnet’s website states that its pricing is personalized and competitive, in part because it is 100% based online. Of course, we were not going to take their word for it, so we decided to get a quote.
Our reference location was Calgary and our reference driver was a 40-year-old single male with a clean driving record. The vehicle we selected for our Sonnet car insurance quote was a 2018 Honda Civic averaging 15,000 km per year.
As it turns out, Sonnet’s quote is the most expensive one in Calgary. With a premium of $229 a month, it charges roughly 16% more than its nearest competitor, Intact (at $193). Even in other cities, it was among the more expensive options.
Sonnet Insurance Compared to its Main Rivals
Sonnet vs Economical
Sonnet specializes in offering customizable car insurance online, while Economical’s niche is high-risk drivers and antique car owners.
When it comes to the technology game, Economical is far behind its daughter company, Sonnet. In most locations, it offers insurance exclusively through brokers, and its website, while capable, is no match for Sonnet’s, which is the best in the business.
When it comes to customer satisfaction, we could not find much data on Sonnet Auto Insurance. However, Economical, its parent company, has a reputation for being a customer-oriented company. It earned the fourth overall rank in 2019 J.D. Power’s Canada study for Ontario and the second-highest rating of “A” on BBB’s website. Hence, chances are you’ll receive reliable customer service from Sonnet as well.
Economical also achieved a respectable rating of “A−” from A.M. Best. In plain English, this means you can count on Economical and Sonnet to not look for loopholes or excuses when the time comes to file a claim.
To sum it up, if your driving record is far from pristine or you own a vintage car, you should put Economical at the top of your list. On the other hand, as many Sonnet reviews confirm, Sonnet might just be the one for you if you want auto insurance that you can buy online and manage on-the-go.
Sonnet vs Aviva
Unlike Sonnet, Aviva offers quite affordable rates, although it is not the cheapest around. However, Aviva has a poor record of customer service.
It came dead-last in J.D. Power’s 2019 Overall Satisfaction Study for Canada. In contrast, Sonnet Insurance reviews reveal that its parent company, Economical, received an impressive 4-star rating in the latest J.D. Power’s Canada study for the Ontario region and the second-highest rating (“A”) on BBB’s website.
Nevertheless, in the financial strength department, it is Aviva who is in the lead. It got the third-highest rating of “A” from A.M. Best, whereas Sonnet could only manage “A−”. Nevertheless, the latter boasts a much better website and online quote system.
Both Sonnet Car Insurance Company and Aviva offer a wide range of optional coverages, but the ride-sharing coverage is available only with the latter.
Overall, if you value customer service, you might want to go with Sonnet. On the other hand, Aviva sounds like a better deal if you require Lyft ride-sharing insurance or cheap coverage.
Sonnet vs Intact
As our Sonnet Insurance quote for Calgary shows, its rates are on the steeper side. In comparison, Intact’s premiums are considerably cheaper, although they aren’t the most affordable.
When it comes to customer service, it’s hard to do an accurate comparison. This is because Sonnet’s name appears neither in J.D. Power Canada study nor on BBB’s website. If its parent company’s customer service record is any indication, Sonnet should be delivering quality or at least above-average service. However, we can’t say for sure.
Intact, on the other hand, got an average rating of “B+” on BBB’s site. Its performance in J.D. Power’s 2019 study for Canada is not great either, managing only 3 stars out of 5.
Still, Intact boasts better financial strength, something which various Sonnet Auto Insurance reviews also confirm. While A.M. Best gave Sonnet an “A−” rating, Intact earned the second-highest rating of “A+”.
Intact also outshines when it comes to offering car-sharing and ride-sharing insurance. Besides offering Uber coverage, it lets car owners take full advantage of Turo, an online peer-to-peer car rental service.
If you are someone who wants to use their personal car for Uber or Turo, you should definitely consider Intact. On the other hand, as this Sonnet Insurance review shows, Sonnet is a good fit if you want a digital-only auto insurer with awesome online tools.
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Best Alternatives
If you want an insurer with top-notch customer service, start your search with The Co-Operators and RBC Insurance. TD Insurance offers the most affordable auto insurance, but its customer service is nothing to shout about.
On the other hand, if you are looking for an insurer that specializes in high-risk drivers, Economical might suit you better than Sonnet Insurance. Intact, in contrast, is suitable for all those who want to use Uber or Turo.
Our Expert Verdict
Do you prefer purchasing auto insurance via the web rather than in person or over the phone?
If the answer is yes, Sonnet is worth checking out.
The insurer does reasonably well in the financial standing department and its parent company, Economical, has a good record in customer service. However, Sonnet’s expensive premiums can put many customers off. Precisely for this reason, we can’t give a universal recommendation on it.
That said, if you think Sonnet’s technical perks and fully customizable insurance plans justify the outlay, or if you receive a reasonable rate, you should definitely consider it.
People Also Ask
Launched in 2016, Sonnet is owned by Canadian Insurance giant Economical Insurance. Sonnet’s head office is located in the tech hub of Waterloo, Ontario — a suitable location for a fully digital insurance company.
Sonnet specializes in offering home and auto insurance that’s simple-to-understand, easy-to-manage, and fully customizable. And the best part is that you can buy insurance directly from its website, without having to deal with a broker.
Sonnet is pretty solid financially, which its “A−” A.M. Best rating wholly confirms. It also offers the best online tools, something which will please tech-savvy users. Still, not much is known about the quality of its customer service, since it doesn’t appear in J.D. Power’s Canada study or on the BBB’s website.
That said, its parent company, Economical, has a good track record in customer service. However, it’s Sonnet’s costly premiums that can be the real put-off, being among the most expensive around.
In our Sonnet auto insurance review, we found that the insurer supports multiple payment methods. You can choose from any of these three payment methods to pay for your car or home insurance coverage — credit card, PayPal, or bank withdrawal.
Filing a claim with Sonnet is pretty straightforward. You can initiate the process by calling their special claim hotline number (1-844-766-6834) anytime. The phone lines are open 24/7. Sonnet Insurance states it has as many as 600 claims professionals to help you file a claim and get back on the road without any hassle and as quickly as possible.