Mendota Insurance Company Review & Complaints: Auto Insurance (2023)

Premiums
Claims
Feedback
Financial Strength

Based out of Minnesota, Mendota Insurance Company is focused on the non-standard auto insurance market selling niche insurance to customers. They provide coverage to drivers who are having trouble obtaining it elsewhere across the country.

What is Mendota insurance?

Mendota Insurance has been in business since 1989 and offers auto insurance in the non-standard market. The specialty insurance company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kingsway Financial Services, Inc. The  casualty insurer’s website is very bare-bones and dated, and there is not a lot of specific information regarding the company’s history.

Auto insurance is the company’s main product, and it is sold by independent agents across the country. They also offer flood insurance, but this is underwritten by American Bankers Insurance Company and not directly. Auto appears to be the only product Mendota insurance company underwrites in North America.

Mendota Insurance headquarters is located in Eagan, Minnesota, but they have offices in various locations including California and Tennessee.

Does Mendota offer auto insurance coverage?

The Mendota website does not offer much in the way of detail regarding their auto insurance program. The website simply states that they insure drivers that have trouble getting coverage elsewhere, and to contact an agent for more information.

This type of company typically writes a lot of bare bones, legal minimum policies. That is mainly due to the fact that drivers in search of non-standard insurance are facing very high rates due to their status as high-risk drivers, and as a result, frequently choose only basic insurance to save money.

We would assume that Mendota offers coverage options beyond the legal requirements for liability, but the site offers no real information on their coverage.

Are the rates competitive?

It is not surprising to see the lack of information regarding rates on the Mendota site. Online quoting is not offered and quotes can only be obtained through an insurance agent.

Since this is a non-standard insurance company, rates are only comparable to other similar companies and not to standard insurance company rates. We did find many comments in the reviews of this company stating that their rates were low, but we are unable to provide a comparison.

How are claims processed?

Mendota has a 24/7 claim reporting line that is toll-free and also offers claims reporting online at MyMendota.com. This same website can be used to follow up and track the progress of a claim. This is accessible only to customers that are logged into the system.

The website offers a FAQ claims section that answers basic questions about the claims process. The company does not appear to have a preferred repair shop network based on the information found on the website.

Are ratings and consumer reviews positive?

Mendota has an A- rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB), with a total of ten complaints on file in the past three years. These complaints appear to be the basis for the slightly lowered rating, although in our experience that is not a high complaint volume even for a smaller company.

Consumer Affairs has 91 reviews of Mendota, 81 of which left star ratings that result in an overall 1.5-star rating. The majority of the reviews are negative, with a few positive reviews scattered in. Most of the complaints are regarding poor customer service, difficulty with claims, and billing issues.

Google has 134 reviews of Mendota, and the resulting rating is 1.2 stars. Again, there are a lot of complaints about claims handling and difficulty reaching company representatives. The overall impression is very negative.

What is the bottom line?

Non-standard insurance can be difficult to find at a good price and with good service, but it is likely that there are better choices out there. Mendota’s lack of information available and the repeated complaints about claims problems throw up some red flags that lead us to recommend looking elsewhere.