Nationwide Auto Insurance, also known as Nationwide Mutual, Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company & Affiliated Companies, or simply Nationwide, are actually not a single company but a group of large American Insurance providers and financial service providers all based out of Columbus and operating in places as far flung as Lynchburg, Virginia, San Antonio and Gainesville, Florida.

A Brief History of Nationwide Insurance
Like many insurance companies, Nationwide Insurance was not founded under the name of Nationwide Insurance, nor was the company actually founded with the intention of providing the sort of insurance policies that they provide today.

The company got started in Columbus in late 1925 when the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation incorporated the Farm Bureau Mutual Automobile Insurance Company. At the time, state law dictated that it would take 100 people pledging to become policyholders and the first agents who went to work for the Farm Bureau were actually able to recruit ten times that many future customers, making Farm Bureau Mutual official early the next year in April, 1926 with 1,000 policyholders.

The company started with automobile insurance exclusively for Ohio farmers, eventually expanding to farmers in West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, North Carolina and Vermont over the years. Eventually the company began underwriting policies out to small towns and then the general public in the early 1930′s.

After a number of expansions, the company eventually moved into the 246 Building on North High Street in Columbus where they remain to this day. They currently sit at 124 on the Fortune 500 with 36,000 employees and maintain a strong presence in Downtown Columbus, a city in which they have invested deeply and helped to turn from a small city into a major metropolitan area.

Insurance Products and Discounts Available from Nationwide Car Insurance
Nationwide Auto Insurance got their start with auto insurance and that is where their specialty remains. While they have expanded into property and fire insurance, life policies and even pet insurance, private passenger auto coverage remains the core of their business no matter how wide they broaden their range.

That being said, many of these auto insurance policies can be had for much less if one is to include them in an umbrella coverage policy or bundled with other policies from the company such as homeowner insurance, life insurance and retirement planning. At the very least, having all of that in one place isn’t a bad idea for any consumer who finds that Nationwide Car Insurance can provide them with sufficient policies in every walk of life.

Regardless, Nationwide Auto Insurance offer a wide range of generous discounts for certain drivers, including:

-Safe Car
Owning a safe car with full working airbags, anti-lock brakes, safety inspection tags, regularly rotated tires and few miles can make a big difference in the cost of your insurance policy.

-Safe Driver
Any driver who has a clean record on the road can find themselves paying far less for their insurance by virtue of simply being safer to insure.

-Good Student Discounts
While there are students who are responsible in the classroom but not on the road and vice versa, the fact remains that responsible habits tend to go hand in hand with other responsible habits, and most good students are also good drivers, or so Nationwide Car Insurance discounts would have you believe.

-Advanced Driving Courses
If you take some advanced driving courses such as defensive driving, you can see serious reductions in the cost you’re paying for your Nationwide Car Insurance policy.

Getting Covered Through Nationwide Insurance
Nationwide Auto Insurance has offices set up all throughout the country with regional headquarters in Iowa, Texas, Florida and Virginia. The company is always expanding through underwriting companies and subsidiaries, so it would be difficult to compile a complete list of locations and availability here, so your best bet may simply be to ask your insurance agent if they carry Nationwide Insurance.

The commercials are known for that memorable jingle, “Nationwide is on your side,” and while one may be reluctant to attach such a chummy persona to a faceless corporation, Nationwide does, surprisingly, have the positive reputation to back up the image they put forth in their marketing.