Podcast Summary: The Clark Howard Podcast

Episode Title: Best Auto Insurers / Discounters Go Wide
Date: March 16, 2026
Host: Clark Howard

Episode Overview

This episode of The Clark Howard Podcast focuses on two core topics:

• The best auto insurance companies for consumers in 2026, emphasizing quality, price, and why the most widely advertised insurers may not be the best options.
• Changes in American consumer behavior in response to inflation, highlighting new strategies for stretching dollars, including shopping at discount and used stores.

The episode features listeners’ questions about vehicle purchases, solar scams, teaching financial responsibility to kids, life insurance coverage, and where to keep savings in a high-rate environment.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Best Auto Insurers: Looking Beyond the Ads

[00:36 – 06:47]

• Auto Insurance Rate Trends

  • Rates have finally "kind of capped out" and are even going down in some states as insurers swing from unprofitable to "wildly profitable" (01:20).
  • Insurers are now competing for business again after years of just pushing up rates.
  • Clark: “Most people by inertia never shop this around. But that changed over the last few years.” (02:30)

• Clark’s ‘Team Clark’ Auto Insurer Rankings

  • Clark and his team compiled data from sources like J.D. Power and Consumer Reports to create the “Team Clark Score.”
  • Top Insurers in 2026:
    • Erie Insurance (#1) — “regional insurer that gets the highest overall composite score.” (03:00)
    • NJM (#2)
    • USAA (#3) — still rated high even with more recent customer complaints.
    • Amica Mutual (#4)
    • Auto-Owners Insurance
    • CSAA Insurance Group (AAA in some markets)
  • Notably, these are mostly regional or specialty insurers, not the big advertisers.
  • “Not a single company on [body shop] list was a big, well-known advertising behemoth. Not one.” (06:35)

• Buyer Tips

  • Don’t just buy what’s marketed—“be a buyer, not be sold.”
  • Research, check ratings, and ask industry professionals (like body shops) for their recommendations.

2. Listener Q&A: Cars, Solar, Family Finance, and More

[06:47 – 29:00]

Car Buying in a High Mileage Scenario

Q: Buy new or used for 10,000+ miles/year?

• “Used to be that I talked about the advantage of buying one and two-year-old used cars… no longer a deal generally compared to a new one.”
• Now, only significantly older cars offer a material depreciation advantage—but with more risk.
• “If you’re asking me brand new or one-year-old, I go brand new.” (07:09)
• Passenger cars offer better value than SUVs.

F-150 Lightning: Buy Now or Pass?

• Ford’s discontinuing the F-150 Lightning, but service and battery warranties are long.
• Discontinued models (“orphan cars”) drop in resale value—look for deals on new or used.
• “The biggest beef that buyers have had with it is that the range you actually get out of it is not close to what the stated range was that they thought it was going to be.” (09:45)
• No major worries about replacement parts for the near future; worry more about actual driving range and charging for longer trips.

Solar Leasing Headache: Caught in the Fine Print

• Listener stuck with a costly solar lease from the now-defunct ADT Solar division.
• “You are as stuck as stuck could be in that contract.” (11:43)
• Takeaway: Always own your solar system, never lease; leasing contracts often lead to non-economic outcomes and lack flexibility if companies dissolve.
• "A lot of these companies were better at selling things to people ... than they were at running solar businesses." (13:24)

3. American Consumers: Discounters Go Wide

[16:53 – 21:33]

• ‘No Buy January’ and Consumer Adaptations

  • An increasing number of Americans now participate in “no buy” months and shift buying habits due to inflation.
  • Shoppers are “modifying where they buy, how they buy, when they buy.” (16:58)

• The Evolution of Dollar Tree and Discount Retail

  • Dollar Tree (now with items priced up to $7) and Five Below have expanded product ranges, store sizes, and moved into more affluent markets.
  • Clark: “Their sales have gone up quite a bit… their actual shopper base has grown.” (18:40)
  • Stores now attract customers from higher-income areas by offering broad selections and better shopping experiences.

• Growth of Used Stores

  • Explosion in the popularity and utility of used stores (especially for clothing), enabling consumers to stretch every dollar further.

4. Family Money Values: Teaching Kids

[21:33 – 24:46]

• How to Teach Children Sacrifice and Delayed Gratification
  • Clark shares personal experience: “The oldest is much more careful with every dollar and lives an extremely frugal lifestyle… our son isn't there at all.”
  • Money values are taught through ongoing, age-appropriate conversations—not lectures or guilt trips.
  • Favorite teaching moment: Clark shows kids images of a fancy and a basic lifestyle, then asks which family is the millionaire—kids always pick fancy, but “it's never what you have in possessions, it's what you don’t spend that matters.” (23:29)

5. Insurance & Banking Advice

[24:46 – 29:00]

Life Insurance Review

• Listener’s annual renewable term policy (ART) will get expensive with age.
• ART is for short-term needs—“more like a straight up curve after age 50.”
• For longer-term coverage, replace ART with a “level term insurance policy… till you’re both in your 60s.” (26:12)
• Amount needed: “10 times your annual income.” (27:28)

Where to Park Your Cash: Navy Federal & USAA

• Both offer better loan rates, but aren’t good for savings accounts.
• Clark: “Their big business is offering rates on loans… on the savings side, neither is anything special.” (28:09)
• Recommendation: Use high-yield online banks or trusted discount brokers for savings, keep credit unions/banks for transaction and lending needs.

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• On advertising and quality:
  “Not a single company on [the body shop] list was a big, well-known advertising behemoth. Not one.” — Clark Howard (06:35)
• On solar leasing contracts:
  “You are as stuck as stuck could be in that contract.” — Clark Howard (11:43)
• On lifestyle and wealth:
  “It's never what you have in possessions, it's what you don’t spend that matters.” — Clark Howard (23:29)
• On life insurance:
  “ART is really more designed for a very short-term window, not a long term… you each need a policy on yourself, 10 times your annual income.” — Clark Howard (25:46, 27:28)
• On savings at credit unions:
  “On the savings side, neither is anything special.” — Clark Howard (28:09)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Insurance Rankings & Analysis — 00:36 – 06:47
• Car Buying Q&A — 06:47 – 08:31
• EVs & F-150 Lightning Q&A — 08:31 – 10:30
• Solar Contract Pitfalls — 10:30 – 14:14
• Discounters & Shifting Consumer Behavior — 16:53 – 21:33
• Teaching Kids Financial Values — 21:33 – 24:46
• Life Insurance Evaluation — 24:46 – 27:41
• Credit Union vs. Bank Savings Accounts — 27:41 – 29:00

Final Takeaways

• Shop around for auto insurance— don’t rely on big names or advertising; use aggregated data from trusted sources and consider regional insurers.
• Buy, don’t lease, solar panels to avoid being locked into unfavorable contracts.
• Adapt shopping strategies: Use discounters, expand to affluent chains, or buy used to beat inflation.
• Educate kids about money through ongoing discussion and lived example—not material displays.
• Review and switch life insurance policies as life circumstances change; buy enough term insurance at the right time.
• For savings, go online—credit unions like Navy Federal are borrower-friendly but not always saver-friendly.

For more resources and tips, visit clark.com.