Is Nationwide Legit? Licensing, Insurers and Reliability
Nationwide has no Carrier & MGA Spot Score because the reviewed evidence is insufficient for a numerical assessment. Spot Scores assess documented reliability within the reviewed scope; they do not predict claims payment.
Assessment
Assessment status unavailable
This partial Carrier & MGA Spot Score covers licensing and authority, financial strength, claims and servicing, regulatory record and how clearly it explains its terms. It uses 85% of the rubric's factor weighting, normalized to a ten-point scale. Anything without enough evidence is left out, not scored as zero.
Assessment subject unavailable
Assessed 2026-09-29 · Review due 2026-10-29
Evidence and Scope
Role: Carrier. Scope: Nationwide's US property and casualty group, which sells small-business and commercial insurance through independent agents. Financial ratings cover Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and its P&C affiliates. Nationwide's life, annuity and personal-lines businesses are outside this scope except where a regulator order covers the whole group.
Financial strength
Nationwide's own annual report lists ratings for Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, which it says applies to its P&C affiliates: S&P A+ (affirmed 2025-04-12), AM Best A, third highest of 13 (affirmed 2025-11-07), and Moody's A2 (affirmed 2025-10-28). It reports $32.8 billion of total adjusted capital. AM Best's November 2025 release confirms an A (Excellent) rating and stable outlook for the Nationwide P&C Group, citing very strong balance sheet strength but marginal operating performance.[1][2]
Claims and servicing
Businesses can report a claim online, at 1-800-421-3535 or through their agent, any time. Nationwide says a claims professional is assigned and aims to make same-day contact, with dedicated large-loss and general-adjuster teams for big losses. These are company statements; no claim-payment timing data was found.[5]
How you buy
Regulatory actions
On 2024-02-27 New York's financial regulator fined the Nationwide group, including Nationwide Mutual and the Allied and Scottsdale Indemnity affiliates, $546,000. The group reported insured vehicles late to the state DMV during 2018. That is a reporting-timeliness issue for motor vehicle policies, not a claims-handling finding. Searches also turned up older Florida consent orders and a 2025 class-action settlement over pet-insurance voicemails, which we did not open or assess.[4]
Complaints
NerdWallet, using NAIC data for 2022 to 2024, says Nationwide had fewer general-liability complaints than expected for its size and about the expected number for commercial property. NerdWallet's text and methodology differ on the property result, so treat that line as approximate. We haven't confirmed these figures against NAIC's own complaint page.[7]
Evidence gaps
- Which Nationwide company issues a given commercial policy (Nationwide Mutual, Allied, Scottsdale or Nationwide E&S/Specialty) was not established, and AM Best's full member list PDF was not read. No entity-level rating for Scottsdale Insurance Company or Nationwide E&S/Specialty was verified.
- The A (Excellent) rating hasn't been confirmed on AM Best's own site; it rests on a press release copy and Nationwide's annual report.
- Ohio Department of Insurance (Nationwide's home regulator) was not searched directly, and the Missouri DOI page returned a rate-limit error.
- NAIC's own complaint index for company 23787 hasn't been confirmed, so no direct NAIC values are shown.
- Older Florida consent orders and a 2025 pet-insurance class-action settlement appeared in search but haven't been confirmed; no claims-payment timing or denial-rate data was found.
Jurisdiction searches
| Jurisdiction | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|
 New YorkNew York State Department of Financial Services | Verified regulator result[3][4] | NY DFS company directory shows Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company (NAIC 23787) admitted since 1937 as a Property & Casualty insurer. DFS also published a 2024 consent order against the Nationwide group. |
| O(Ohio (Home State) | Not researched[3] | Ohio is the domicile, confirmed only via the NY record. Ohio Department of Insurance was not searched directly. |
 Missouri | Source inaccessible | Missouri DOI company record not confirmed. |
| NCNAIC Complaint Database | Source inaccessible[7] | NAIC's own consumer complaint data hasn't been confirmed. NerdWallet's report of NAIC data is used instead and labelled as such. |
| ABAM Best | Source inaccessible[2][1] | The rating hasn't been confirmed on AM Best's site. It is supported by a copy of the press release and Nationwide's annual report. |
Licenses and Authority
These are reviewed authority records for the named legal entities and scope. A license record does not establish that a particular policy is available, bound, or suitable.
| Entity and jurisdiction | Identifier | License class and authority |
|---|---|---|
| Nationwide Mutual Insurance CompanyNYNew York (Ohio Domicile) | NAIC number: 23787[3] | Property & Casualty insurer, admitted; NY DFS directory: admitted in New York since 10/21/1937; writing powers for 20 lines including workers' compensation, fire, marine and motor vehicle physical damage. |
Sources
- Strength and Stability, 2025 Nationwide Annual Report. Nationwide; Ratings table: Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company (applies to P&C affiliates) S&P A+ (affirmed 04/12/25), AM Best A (affirmed 11/07/25), Moody's A2 (affirmed 10/28/25); total adjusted capital $32.8 billion. Accessed 2026-09-29.
- AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and Its Key Operating Subsidiaries. AM Best (via Yahoo Finance); 2025-11-07: AM Best affirmed FSR A (Excellent) and Long-Term ICR a+ (Excellent), stable outlook, for Nationwide Property and Casualty Group members. Full member list is in a PDF not reproduced there. The rating hasn't been confirmed on AM Best's own site. Accessed 2026-09-29.
- Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, NY DFS company directory. New York State Department of Financial Services; NAIC 23787, Ohio domicile, admitted in New York 10/21/1937, Property & Casualty license type, address One West Nationwide Plaza, Columbus. Accessed 2026-09-29.
- Consent Order, Nationwide Group (February 27, 2024). New York State Department of Financial Services; Consent order naming Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and 18 affiliates including Allied Insurance Company of America, Allied Property and Casualty, AMCO, Scottsdale Indemnity and Nationwide Agribusiness. Late reporting of motor vehicle insurance to NY DMV in 2018; $546,000 penalty. Accessed 2026-09-29.
- Business insurance claims FAQ. Nationwide; Report by phone 1-800-421-3535, online or through your agent; 24/7; claim assigned to a claims professional who aims for same-day contact; large-loss and general-adjuster teams. Accessed 2026-09-29.
- Small commercial for agents. Nationwide; Small commercial sold through appointed independent agents, with an appetite guide and an appointment application. Accessed 2026-09-29.
- Nationwide Business Insurance Review. NerdWallet; Updated June 3, 2026. Says Nationwide gives AM Best 'excellent' rating; fewer general-liability complaints than expected 2022-2024 and about expected for commercial property (NAIC data); must buy through an independent agent. Accessed 2026-09-29.
