June 29th, 2009
In an interesting survey of auto insurance policy owners, fewer motorists changed their insurance company for their vehicles as the U.S. recession spurred a “hunker-down mentality,” according to a J.D. Power and Associates survey.
The proportion of customers seeking a new insurer fell to 28 percent in the 12 months ended in March from 36 percent in the year-earlier period, the marketing company said today in a statement. The study showed a slump in shopping in the fourth quarter and January, and some companies reported a rebound in recent months, Jeremy Bowler, J.D. Power’s senior director of insurance, said in an interview.
“Many customers are employing a hunker-down mentality,” Bowler said in a statement. “Most customers would prefer to hold tight to their current provider, which they already know, rather than risk trying a new provider.”
Auto insurers’ premiums have declined as drivers reduced coverage in response to the recession and profits dropped on investment writedowns. Consumers most often cited price as a reason for their shopping, and more than a third said price was the reason for switching carriers. Ninety percent of customers stay with their current provider, J.D. Power said. I guess this all comes as no surprise as folks seem to have bigger worries on their minds.
Posted in Auto Insurance News, Car - Auto Insurance, Insurance in Canada, Insurance in the US | No Comments »
May 19th, 2009
So Allstate Corp. the largest publicly traded U.S. auto insurer, and Warren Buffett’s Geico Corp. are re-entering the Massachusetts car market after the state deregulated pricing for the coverage.
Allstate set Nov. 2 as its target date to return after an absence of about two decades, pending approval from regulators, the Northbrook, Illinois-based insurer said today in a statement. Geico started offering online quotes to Massachusetts drivers today, the company said in a separate statement.
Massachusetts was the last state to give up the authority to set rates in a plan designed to increase competition among insurers and reduce prices for customers. The state revoked the 31-year-old controls last year. Progressive Corp., based in Mayfield Village, Ohio, re-entered the market in 2008.
“As far as I am concerned the floodgates are wide open in Massachusetts right now,” said Kevin Johnson, an independent agent with Johnson & Rohan Insurance Agency in Lynnfield, Massachusetts, about 14 miles (22 kilometers) north of Boston. “It is good news for the consumer.”
Johnson said the state’s insurance regulation kept many companies from entering the market and he is cheered by how much that has turned around since the rules fell about a year ago. This is good news for competition and hopefully lower pricing.
Posted in Auto Insurance News, Car - Auto Insurance, Insurance in the US | No Comments »
April 6th, 2009
Welcome to my newest blog that will provide news, reviews and commentary on the auto insurance industry in Canada and the US. Besides that I will be partnering up with local insurance providers to offer you the cheapest car insurance around.
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