Hey guys,
Not Audi specific, but Progressive is now available in MA...effective 5/1. I signed up to get notification several months ago and got an email heads up the other day.

MA rates are notoriously high and I was dying to see if I could find better deals once the state allowed competition. I did the online rate thing at the Progressive site and they quoted me $600 less than my current provider for exactly the same coverage for both my cars.I signed up.

I'm not promoting Progressive, but I thought I'd share for anyone who's in MA and getting robbed by their current insurance. I called my insurance co to ask what changes they were going to make now that the competetive structure has changed. They offered me increased rental car coverage in the event I needed a rental. The kick is, they said I had to pay an extra $11 a month for this amazing new perk.

 

haha, yeah my current insurance co, liberty mutual, sent me info about extra crap that doesn't mean anything to me. My contract is up in august, i'm looking forward to what they have to offer, see as how we've finally got some competition now in this state between car insurance co's.

 

I just recd this from a friend. thought I'd share as it looks like Progressive is breaking laws in MA and providing bogus quote info up front. I've contacted Progressive to make sure that my quote is legit and that it will be honored.

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MAIA Cautions Consumers About Progressive Quotes;
Files Formal Complaint With DOI
Today, MAIA issued a press release to every daily newspaper in the state cautioning consumers about serious issues with quotes received from the Progressive Direct website. After initial reports of "dirt cheap" rates, MAIA took a long, hard look at the quotes produced by the site.
According to MAIA President and CEO Frank Mancini, "Our review of the quotes provided by Progressive reminds us of the old saying, 'it it looks too good to be true, it probably is.' Consumers should use extreme caution when requesting online quotes because a computer doesn't ask the questions a live person would ask to be sure you are adequately protected."
Since many of MAIA's issues with the website are believed to be serious violations of the managed competition regulation, MAIA has also filed a formal complaint with Commissioner Nonnie Burnes and notified Attorney General Martha Coakley and Undersecretary of the Office of Consumer Affairs & Business Regulation Daniel Crane of the violations.
The most flagrant violations include:

[size=2 align="left"]Progressive requires anyone requesting a quote to provide their social security number, gender, recent military service and marital status. The quote process also informs applicants that Progressive obtains credit reports and credit scoring information, which is prohibited in Massachusetts for both rating and underwriting purposes. [/size]
Progressive acknowledges that Massachusetts law requires that every insurer offer twelve-month term private passenger motor vehicle insurance policies at the consumer's option, yet there is nowhere on the Progressive site where a consumer may exercise that option. When questioned on the phone about a twelve-month policy, a Progressive representative admitted that twelve-month policies are not available. [*]Comparative quotes of Progressive rates with the rates of other companies writing auto
insurance in Massachusetts are inaccurate and use a policy term of six months which is not
available from any other insurance company in Massachusetts. While other insurance company quotes include an indication of the impact of your driving record in terms of surcharges for atfault accidents and conviction of traffic violations and credits for good driving, the Progressive quote does not appear to include merit rating information. [/ul]
We have posted the complete text of the MAIA press release on our website, and you may access it by clicking here.
It is imperative that the information in this press release be seen by as many consumers as possible, and we need your help with this. If you have contacts with your local daily and weekly newspapers, please walk the press release into your contact as soon as possible. Offer to answer any questions your contact or consumer reporters have, or refer them to us if you're not comfortable in that role.
We have also posted a copy of our complaint letter to the Commissioner on massagent.com. You may access this document by clicking here.
Please feel free to contact Frank Mancini or Donna McKenna or by phone at 800.972.9312 or 508.628.5452 if you have questions or need additional information. [/align][align=center]




Massachusetts Association of Insurance Agents
Professionalism Through Independence
137 Pennsylvania Avenue, Framingham, MA 01701
Phone: (508) 628-5452 - (800) 972-9312 - Fax: (508) 628-5444
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