Progressive Packages Home, Auto Coverage to Attract Clients
Progressive Corp. (PGR), the fourth-largest U.S. auto insurer, is pushing packages of car and home coverage over the Internet to attract clients and keep policyholders from fleeing to competitors.
“We have lost a lot of our customers because we haven’t been able to meet their growing needs,” John Sauerland, president of the company’s personal lines group, said yesterday in an interview. “The more products you can sell to a consumer, the more likely they are going to stick with you.”
Progressive is competing for auto business with rivals such as State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. and Allstate Corp. (ALL), which are the largest U.S. home insurers. About 40 percent of U.S. auto policyholders use the same insurer to buy home coverage, Sauerland said.
Progressive, which relies mostly on vehicle coverage, now allows Internet customers to get a quote for both car and home policies at the same time. The residential protection is provided by third parties. Mayfield Village, Ohio-based Progressive began the online package offerings as a pilot program this year and launched an advertising campaign last week.
Glenn Renwick, chief executive officer of Progressive, has said that sales growth is being pressured by fewer customers leaving their carriers and “competitive” prices from rivals.
“There appears to be a general decline in consumer interest in shopping for auto insurance, from which we are not immune,” Renwick said in prepared remarks at the insurer’s annual meeting April 29. The trend is most visible in measures of traffic to Internet sites, he said.
Allstate agreed in May to purchase online auto-insurance seller Esurance to compete with Progressive and the Geico unit of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK/A) Progressive sells its online home-and-auto insurance bundles in every state except for Florida, Alaska, Hawaii and New Hampshire.
To contact the reporter on this story: Brooke Sutherland in New York at bsutherland5@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dan Kraut at dkraut2@bloomberg.net
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