Things are definitely moving faster than hoped, huh?! I thought Progressive would wait to see how our experiment in Managed Competition works out before diving in headfirst.
I suspect GEICO will have to enter now too. They won’t want Progressive to gather all the low hanging fruit.
18% proposed decrease for the average driver… talk about a “loss leader” marketing campaign.
You can bet Comm. Burnes is smiling. I wouldn’t doubt that she’ll be giving them plenty of special accomadations, such as quick access to the RMV, to make sure they are comfortable doing business here.
My first reaction regarding what agents should do is stick to the tried & true basics: don’t battle them on price alone, build fences around account by rounding out, promote the consultative benefits of agents, etc. But then my next reaction was to go into the fetal position — after all, we have a lot to loss too if Progressive turns the agent market upside down.
But, thinking postively… we’re finishing up beta testing this week and feeling very good about the new WinRater and it’s ability to give agents an accurate quote, determine eligibility/desirability, and electronically submit the policy to carriers (many, but not all) and MAIP. This will go a long way towards protecting agents from the wolves at the door.
The biggest concern should be how many MA drivers will be lured in by the Progressive advertising machine and shop the Progressive web site for an auto policy? And how many will like what they find… and say goodbye to their friendly agent?
