Online Car Insurance Quotes: Competition Is A Good Thing
by PEGGY LOE
To get online car insurance quotes ten years ago, you would have to call an agent who would send a quote to you via email. This process was an advance on having the agent send you a pile of papers through the mail, but it still required at least a telephone conversation and often a personal appointment with the agent.
Back then, the idea that insurance agents would abandon their main weapon in the competition for customers was preposterous. The majority of agents wouldn't even consider giving a quote to a prospect that wouldn't come in to the office for a proper meeting.
That has all changed. Relationship-focused agents are more and more being replaced by price-focused, highly automated website sales. This sea change to the Internet serves the young and urban, the groups that tend to prefer the web over all other media. As companies turn their attention more to web sales, older and less technologically sophisticated customers will be pushed to the web as their agents become less and less effective in comparison.
Recent trends have shown an increase in people getting their car insurance quotes online. Everyone's life is getting more hectic as new activities are filling their limited time and more purchases are made without ever meeting a salesperson. At the same time, potential clients are more aware of the various insurance terms and options and now expect better self-service for their dollar.
Formerly unknown car insurance firms have emerged as viable entities. Customers started looking online for free auto insurance quotes with no strings attached and discounted auto insurance. The market leaders were slow in responding. Smaller companies took advantage of this hesitation, focused on the change in customer appetites and become national players in the process.
Now almost all carriers can provide online car insurance quotes, with the largest carriers jumping in to keep pace with the market. The numbers keep increasing but this is really good news for insurance shoppers. The more companies who are competing for your business the more advantage to the person seeking the best buy on a policy.
Technological innovations and Internet search engines have revolutionized the process of locating discount car insurance. Though it can be a challenge for consumers to sort through the promises of "big savings" and "free quotes", the time spent comparing rates and services is definitely worth it. Many reputable companies are vying for your business and hoping to build a reputation.
Not that long ago, most insurance quotes were given in person by an insurance agent, but obtaining online car insurance quotes has recently become more popular, easier, and faster. This trend was primarily started by younger individuals. People feel busier now and have become more accustomed to making purchases online, so it makes sense for a free auto insurance quote to be available online for each insurance company.
