Worried About Paying For Your ChildÂ’s College Education? You Could Start A Trust Fund, Get A Part-Time JobÂ… Or Shop For Car Insurance
(PRWEB) March 15, 2000
For Immediate Release
CONTACT: Kathy Bell
Jericho Communications
212/645-6900
Worried About Paying For Your ChildÂ’s College Education? You Could Start A Trust Fund, Get A Part-Time JobÂ
Or Shop For Car Insurance
"Insure Our Future" Provides A Way To Start Your ChildÂ’s College Fund
Mayfield Village, OH, March 6, 2000 – For many parents, the thought of funding their child’s college education occurs as early as the time of birth, sometimes even the moment of conception. If you think you can’t possibly save enough to fund your children’s college education, think again. The money could be right in front of you – in the form of your auto insurance premium.
Progressive Insurance has announced a program, "Insure Our Future," designed to help consumers better understand the savings available to them if they only shopped around for their auto insurance. The fact is rates vary widely. The potential savings are enough to significantly contribute to a childÂ’s education. Details of the program can be found on progressive. com.
ProgressiveÂ’s research shows that the average difference between the highest and lowest auto insurance premium available to the same consumer from different companies is $522 every six months.
In a consumer survey, more than half of the participants believed that if they shopped around for auto insurance and received several different prices, the difference between the highest and lowest price would be $200 or less for a six-month rate. Only seven and a half percent of the participants thought that the difference could be $500 or more for a six-month rate.
In addition, only 30 percent of the participants in the survey said they shopped around to compare auto insurance rates in the past 12 months; nearly half of all of consumers surveyed had not shopped around to compare rates, either by contacting an insurance company or an agent, in more than two years.
Most consumers donÂ’t understand that they may be leaving money on the table by not shopping around for auto insurance.
If a person shopped for auto insurance and realized savings equal to the average variance every six months and put this ‘found money’ ($522) into an interest-bearing account (averaging 6 percent interest compounded annually), in 18 years, the savings on auto insurance would accrue to more than $34,000 (without considering taxes). This could be a big step towards paying for the college education for the more than 15 million American children under the age of three.
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"People donÂ’t realize that they can save a significant amount of money by simply shopping around," says Dave Pratt, Director of Marketing, Progressive. "People shop for prices on cars, houses, even airline tickets and groceries. But people rarely consider shopping for car insurance. Shopping for auto insurance and putting away the savings is the perfect way to start a college fund, or any other type of savings plan."
Pratt said: "We realize that shopping for auto insurance is not something that every one is used to doing. If you need help in understanding insurance terms and how to shop, Progressive has a free brochure available called "Insure Our Future: How to Shop for Auto Insurance." To request a copy, log on to progressive. com and go to "Insure Our Future" or send your name and address to: Insure Our Future, PO Box 94661, Cleveland, Ohio, 44101.
The Progressive study involved 140,801 consumers who used Progressive’s unique auto insurance comparison rate service between July 1, 1999 and December 31, 1999. By calling 1-800-AUTO-PRO® or logging onto progressive. com, consumers can compare auto insurance rates available to them from up to four of the largest auto insurers in the country. The average variance, or the difference between the highest and lowest auto insurance premium available to the same consumer from different companies, is $522 every six months.
"Remember Santa Claus in ‘Miracle on 34th Street’?" Pratt said. "He told people to go to competing stores where he knew specific toys were less expensive. That’s what our rate comparison service is all about. We’ll tell you which company has lower rates. We want consumers to save money on their auto insurance."
When shopping, consider calling a company direct, or visiting an Independent Agent. Many consumers prefer to work with Independent Agents, who typically represent multiple insurance companies, because Independent Agents can shop around on behalf of a consumer and provide in-person service. Local listings of agents can be found in the Yellow Pages, or by using the "Find an Agent" function on progressive. com.
Progressive Insurance (NYSE:PGR), headquartered in Mayfield Village, Ohio, is one of the nation's largest auto insurers. In business since 1937, the company provides all drivers with competitive rates and 24-hour, in-person services. The company sells its products over the phone (1-800-AUTO-PRO), on the Internet at progressive. com and through more than 30,000 Independent Agents throughout the U. S. More information about Progressive can be found at progressive. com.
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