Is my Autoautomobile informations

DARIEN, Ill., July 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Insure.com, Inc. revealed today that all car insurance buyers benefit from research done by the nation’s largest auto insurer, State Farm.
State Farm handles about 9 million claims a year (about 17 per minute), from stolen cars to fender-benders to total losses.
What’s an insurer to do with all those claims? State Farm makes good use of them. For one, the claims data help State Farm set the car insurance premiums for other drivers of those vehicles. For example, do you have a vehicle that’s a favorite of thieves? That’s reflected in your car insurance bill. But State Farm also uses its wealth of claims data to encourage better and safer car design.
Remember when ford Explorers with Firestone tires gained national attention in 2000 because of alarming numbers of rollovers? State Farm was the first to sound the alarm bell to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 1998.
State Farm regularly communicates with auto makers on what it sees as potential vehicle improvements based on trends in customer claims. When the insurer sees a way a car could be better protected from theft, or a bumper that never survives a crash, or a car with high passenger injuries, it lets car manufacturers know.
“You try to work together and find a common ground,” explains State Farm spokesperson Kip Diggs. “Even if they don’t acknowledge that the idea came from you. It’s a satisfying gig.” And it’s a gig that stands to benefit all car buyers, not just State Farm customers, through safer vehicles and, ultimately, lower car insurance rates.
Case in point: The Mustang
When ford was designing its current-generation Mustang in the late ’90s, it asked State Farm to look at the design and give an opinion. Earlier Mustangs didn’t sport a great safety record and were high on theft lists. State Farm employees tore down the Mustang and made recommendations to ford (free of charge).
Shortly after the new 2005 Mustang GT came out, State Farm got its hand on one of the first that had been wrecked. (It had been purchased for a 16-year-old in Chicago.) State Farm employees wondered if any of their suggestions had made it into the design.
“We were pleased to see some suggestions made it in,” says Diggs, such as the way ford had affixed panels and hard pieces to the car that makes it easier for the vehicle to be repaired.
A public service
State Farm doesn’t charge auto makers for its recommendations, and doesn’t even expect a thanks. But for four men in State Farm’s Vehicle Research Facility in Bloomington, Ill., it’s their lives’ work.
State Farm not only examines past claims for problematic vehicles, but it also pulls those vehicles into its research facility and tears them down, looking for clues as to why those vehicles incur extra costs. They tear down 25 to 50 vehicles a year, most of them wrecked or damaged. For example, State Farm employees noticed a couple of years ago that the Chevrolet Cobalt, which shared a platform with the Saturn Ion, performed much better than the Ion in side-impact crashes. State Farm brought the two vehicles into its facility, took them apart, and discovered that Chevrolet had added side reinforcements in the Cobalt, increasing passenger safety.
Figuring out how to keep vehicles safer from theft is also significant work at the State Farm facility.
“If a professional wants your car, he’s going to get it,” says Diggs. “But if we can find ways to make a car frustrating to get into for a professional, and less attractive to thieves and joyriders, that’s worthwhile.”
Suggesting ways for auto makers to produce cars with lower repair costs is also a mission. When your damaged car goes into the body shop for repairs, “everything goes by time,” says Diggs. “Labor’s where the money is. A vehicle that can be repaired more quickly is a vehicle that’s going to be less expensive to insure. Even if you’re an Allstate or Nationwide customer, you get the benefit of that vehicle.”
“State Farm has an interest in seeing cars built to better standards,” says Diggs. “Some manufacturers listen, some don’t.”
About Insure.com
Originally founded in 1984 as Quotesmith Corporation, Insure.com owns and operates a comprehensive consumer information service and companion insurance brokerage service that caters to the needs of self-directed insurance shoppers. Visitors to the Company’s flagship Web site, , are able to obtain free, instant car insurance quotes, instant life insurance quotes, home, business and health insurance quotes from leading insurers and have the freedom to buy online or by phone from any company shown. Insure.com also plays home to over 2,000 originally authored articles on various insurance topics and also provides free insurance decision-making tools that are not available from any other single source. Insure.com generates revenues from receipt of industry-standard commissions, including back-end bonus commissions and volume-based contingent bonus commissions that are paid by participating insurance companies. We also generate advertising revenues from the sale of Web site traffic to various third parties. Shares of the Company’s common stock trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol NSUR.
Insure.com, Inc.

DETROIT, April 28 /PRNewswire/ — A bipartisan coalition of lawmakers from the federal, state and local levels joined community, business and law enforcement leaders at the Detroit Urban League this morning in announcing a statewide legislative and grassroots effort to reduce the mandated cost of auto insurance in Michigan.
The group, called Drivers for Savings, is making its goal the passage of reforms to Michigan’s no-fault insurance law that would give drivers a choice in the level of Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage they are required to buy. Currently, Michigan is the only state in the country to require drivers to purchase more expensive unlimited coverage. Allowing drivers to choose between different levels of PIP coverage could save policy owners as much as 16 percent on their auto premiums.
“The State of Michigan requires drivers to purchase expensive and rarely used insurance coverage that puts the cost of auto policies out of reach for many drivers struggling in Michigan’s economy,” State Senator Alan Sanborn, R-Richmond, sponsor of the legislation, said. “With the cost of gas and groceries going up, this legislation helps bring the cost people pay for insurance down.”
Chairman of the House Insurance Committee, Rep. Virgil Smith, D-Detroit, added: “For too long, many drivers, especially in urban areas, have had to choose between buying insurance and going without in order to afford other things they need for their families. In this state we need comprehensive auto insurance reform. I believe offering consumers a choice on their level of personal injury protection coverage is a positive first step in that direction.”
Under the Drivers for Savings legislation (Senate Bill 1278), policyholders would be allowed to choose the amount of medical coverage under PIP at levels beginning at $50,000 up to $400,000 or to retain their current unlimited coverage. This would be a choice policyholders would have to make proactively. If no lower amount of coverage is chosen, a policyholder maintains unlimited coverage.
“People are better off when they have the power to choose what’s best for them and their family,” said Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, D-Detroit. “It doesn’t matter where you live, you should be empowered with the choice to buy a more affordable car insurance policy that will protect you and your family and not be forced to spend more than you can afford.”
The Drivers for Savings coalition is made up of elected officials from both parties, as well as business groups, law enforcement associations and influential community organizations in the City of Detroit such as the Detroit Urban League, the Detroit Association of Black Organizations and the Booker T. Washington Business Association.
“The Drivers for Savings legislation would provide an opportunity for drivers to significantly reduce their premium rates while preserving Michigan’s successful no-fault insurance law,” said Wendy Block, Director of Health Policy and Human Resources for the Michigan Chamber. “We fully support these market-friendly and consumer-driven reforms because they insert choice into the marketplace and encourage individuals and businesses to educate themselves and pick the policy that best fits their pocketbooks and individual needs.”
While offering drivers options in their coverage, the plan’s $50,000 minimum level still maintains Michigan’s place at the top of the list of benefits offered in no-fault insurance states, and auto insurance studies have shown 95 percent of all auto claims are less than $50,000.
“For many of our members, the cost of insurance is a big factor in their company’s bottom line,” said Rob Fowler, president and CEO of the Small Business Association of Michigan. “As an organization, we joined this effort because making Michigan a better place to do business is a mission of ours and this legislation helps accomplish that.”
Jewel Ware, Chairwoman of the Wayne County Commission and senior citizens advocate said. “The savings will be a great benefit to senior citizens, who are especially vulnerable to the effects of rising costs for everything. Many seniors live on fixed incomes and with high prescription drug costs, food and gas prices, auto insurance may be cut from their already limited budgets. The ability to choose an appropriate level of personal injury protection will allow seniors to be able to drive with affordable insurance coverage, and maintain their independence a little longer.”
From a law enforcement perspective, reducing the number of people driving with no insurance is an important part of the Drivers for Savings plan.
“We’ve seen estimates as high as half of all drivers in some parts of the state who are put in the position of breaking the law and driving without insurance because they don’t have the option of purchasing coverage they can afford,” said Terrence Jungel, Executive Director of the Michigan Sheriffs’ Association. “As those often involved in responding to an accident or enforcing traffic laws, we think any plan that helps people stay within the law is a good thing and should get the Legislature’s quick approval.”
Senate Bill 1278 was introduced in the Senate on April 24, and with today’s news conference, the Drivers for Savings coalition is launching a statewide grassroots effort to help make the legislation law. People interested in finding out more are encouraged to visit the coalition’s website: .
Drivers for Savings