Various cities in Southern California have chosen to continue their commitment to enforcing red lights with cameras, regardless of L.A.’s decision to terminate the program. There was a unanimous vote in the Los Angeles City Council (13-0) in favor of ending the program after city officials deemed the payment of the fines for tickets issued by the cameras to be voluntary. This angered many motorists who had already paid their own tickets. Cities who remain committed to the program include Beverly Hills, where the program for red light cameras has…
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Mercury Insurance shows their approval for newly proposed auto discount in California
Mercury General Corp. has just announced its support of an auto insurance initiative comparable to last year’s Proposition 17, which was turned down by voters in June 2010. Supporters of this initiative are thrilled with Mercury’s backing, and are hoping that this second effort will make the difference. Insurance trade group, American Agents Alliance’s executive director, Mike D’Arelli, submitted the proposed initiative’s summary to the California attorney general’s office; taking the first step toward a vote on the initiative. Mercury had previously been a supporter of Proposition 17, having spent…
Read MoreState Farm uses telematics to help drivers obtain better car insurance rates
State Farm has announced that it has partnered with Hughes Telematics Inc. in order to give its car insurance customers the opportunity to use an in-vehicle device so that they may lower their auto insurance rates. State Farm is calling the program In-Drive, and uses technology developed by the Atlanta-based telematics company to give its Illinois policy holders a chance to take part in the program starting in September. Other states may also be offered this program in 2012. The features of the technology are comparable to some of those…
Read MoreSame-sex partners in Illinois to qualify for auto insurance discounts with Esurance
Esurance has announced that it will be providing discounts for auto insurance to same-sex partner customers in Illinois. Following the June 1, 2011 start of the Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act within the state, which provided same-sex couples with the right to civil union and rights equal to other married couples, Esurance declared that it would also respect this union and qualify same-sex partners for auto insurance discounts in the same way they would qualify opposite-sex spouses. The savings that can be as high as 10 percent, or…
Read MoreNAIC survey reveals ways consumers have been saving money on car insurance
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has released the results of a survey that determined the top ways that consumers have made lifestyle changes within the last year in order to save money with their car use to reduce their insurance fees. Over the last twelve months, 53 percent of Americans made this type of change with car insurance costs in mind. The insurance commissioners’ survey showed that the following changes were made by consumers: Among automobile owners, almost 20 percent exchanged their car for a less costly model…
Read MoreAmerican Agents Alliance initiative seeks discount for consumers maintaining car insurance
A California agents group, the American Agents Alliance, is moving forward with an initiative that would offer a discount to consumers who have persistently maintained their vehicle insurance, no matter their insurer or insurance company. The current law states that this persistency discount is allowed only when the coverage has been continually kept with the same company. However, the initiative sought by the Agents Alliance is comparable to Proposition 17 in 2010 – which lost by only 2 percent – and would have permitted consumers to carry their persistency discount…
Read MoreUninsured motorists are in for a surprise with new “no pay/no play” law
Kansas set to join the growing number of states adopting the “no pay/no play” insurance law in an effort to reduce the number of uninsured drivers. States across the nation are enforcing new laws in an attempt to get drivers to obtain and keep insurance. The latest statistics show around 13 percent of Kansas drivers are uninsured. While not good, it is still lower than several states, including neighboring Oklahoma, whose uninsured drivers rank over 20 percent. The property and casualty insurers’ support the no pay/no play laws and feel…
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