This new plan is coming about, probably due in part to the stream of insurers who are brining their auto insurance quotes and rates into sync with regulations that were introduced by California insurance commissioner John Garamendi.
Garamendi's statues require insurers to base their premiums on a driver's record, experience and miles driven, rather than by the zip code of the insured or the location the car is registered.
The deadline for insurers to file their new rating structure has passed, mere days after a final appeal to block the new standards from taking effect were unsuccessful.
There was such a last-minute rush from insurance companies with newly revised rates, the California Insurance Department in Sacramento could not give a definite list as to which companies actually kept the deadline.
State officials would not disclose which companies filed to raise or lower their rates. State Farm has issued a news release describing the new rates they have proposed.
Bill Sirola, a spokesman for State Farm, has stated that the new rates are not tied to Garamendi's new requirements. Sirola stated that the rate cuts are going into effect because the company is actually paying less in claims.
"Whether it's because of the aging population, better law enforcement, safer cars or some other reason, our projections of what we were going to have to pay in losses are just not coming true," Sirola said. The rate cut is State Farm's third in two years.
Experts site many factors for this, including growing competition from other sources for insurance, including the Internet. People can receive a auto insurance quote much online quicker, and at lower prices, due to reduced corporate overhead.
Online auto insurance quotes are a growing infatuation with consumers who want better service at lower prices. Many people are switching from traditional quotes from brick and mortar establishments. And with lower insurance prices, this signals a win-win situation for the consumer.
