Ultimate Progressive Insurance Review

To beat the rising auto and homeowners insurance rates in Michigan, some of your friends might be switching to smaller insurance providers. Others are advising you to stick with the big players to enjoy optimal protection.

But how good are the leading companies? Are their rates proportionally fair to Michigan residents? How satisfied are their customers?

To help you out, let’s start by looking at Progressive Insurance. Having been around for a couple of decades now, it sure is one company that many consider when it comes to homeowners and auto insurance in Michigan.

So, what is it all about? Does it offer products that would suit your needs?

Overview

Headquartered in a Cleveland suburb called Mayfield Village, Progressive Insurance has grown through the years to become a major industry player.

It may currently seem like a relatively young corporation in auto and homeowners insurance spaces. Its journey started as early as 1937 as a privately-held company. Then remained so for a couple of decades.

It was not until 1971 that the Ohio-based insurance provider finally went public, consequently opening doors for new opportunities.

What followed for the next couple of decades were remarkable changes that revolutionized the entire insurance industry. Progressive Insurance’s innovative genius started introducing new customer service approaches throughout the 90s and into the 2000s.

And people loved them. Customer engagement strategies like availing quotations both online and over the phone were first practiced by the company.

While competitors struggled to catch up, Progressive Insurance further made it easier for consumers to compare rates across the board.

They had begun delivering their insurance quotations alongside their competitors’ rates.

Of course, nothing is as effective as this in assuring the fairest rates. So the provider’s accelerated growth came as no surprise, as its popularity peaked among consumers.

It has since managed to maintain a secure foothold in United States’ insurance market, including Michigan. As of 2015, the corporation boasted a significant market share of 8.8%.

With just three companies enjoying larger shares, Progressive Insurance is currently the fourth largest auto insurance company in the U.S.

Source: InsuranceJournal

While this survey only covers auto insurance, Progressive is a dynamic corporation that has ventured into other multiple types of insurance coverage.

Types of Coverage Provided By Progressive Insurance

Other types of insurance coverage you can get at Progressive are:

● Classic car insurance

● Umbrella insurance

● Business insurance

● Segway insurance

● Travel trailer insurance

● Snowmobile insurance

● Motorcycle insurance

● Personal watercraft insurance

● Recreation vehicle insurance

● Golf cart insurance

● All-terrain vehicle insurance

● Boat insurance

● Commercial auto insurance

● Health insurance

● Life insurance

● RV insurance

● Renters insurance

● Homeowners insurance

Quite a solid list of offers. Progressive Insurance has essentially focused on four wide fields- auto, health, life and homes.

Thankfully, they are all available to Michigan residents, including auto and homeowners insurance.

So, where exactly is the company stationed?

Progressive Insurance Locations

Progressive Insurance is yet to place concierge service centers in every state. Only 25 states, including Florida, Arizona, California, and New York, host them.
Michigan has two- in Sterling Heights and Livonia.

These centers serve as the principal points for a variety of consumer services including auto drop-off and pickup, claim adjusting, and more.

That said, don’t be quick to dismiss the company if you don’t live in any of these locations. Fortunately, the insurance provider also considers customers beyond the precincts of the 60 concierge service centers.

Through a map on the main site, you can find a local repair facility that has been adequately certified by the provider to offer concierge services. There are several spread over Michigan.

Customers can also file their claim paperwork, and subsequently track them through these local agents.

Alternatively, you can engage an independent insurance agency in Michigan to help you with each of these processes.

Progressive Insurance Features

To maintain a competitive edge against other insurance companies, Progressive Insurance offers a wide range of unique features.

While many of them are open to all types of coverage, some are specifically tailored to their corresponding policies.

Some of the main ones include:

● Google Assistant Capability: If you have a Google Home device, you don’t have to always call the company to seek clarifications on their policies. Progressive Insurance has integrated a digital voice assistant into the device to help you with this.

Simply ask a relevant insurance question and it will revert.

● Snapshot Mobile App: Although not yet available in every state, Snapshot is changing how drivers manage risks. Signing up for the app allows it to monitor your driving habits, and provide detailed information.

You’ll be able to assess how you’ve been driving, nature of all your trips, plus generate additional custom data.

● Progressive Mobile App: The company has also developed its own mobile app to help its customers conveniently track service centers, and report claims.

● Comparison Feature: As we’ve mentioned, the company created a huge impact in the industry by providing comparative rates. So it only makes sense to refine this concept and provide the feature through the main site.

You can compare your quotes with corresponding rates charged competitor providers.

● Name Your Price Tool: This feature reverses roles in the quoting process. Instead of crunching numbers and calculating discounts, you simply enter what you’d like to pay for your coverage.

After answering a couple of queries, you’ll get a range of coverage options in line with your needs.

Sounds interesting. But, does this come at an extra cost? What should you expect to pay when you proceed with Progressive Insurance?

Are they generous enough to offer attractive discounts?

Progressive Insurance Pricing and Discounts

For a company which controls a market share of 8.8%, Progressive Insurance has to have competitive pricing for its covers.

There is a wide range of covers priced differently according to your specific condition and any corresponding discounts. While some may turn out to be slightly costlier than the closest competitors, most of the premiums are predominantly cheaper.

Take, for instance, average premiums for different driver profiles.

Source: ValuePenguin

Even when your estimated quote is the lowest around, your premium might still drop further. Because of the sheer number of discounts on offer, you’re bound to qualify for one. Or several if you’re a low-risk customer.

Some of the main ones include:

● Bundle Auto and Property Discount: For customers who buy both auto and homeowners insurance policies from Progressive Insurance.

● Teen Driver Discount: For customers who add their teenage kids as drivers to their policies.

● Good Student Discount: You qualify for this if you have a student on your policy who maintains at least a grade “B” in school.

● Automatic Bill Payment Discount: Applicable to individuals who set up recurring automatic remittances to repeatedly renew their policies.

● Pay in Full Discount: For customers who proceed to pay for their annual policies in full, instead of remitting cash on a monthly basis.

● Sign Documents Online Discount: For customers who choose to sign their insurance papers online, as opposed to doing it physically.

● Continuous Insurance Discount: For customers who maintain continuous insurance covers without any breaks. It also extends to individuals who were previously insured by other companies.

● Homeowner Discount: For customers who own homes, even when they are insured by other companies.

● Multicar Discount: For vehicle owners who insure several cars with the company.

● Safe Driver Discount: For drivers who’ve gone for three years without traffic accidents or tickets.

● Start Your Quote Online Discount: For customers who handle the whole quotation process online, and proceed to purchase covers through their phones.

Progressive Insurance Claims

Claims are, without doubt, the most critical part of the provider-customer relationship. A company’s ability to speedily process and make settlements is an indication of its commitment to its customers.

Progressive Insurance makes a good attempt at providing protection from the word go. Customers can conveniently initiate the whole process by reporting a claim through one of the following methods:

● Calling toll-free 1-800-274-4499

● Logging into their customer portal through a username and password.

● Submitting a report through the Progressive Mobile App.

The mobile app method is seemingly the most convenient of them all. It comes with an added photo feature, which allows you to take and upload relevant images.

After reporting, you should wait for a call from the company. Progressive Insurance promises to do so in the same business day. And further neatly outlines the process of filing a claim on the website to ease the process.

Of course, you could argue that many insurance companies provide pretty much the same options. But Progressive goes a step further and offers a concierge service for auto insurance customers.

All customers are required to do is simply drop their vehicles off at any of the service centers. The provider will then take care of everything, including repairs and estimates. Ultimately, they get in touch with their customers when they are satisfied that the vehicles are ready.

But there are few isolated cases where a customer may not be within the proximity of a concierge center. That’s why the company found it necessary to link up with selected repair shops that can provide the service.

Thankfully, this is a not a strict requirement. The process is flexible enough to accommodate customers who prefer having their cars handled by repair shops of their choice.

That said, it’s worth noting that working with an independent insurance agency makes the process a whole lot smoother. They know the right buttons to push to make providers handle your request efficiently.

So, what are the experiences of people who’ve tried filing claims with Progressive Insurance? Are customers pleased or not?

Progressive Insurance Customer Experience

For quite some time now, J.D. Power has been ranking insurance companies based on:

● Settlement

● Rental Experience

● Repair Process

● Estimation Process

● Claim Servicing

● First Notice of Loss

● Overall Satisfaction

According to the latest rankings, Progressive insurance is placed at number 13 with an overall rating of three out of five stars.

Source: J.DPower

From customer experiences, it manages to score three on just about everything, apart from “Rental Experience”. That translates to an “About Average”, going by the site’s scoring legend.

Now let’s switch to Better Business Bureau, another popular review platform.

Unfortunately, Progressive Insurance is not accredited by BBB. But it still manages a score of 3.75 out of 5, from 190 customer reviews. That, according to the site, is considered a grade A+.

Bottom Line

Progressive Insurance may not be the cheapest insurer for some people. But it shines by its willingness to try out new technologies to improve service delivery.

Although it has faced harsh criticism from some consumers, the overall number of complaints are expected for a company of its magnitude.

Your personal experience, however, is largely dependent on how you approach it, and interaction with its agents. That’s why it’s always a good idea to capitalize on independent insurance agencies.

Such an agency will not only advise you on the best possible rates but also help you with the claim filing process.

Overall, Progressive Insurance is a corporation worth checking out if you’re seeking auto or homeowner’s insurance coverage.

Conclusion

To recap:

● Progressive Insurance has grown through the years to become a major industry player.

● It was not until 1971 that the Ohio-based insurance provider finally went public

● Customer engagement strategies like availing quotations both online and over the phone were first practised by the company.

● As of 2015, the corporation boasted a significant market share of 8.8%. With just three companies enjoying larger shares, Progressive Insurance is currently the fourth largest auto insurance company in the U.S.

● Progressive is a dynamic corporation that has ventured into other multiple types of insurance coverage.

● Progressive Insurance is yet to place concierge service centers in every state. Only 25 states, including Florida, Arizona, California, and New York, host them.

● The insurance provider also considers customers beyond the precincts of the 60 concierge service centers.

● To maintain a competitive edge against other insurance companies, Progressive offers a wide range of unique features.

● There is a wide range of covers priced differently according to your specific condition and any corresponding discounts.

● Because of the sheer number of discounts on offer, you’re bound to qualify for one. Or several if you’re a low-risk customer.

● Customers can conveniently initiate the whole process by reporting a claim through one of the three methods.

● Progressive goes a step further and offers a concierge service for auto insurance customers.

● According to the latest J.D. Power rankings, Progressive insurance is placed at number 13 with an overall rating of three out of five stars.

● On BBB, Progressive manages a score of 3.75 out of 5, from 190 customer reviews. That, according to the site, is considered a grade A+.

● Overall, Progressive Insurance is a corporation worth checking out if you’re seeking auto or homeowner’s insurance coverage.

All things considered, do you think this company would be the best fit for you? Get in touch, and we’ll help you determine this, plus other additional options ideal for you.