Progressive Extends Its Winning Streak

Progressive Insurance has maintained its spot atop the Gmezinsurance-carrier scorecard of leading Internet sites for theseventh consecutive quarter. The top five carriers as rated for thefirst quarter of 2003, in order, are Progressive, Nation-wide,GEICO, Allstate, and State Farm. Gmez, which has measured thequality of Internet-based services since 1997, has developed ascorecard that judges insurers Web sites based on ease of use,customer confidence, on-site resources, and relationshipservices.

Progressive not only topped the overall scorecard, but also ledinsurance Web sites in ease of use and relationship services. StateFarm was first in on-site resources, and Amica, which was 12thoverall, led in the customer confidence section.

Progressive was excited about its seven-peat, according to TobyAlfred, Progressives Internet general manager. Consumers like tomake informed buying decisions, but auto insurance companies can betough stuff to understand, says Alfred. Thats why we useprogressive.com to provide information in easy-to-understand terms,helping more than one million unique visitors each month byremoving the mystery from auto insurance.

In its review, Gmez praised Pro-gressives busy Web site. A newpersonalized tab structure on the homepage displays a new quotefield for new visitors, according to Gmez. Other new site featuresinclude a retrieve saved quote field for returning quote recipientsand a log-in field for returning policyholders. Online purchasefunctionality is new for RVs and is currently available in ninestates.