Auto Insurance Price Trend Stable, InsWeb Finds

NU Online News Service, Dec. 15, 1:36 p.m.EST?Auto insurance pricing might be stabilizing, accordingto data reported today by the online insurance quote service,InsWeb Corp., based in Sacramento, Calif.[@@]

The company said that based on its Auto Insurance Index, usingthird-quarter 2003 figures, consumers at InsWeb and across the autoinsurance industry in general may begin to see their premiumsdecrease in the coming months.

InsWeb noted that auto insurance premiums have increased morethan 50 percent since InsWeb began tracking data in the firstquarter of 2000. However, InsWeb found its Auto Index has onlyincreased from 1.39 to 1.52, or 10 percent, since the beginning of2002 and has shown a decrease in three out of the past sevenquarters, "suggesting possible price stabilization.'

InsWeb said that although its index may be slightly volatilefrom quarter to quarter, reflecting in part pricing activity bycarriers participating on InsWeb's site, as well as profile shiftsin consumers shopping at InsWeb, it has been consistent with manyindependent measures of pricing activity since its inception.

"Our data, combined with several external measures, indicatesthat consumers may be able to take advantage of opportunitiespresented by carriers with aggressive pricing strategies. The endof the year presents a good opportunity for consumers to evaluatetheir options and possibly save hundreds of dollars on comparableinsurance policies," said Hussein Enan, chairman of InsWeb.

InsWeb said its index is calculated from quotes viewed at InsWebby consumers in all states (except those in New Jersey andMassachusetts) for both six-month policies and 12-month policies(it is a weighted average of the separate indices for six-month and12-month policies, respectively). In each of the 15 quartersanalyzed to date, the index has been based on at least 500,000quotes, with more than 1.5 million quotes analyzed in each of thequarters in 2003.

InsWeb said while the index itself will be calculated on aquarterly basis, the intention is to track and monitor pricing onan annual basis, with quarterly data providing potential earlyinsight into pricing trends, subject to short-term geographic anddemographic changes by both carriers and consumers at InsWeb. It isalso subject to changes that may result from changes made by InsWebto its site.

The information will also be posted on InsWeb's Web site atwww.insweb.com/about/auto-index.htm.

InsWeb enables consumers to compare multiple, actionable quotesfrom insurers for auto, term life, health, homeowners, renters andcondominium insurance offerings. The online insurance marketplacealso provides live customer service, interactive tools andindependent research. InsWeb is accessible at www.insweb.com.