NU Online News Service, Aug. 9, 3:31 p.m. EDT

BB&T Insurance Services has launched an online autoinsurance service for consumers to shop for coverage, comparequotes and purchase auto insurance, the firm said.

BB&T Insurance, a subsidiary of BB&T Corp., theWinston-Salem, N.C., bank, said the new service will allowconsumers to obtain insurance policies in minutes from some of thetop carriers in the country.

Three carriers BB&T listed on its website were Safeco,Travelers and The Hartford. A spokeswoman for BB&T said theseare the only three insurers available at the moment, but thecompany expects to bring more onboard. BB&T's goal, she said,is to work with top carriers so consumers are confident they areworking with reputable companies.

She also said the site is available to new customers to purchaseinsurance and research rates.

The service is currently offered in nine states: Alabama,Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, SouthCarolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

The expectations are the service will be expanded in the futureto other states, the spokeswoman said.