Hybrid
Cars and Car Insurance Incentives
by SolveYourProblem.com
Those
driving hybrids usually have very few complaints when it comes
to their vehicle. Most hybrid owners will proudly inform anyone
of the massive amounts they save in gasoline each year as well
as the great impact their hybrid has on the environment. They
love that their car feels like a regular car, but is less expensive
at the pump and less harmful to the air. One complaint however
that you may hear from time to time is that hybrid owners are
experiencing insurance prices that are either the same as they
are for a regular car, or prices that are slightly higher than
for a regular car of the same model.
Just
recently a few insurance companies have decided to give
hybrid owners a discount on their premiums. This is likely
a marketing plan to get more drivers to switch to these companies,
but nevertheless they are saving consumer’s money in the long
run. The first company to offer a discount for hybrid owners
is Farmer’s Insurance. The media made a huge issue out of this
new discount, which comes in at 5% off of the regular premium
price. The discount applies to all fuel alternative vehicles,
including hybrids.
Farmer’s
Insurance states that they are only trying to reward those
drivers who are being environmentally responsible. It
is not a surprise that this Los Angeles based insurance company
is following the West Coast trend on hybrid incentives. The
town of Los Angeles offers free parking at meters for all hybrid
owners. A clean air law may come into effect in the state of
California as they attempt to pass several new vehicle laws.
With Farmer’s insurance being in the middle of these issues,
it is only acceptable that they offer an insurance incentive
as well. With over 25,000 hybrids registered in California,
there is no doubt the community will start taking advantage
of these insurance incentives.
Although Farmer’s Insurance is one of the only companies offering
a hybrid incentive at this time, it is certain that more will
follow. When insurance CEOs were questioned they all agreed
on why more companies were waiting to offer incentives. Most
insurance companies only insure a handful of hybrids at this
time, making it difficult for them to predict how they hybrids
will fair in the claims department over time. The companies
feel it is a bit soon to start giving any opinions about the
car, and way too soon to begin offering incentives without
proper statistics available.
Another
thing insurance companies must look at as well is that
the consumers who are buying hybrids are probably a “safer”
group as a whole. Considering it is known that most buyers
are interested in saving money on gasoline, insurance companies
wonder if they can assume that these drivers are just more
concerned in general. With a more concerned driver, they can
expect that no matter what they drive, there will be fewer
claims filed on their policies.
Most
insurance companies admit that over time, if there are
trends shown with fewer hybrids filing claims, then prices
will likely go down. In turn, if there are more claims involving
hybrids, the premiums will rise. At this time however, there
is just not enough information to make any type of adjustments
for hybrids however. Manufacturers feel that hybrids will continue
to gain momentum in the market however and expect sales to
double. Therefore, there will be more hybrids being insured.
With time, insurance statistics will accurately be able to
show whether or not it insurance discounts can logically be
applied.
Certainly
however, drivers who live in the Los Angeles area will
be taking advantage of the hybrid incentives offered by
Farmer’s Insurance. The insurance incentive offered will likely
be seen as an extra perk or reward for driving a vehicle that
does not damage the environment in the same way a regular vehicle
does. It will not likely be the deciding factor for those in
the market for purchasing a new car however. It will just sweeten
the deal for someone already shopping for a hybrid. However,
it seems that with parking incentives, employer’s incentives,
tax incentives, and now insurance incentives, there must be
a point of persuasion. If someone logically looks at all of
the perks and rewards of owning a hybrid, then they will likely
choose to purchase one.
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SolveYourProblem.com : 2007
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