Just curious if anyone on this forum uses the Progressive Snapshot discount and what it has been like. I just renewed my insurance with Progressive and they offered the Snapshot discount so I figured I'd give it a try. My younger brother used to do it and he drove an WRX for awhile and he said he saved about $50 overall. Curious if others have had the same sort of experience.
Anyone Use Progressive's Snapshot Discount
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I'm a licensed Independent Insurance Agent in Georgia. Last fall, I did the Progressive Snapshot Trial at the request of an industry publication so I could write an article and review for them.
I had to do so under a pseudonym because I represent six different auto insurers at my agency including Progressive. It could have caused countless issues if they knew, so I insisted on averting that by not using my real name.
I had every intention of providing a factual, unbiased review of the Snapshot program in my article. You can monitor your progress and current savings % earned on a real-time basis online and I found it very interesting. I managed to maintain the highest 30% discount for 18 days, only to be dinged for braking and swerving in my neighborhood to avoid hitting a squirrel! It dropped me to 24% for that single infraction!
A few days later, I was stuck behind a farm tractor going 20mph on a 55mph highway. I waited to pass until it was legal with a broken yellow line and could clearly see that there was no oncoming traffic. I exceeded the acceleration rate threshold while passing and dropped down to 21%.
At the 24 day mark, my car battery was suddenly dead even though the battery was less than a year old. I jumped it off and considered it a fluke. But the next day, same thing....and the following day, dead again! I had the battery checked out and determined to be in perfect condition. So I unplugged the Snapshot and started Googling..
At least 20 different people who tried or subscribed to the Snapshot program experienced an alternator and/or other major electrical system failure after connecting the device. All 20 of the cars were less than 3-years old and under 50k miles, most still under warranty. There are 100+ other random reports scattered on various websites of similar failures in older and higher mileage vehicles, but I found this group of almost new, low mileage vehicles that most significant. Alternator failures in new vehicles during the warranty period are almost unheard of in modern vehicles.
Ultimately, I had to scuttle the test with only a few days remaining in the trial period. I checked with my mechanic, who runs an independent Mazda-only shop, and he told me a new OEM alternator for my 2006 Mazda3 would cost over $400 installed....not a risk I was willing to take!
I anonymously emailed Progressive about the issue and I hope they've corrected the source of the problem.
I've also had a few of my customers sign up for the program. They were very pleased with the initial savings, which were applicable for the first 6-month policy term. But after that, the savings dimish by 50% or more and by the one-year mark there is little or no savings benefit. That kinda sucks.
But something that all consumers should know- Insurance companies are classified into three groups, Non-Standard, Standard and Preferred. Non-Standard companies have the highest rates and/or most limited coverage and they will insure the broadest range of customers including those considered High Risk. Standard companies represent the bulk of the industry and about 65% of all drivers are insured with a Standard company. Drivers with more than one ticket or more than on at-fault accident in the past three years usually can't be insured by a Standard company. Preferred are the cream of the crop, have the most strict underwriting standards but the lowest premiums.
ALL Progressive companies are classified as Non-Standard. If you have a clean driving record or even one accident or ticket, you can find a lower premium by looking elsewhere! GEICO and Esurance are a good place to start shopping....
I had to do so under a pseudonym because I represent six different auto insurers at my agency including Progressive. It could have caused countless issues if they knew, so I insisted on averting that by not using my real name.
I had every intention of providing a factual, unbiased review of the Snapshot program in my article. You can monitor your progress and current savings % earned on a real-time basis online and I found it very interesting. I managed to maintain the highest 30% discount for 18 days, only to be dinged for braking and swerving in my neighborhood to avoid hitting a squirrel! It dropped me to 24% for that single infraction!
A few days later, I was stuck behind a farm tractor going 20mph on a 55mph highway. I waited to pass until it was legal with a broken yellow line and could clearly see that there was no oncoming traffic. I exceeded the acceleration rate threshold while passing and dropped down to 21%.
At the 24 day mark, my car battery was suddenly dead even though the battery was less than a year old. I jumped it off and considered it a fluke. But the next day, same thing....and the following day, dead again! I had the battery checked out and determined to be in perfect condition. So I unplugged the Snapshot and started Googling..
At least 20 different people who tried or subscribed to the Snapshot program experienced an alternator and/or other major electrical system failure after connecting the device. All 20 of the cars were less than 3-years old and under 50k miles, most still under warranty. There are 100+ other random reports scattered on various websites of similar failures in older and higher mileage vehicles, but I found this group of almost new, low mileage vehicles that most significant. Alternator failures in new vehicles during the warranty period are almost unheard of in modern vehicles.
Ultimately, I had to scuttle the test with only a few days remaining in the trial period. I checked with my mechanic, who runs an independent Mazda-only shop, and he told me a new OEM alternator for my 2006 Mazda3 would cost over $400 installed....not a risk I was willing to take!
I anonymously emailed Progressive about the issue and I hope they've corrected the source of the problem.
I've also had a few of my customers sign up for the program. They were very pleased with the initial savings, which were applicable for the first 6-month policy term. But after that, the savings dimish by 50% or more and by the one-year mark there is little or no savings benefit. That kinda sucks.
But something that all consumers should know- Insurance companies are classified into three groups, Non-Standard, Standard and Preferred. Non-Standard companies have the highest rates and/or most limited coverage and they will insure the broadest range of customers including those considered High Risk. Standard companies represent the bulk of the industry and about 65% of all drivers are insured with a Standard company. Drivers with more than one ticket or more than on at-fault accident in the past three years usually can't be insured by a Standard company. Preferred are the cream of the crop, have the most strict underwriting standards but the lowest premiums.
ALL Progressive companies are classified as Non-Standard. If you have a clean driving record or even one accident or ticket, you can find a lower premium by looking elsewhere! GEICO and Esurance are a good place to start shopping....
kamesama980
Member
- :
- 2002 Protege5
Interesting. That's about what I figured would happen^ (marked down for swerving to miss a squirrel, pass safely, meet traffic on an onramp, etc). While not a pessimist I am quite the realist (and therefore good at devils advocate) and have talked to my wife about that thing upon seeing ads. She asked how it worked, I said I"m guessing but basically the same as your experience...pre-set standards for "safe" operation with little real-world basis.
One big improvement I could see through using it is a reduction in rates for a vehicle that isn't used much. I've gotten pamphlets about that from state farm (my insurer) but don't because the only OBD2 car between my wife and I gets the most miles and has a scangaugeII plugged in.
One big improvement I could see through using it is a reduction in rates for a vehicle that isn't used much. I've gotten pamphlets about that from state farm (my insurer) but don't because the only OBD2 car between my wife and I gets the most miles and has a scangaugeII plugged in.
Update. So I've been using it in my Wifes car for about 2 months now, my total discount is 7%.
I guess the good part is I learned that my wife drives a lot for work, I didn't think she drove that much, but she does. Not many hard brakes though, only 3 over 2 months, and rarely driving during peak hours.
Oh well, worth a shot.
I guess the good part is I learned that my wife drives a lot for work, I didn't think she drove that much, but she does. Not many hard brakes though, only 3 over 2 months, and rarely driving during peak hours.
Oh well, worth a shot.
Just as long as they stay away from my fritos we're cool.
As an independent agent, I am contacted regularly by some of the companies that I represent for input on new product ideas, etc. One of the most common topics is how to offer discounts for lower mileage/usage customers AND find the least-intrusive way of verifying it.
So far, the best idea that I've had is for the agent to get an actual odometer reading at the policy inception and again at each renewal (most of our policies are for 12-month terms, so it would only be once per year). The biggest concern from insurers is that agents will just take a customer's word on the odometer reading rather than check it themselves.
The other suggestion I had was to obtain the odometer reading at policy inception. Then if the customer has an at-fault claim in the future and the mileage indicates that they drove more miles than they claimed, the company could back-charge them for the unearned low mileage discount. They would probably non-renew the policy at the end of the current term also. That's how most insurers handle situations like unreported teenage drivers and other situations where a customer is less than truthful.
Watch out if you do get much snow in your area. While we were using Snapshot, my GF logged almost 300 "hard braking" events after getting stuck in the deep snow in our alley. This happened over about a 2 hour period of clearing some snow, rocking the car forward and back, and slowly progressing about 200' down the alleyway. That one incident that had nothing to do with actual driving knocked us down from the top 30% discount to the minimum 5% discount.
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