Online auto insurance channels continue to make inroads with consumers a new study finds.
The 2011 Online Auto Insurance Shopping Report form Reston, Va.-based
The study, based partly on a survey of more than 4,000 U.S. Internet users, notes the volume of online insurance shopping remains consistent with levels seen in 2009, which saw significant growth from the prior year.
"The 2011 Online Auto Insurance Reports show the online auto insurance industry sustaining the dramatic increase in online shopping activity seen in 2009, indicating that the previous year was not merely a temporary gain in activity," says Susan Kleinman, comScore director. "This continued strength reinforces the positive shifts we perceived last year in consumer attitudes toward online auto insurance channels and the importance of these channels in reaching a growing number of consumers now accustomed to searching online for the best deals on insurance policies."
Such a pronounced shift in sentiment was reflected in the fact the while the number of consumers indicating that they were likely to purchase coverage online remained relatively consistent for the past three years of the survey, the number of respondents who said that they were unlikely to purchase online in the future has dropped markedly over the same time. The unlikely number has fallen from 48% in 2009, to 39% in 2010, to 22% for 2011.
Kleinman says this falling number bodes well for the growth of web-based insurance sales. "As more issuers build out their online channels and become more sophisticated in acquiring and servicing customers, we expect to see a continuing shift toward the use of these online channels for conducting auto insurance transactions."
