Mass. drivers save nearly $500M with managed competition

MASSACHUSETTS DRIVERS saved nearly a half-billion dollars in car insurance premiums since April 2008.  /
MASSACHUSETTS DRIVERS saved nearly a half-billion dollars in car insurance premiums since April 2008. /

BOSTON – Massachusetts drivers have saved nearly a half-billion dollars in car insurance premiums since a managed competition system was instituted three years ago, said The Republican, citing the state’s Division of Insurance.

Thirteen new insurers have entered the Bay State’s auto insurance market since April 2008. Before that, Massachusetts set rates and discount programs that did not vary from company to company.

“What I can tell you there have been improvements in product design and savings,” said Robert W. Gilbert Jr., president and CEO of the James J. Dowd and Sons Insurance Agency in Holyoke. “It’s hard to pin down, but our average savings is $100 to $500, depending on the customer’s exposures.”

The new carriers include giants such as Allstate, Progressive and Geico as well as smaller companies, including: Bankers Standard Insurance Co., Vermont Mutual and Green Mountain Insurance Co. There are now 32 companies operating in the state.

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Nevertheless, Massachusetts still has a long way to go, said J. Bruce Cochrane, president of Renaissance Insurance Group, an agency that acts as a wholesaler. Massachusetts has 32 carriers, while neighboring Connecticut, a smaller state, has 220 carriers, The Republican noted.

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