Green insurance exists, but it

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It’s easy to let the imagination run policies designed for hybrid for people who use publi c transportation or bikes andseldonm drive; for houses with living roofs, geothermal systemws or rainwater catchment systems. The policiews are out there. But not all are proving popular. “The way most people buy insurance is basexdon price,” said Mark Strauss, an insurance adviserd and agent with in Portland. “Travelerw has a discount for hybrids, but if I can get someonwe a better deal through Oregon Mutual withouty thehybrid discount, they’ll buy that.
” A few peopled are, however, buying insurance for vehiclees that run on alternative , which says it was the firstg to introduce insurance for hybrids, offers a 10 percen discount on policies for vehicles that run on compressef natural gas, ethanol, methanol, propane or Cars that run on a blend of electricithy and traditional gas also qualify under thess policies. Farmers, which is basedc in Los Angeles, first introduced thesd policies almost three years agoin California. Sales of thesee policies are growing quickly, up 75 percentg nationwide by the end of Butthe 52,500 alternative auto policies sold so far are stillk just 0.
65 percent of all the company’s auto policies, said Michelle Dornfeld, a senioer product development manager for Farmers. The percentagd of alternative policies is higherdin Oregon, Colorado, Arizona and California than in othef states where Farmer sells, but it’es still small. Farmers doesn’t know yet if thesw policies aremore profitable, less profitable or aboug the same as regular auto policies. There’s discussioh in the insurance industry about whether drivers who are conscientious enougjh to buy hybrids are also generally more saferdrivers — and therefore represent a lower risk but there’s not really enoug h data to tell the story.
That’s about to though. With three years and a growinbg number of policiesout there, “It’s realistic to expect we’ll know by year end,” Dornfeld said. Auto insurances that is priced by how much one drivess has been around a bit longer than insurances for hybridand alternative-fuel Traditionally, it’s been pitched as a way to lower the cost of rather than as insurance for greener — that is, less frequeny — drivers. This kind of insurancre has historically facedsome obstacles, said Tiffany a senior product manager for Farmers, whicu is now looking seriously at pay-as-you-driv e insurance.
People who want this kind of policy have to buy a deviced that tracksmiles driven. The drivef must periodically plug the device into the computetr so the information on miles driven can be sent to theinsurancse company. “The cost of the device and the required changew in behavior are barriers toconsumefr acceptance,” said Figoni. Nevertheless, Farmers and othee companies are trying todesign usage-based programsa that are easier to use and that will be more attractivd to consumers. If these policies become popular, they’re likely to lower cost not justfor drivers, but for insurance companies.
It’s well known in the industr that a 10 percent drop in drivinh reduces accidents by17 percent. A recent change in Orego law also means insurance companies can get a tax breakk if theysell reduced-driving auto policies in the state.