Updated every so often, lately about once a week.

Reviewed today: Progressive Auto Insurance

Progressive has an interesting ad campaign that has been going on for at least several months now. It is the same for television and radio, and the theme goes something like this:

Consumer calls up Progressive insurance company. Progressive gives consumer quote, not only for Progressive, but for other insurance companies as well. Consumer cynically expects that Progressive will be the lowest quoted, but is suprised when Progressive gives a lower quote for another insurance company.

"A lot of times Progressive is the lowest, sometimes we're not." The consumer is told over the phone. "That's not what I would expect of an insurance company," says the consumer.

The inevitable punch line, "Well maybe you should."

Okay, so this is a fairly good message. Progressive cares about you, Mr. or Ms. Insurance Customer. We just want you to call us and you'll get the lowest rate, even if we have to refer you to someone else. There is only one problem: through mind-numbing repetition of this one fairly good idea, we now have it drummed into our head that if anyone ever calls Progressive, they will wind up with a lower quote from another insurance company.

Progressive should at least throw in the occasional example of someone who actually gets a lower rate from them. Like the toddler who keeps on doing something you laughed at until you're so sick of it you just want to shake him like a british nanny, Progressive has spoiled the only thing that it has ever done right. We can say this is the only thing they have ever done right because we can't remember a single other ad campagin by Progressive, proving that all previous efforts were inadequate.

Rating: 5 seconds for sheer pitiful cluelessness.

Conclusion: Don't use Progressive. They have to learn somehow.

Update!: Here is a very angry rant about Progressive from someone who had a bad experience. The person who sent this may have used all caps and incomplete sentences, but we think it was justified by the circumstances. In addition, the person pointed out that our "submit" address has had a typo in it for the past 3 years, so we can't be too hard on them.