The 2012 Toyota RAV4 is the new model of SUV, with a better safety rating.

2012 Toyota RAV4

The 2012 Toyota RAV4 is now going into its second year with its newly redesigned structure. Even with the redesign, the 2012 Toyota RAV4 has continued to receive high marks for safety. The only difference is that the vehicle looks much better than previous models.

2012 Toyota RAV4 IIHS Testing

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has given the 2012 Toyota RAV4 an overall “good” rating. “Good”, is the highest rating that the IIHS gives. Even though the vehicle raked high, it was not chosen as an IIHS Top Safety Pick as it did not rank high in all categories.

The downfall of the 2012 Toyota RAV4 is the strength of its roof. In the roof strength test, the vehicle was only given an “acceptable” rating. This still makes the roof safe, it is just not as good as other safer models.

However, the front and side impact tests earned the 2012 Toyota RAV4 a “good” rating in both tests. I guess that you just need to try your best to keep that RAV4 from ending up on its roof.

Insurance Premiums for the 2012 Toyota RAV4

The insurance premiums for the 2012 Toyota RAV4 are about the same as a sedan.

How do I know this? Because I am a proud RAV4 owner and I switched to one from a sedan. Previous to owning our RAV4 we had a Toyota Corolla Sport. When we made the switch, our insurance premiums actually decreased.

But, with how safe this vehicle is, it is really no surprise that the insurance premiums would be decent. The vehicle protects its occupants, while at the same time it is not a huge vehicle that can cause a lot of damage to another vehicle.

No, it does not rank as one of the cheapest vehicles to insure. It does rank as a cheaper vehicle to insure, though.

2012 Toyota RAV4 Recalls

At this time, the only RAV4 vehicles that have a recall on them are for the model years of 2011 and earlier. There are no recalls on any 2012 Toyota RAV4 vehicles at this time.

If a recall is decided on for the 2012 models, you will be sent a letter from Toyota explaining what you need to do. Currently there is a recall out for a major suspension problem for earlier models, but the 2012 Toyota RAV4 has not been named as one of the models affected.

Insurance advertising gives insurance companies a chance to convince you that they are the best.

Like it or not, you may have paid for part of that terrible insurance advertising commercial you just watched.

In many states, it is said that there are two seasons: winter and road construction. With road construction season in full swing right now you may have seen the signs that pop up on the side of the road. The signs that give you the details of the project, and then includes the phrase “Your Tax Dollars at Work”.

You can see the very same message with insurance companies; they just don’t broadcast it as plainly. But each time you see an insurance commercial, that’s your insurance premium dollars at work.

Insurance Advertising Over Time

Car insurance companies have been around since the late 1800s. The very first insurance company to sell insurance was Travelers Insurance Company in 1897. Back then there was little competition in the car insurance field though, for two reasons.

First, there were very few drivers on the road at that time, so there weren’t all that many car insurance companies anyway. Second, drivers weren’t forced to purchase car insurance until 1927 and many didn’t.

Today, the car insurance scene is much different. Now, we have insurance companies practically tripping over each other in the race to get your business. They rely heavily on insurance advertising to convince you that they are better than the other insurance company and hope that you will believe them.

Then once they have you as a client; they take part of your insurance premium and pay for more insurance advertising to try and convince more drivers to buy insurance from them.

Who Spends the Most on Car Insurance Advertising?

GEICO, by far, spends more on car insurance advertising than any other company out there. Per SNL Financial, GEICO spent 993.8 million dollars on advertising in 2011. This is an increase of 10% over the 902.7 million that was spent in 2012.

Compared to the other insurance companies, GEICO alone spends 1 out of every 6 dollars spent in the insurance industry on advertising (onlineautoinsurance.com). With how frequently GEICO churns out new commercials the amount they spend is not surprising.

Does the Insurance Advertising Make a Difference?

For some companies it does and for others it doesn’t. GEICO is the top insurance company on the Fortune 500 list, and they are also the insurance company that spends the most in insurance advertising.

On the other hand, some insurance companies can spend millions on insurance advertising and see very little increase in business. For example, $45 million was spent on advertising for Esurance in just the first quarter of 2012. When the growth numbers came out, there was barely a difference between this year with the large advertising push, and the same time the year before (SNL Financial).

Leave us a comment and tell us if your insurance company is putting your premium to good work or not on their insurance advertising.

21st Century Insurance lets the puppies show you which insurance company to pick.

Summary

Announcer: Car insurance customer service reps, how can you tell whose are the nicest?

The commercial has started with the 21st Century guy standing in the middle of the screen between two crates. On either side of the crate is a lady in blue representing GEICO on his right and a lady in red representing 21st Century on his left. The 21st Century guy lifts the gates on the crates and puppies run out to the lady closest to them.

Announcer: Ah ha! Well, our competitors seems friendly and at 21st Century so does ours. See puppies don’t lie. But, drivers who switch from GEICO to 21st Century save an average of 508 dollars a year.

Puppies run from the GEICO lady over to the 21st Century lady.

Announcer: Smart puppies. 21st Century insurance, the same great coverage for less.

Singers: Digi digi digi digi digi digi digi digi 21st.

Puppy: bark

Screen changes to red with “21st” and “SAME GREAT COVERAGE FOR LESS”

Point of Commercial

21st Century plays up big on the cute factor here, but that is not the point of the commercial. The point of the commercial is like so many others in that they can save you more money than the other guy.

21st Century just happens to make their point by showing you that even cute puppies can make the right decision of which insurance company to go with.

What They Want You to Do

They want you to say, “Awwww, that’s so cute.” They want you to feel good, and then they want you to contact them and see if you can save money with them also.

The whole commercial they have both their phone number and their website on the bottom of the screen. You may have not noticed though because of the cute puppies.

My Opinion

Playing up on the puppies is a good idea. Aside from the adage “sex sells”, cuteness sells also.

I like this commercial as a consumer and I was also taken in by the cuteness. But there were two things that were really missing that could hurt them with this commercial.

J.D. Power and Associates throws a wrench into conventional thinking by declaring that customer satisfaction with auto insurance companies is at an all-time high.

Would have rated your insurance company the same way?

J.D. Power and Associates have come out with another survey, and they say that you actually like your insurance company more than you did last year. No, I am not making this up. You can see the results of the survey yourself if you go to jdpower.com.

You may want to visit there anyway. Then you can see that I really haven’t lost my marbles.

What Exactly Did J.D. Power and Associates Rate?

J.D. Power and Associates had people rate their insurance company on five different things:

1. Price

2. Interaction

3. Policy offerings

4. Claims

5. Billing and payment

Each of these 5 things were initially rated separately. Once J.D. Power and Associates had those results, they then came up with an overall satisfaction rating.

Results of the J.D. Power and Associates Survey

The J.D. Power and Associates survey was rated on a scale of 1000 points. With 1000 being the highest rating you could give to an insurance company.

The overall satisfaction results came back at 804. As compared to 2011, the rating was up 14 points.

Price showed no improvement in satisfaction from last year. Not a big surprise there.

However, interaction with clients saw a 19-point jump up in satisfaction as compared to 2011. Even bigger was the 30-point jump in satisfaction for policy offerings. In short, people are most satisfied with how their insurance company talks to them about their insurance policies and what their insurance company has to offer them.

J.D. Power and Associates Results by Region

J.D. Power and Associates broke their survey down into seven different regions. The results are actually very interesting, as you can see which part of the country is most satisfied with their insurance.

Mid-Atlantic Overall Customer Satisfaction Rating: 807

Northeast Overall Customer Satisfaction Rating: 784

North Central Overall Customer Satisfaction Rating: 804

Southeast Overall Customer Satisfaction Rating: 814

Central Overall Customer Satisfaction Rating: 811

West (not California) Overall Customer Satisfaction Rating: 810

California Overall Customer Satisfaction Rating: 785

I am really not surprised to see such a low rating for the Northeast. That section includes New York and Massachusetts. Both of which have some of the goofiest insurance laws that I have ever seen. In fact, they were so bad that one of the insurance companies I used to work for refused to write insurance in Massachusetts.

Now that you have seen the survey results, let’s hear from you.

Do you agree with J.D. Power and Associates; are you happier with your insurance company?

Adding temporary drivers are as much of a hassle to your insurance company as it is to you.

No, Fido does not qualify as a temporary driver.

A lot of people wonder if they have to add temporary drivers to their insurance policy. Should my child visiting from college be added? Should Aunt Betsy be added while she is staying with us for our niece’s wedding?

The answer heavily depends on who the temporary drivers are and how temporary the driving situation really is.

 Who are Temporary Drivers?

Temporary drivers are anyone that drives your vehicle just now and then. These drivers don’t drive your vehicle enough to be considered a significant risk of getting into an auto accident.

For example, your friend from across the nation is staying with you for a week. You let them borrow your vehicle while they are here, so they can get around while you are at work. Your friend is considered a temporary driver and does not have to be included on your insurance policy.

However, you also have a teenager who lives in your home. They just got their license, but they only drive one or twice a week. They are not considered a temporary driver.

Why? Because the teenager lives in your home, causes a significant risk of a car accident, and technically drives your vehicle on a consistent basis (just not very often).

How Do I Know For Sure Who is a Temporary Driver?

When in doubt, ask your insurance company or insurance agent. They can listen to the situation and tell you exactly if the person has to be listed as a temporary driver or not.

Also, don’t worry about the insurance company saying, yes, just to collect on extra premium. This worry is unfounded for two reasons.

One, adding a new driver for just a short period of time is a pain. There is information to collect, reports to be run, and information to be entered. All of which required employee hours that insurance companies and agencies would rather not waste just to add a driver that may drive your vehicle for the two days they are visiting you.

Two, there is no guarantee that the insurance premium will go up. Adding an additional good driver can sometimes actually decrease your premium.

Again, if you are not sure of the situation, ask your insurance company about how they process temporary drivers.