Progressive Insurance is not as progressive as it claims in its astounding advertisements. However, choosing them may be easier for most people, considering how cheerful their commercials appear. They make dealing with them look like a breeze. But, that decision to stick to them for years may turn into a nightmare within no time.
Trust us when we say nothing is as smooth and fun as it seems on Progressive advertisements. Purchasing policies may be hassle-free with Progressive – what seems impossible to get through are CLAIMS. There’s a reason Progressive insurance premiums are cheap.
About Progressive Insurance
Progressive Mutual Insurance Company was started in the year 1937. A couple of young attorneys saw this as an investment opportunity. However, the firm turned into a public company in the year 1971. Three years later, Progressive moved its headquarter to Mayfield Village. Soon after that, Progressive surpassed the $1 billion mark in 1987.
Progressive is one of the largest automobile insurance providers in the country. Between the years 1996 and 2005, the firm grew at a rate of 17% annually. They moved from $3.4 billion to around $14 billion in premiums. Today Progressive offers its products and services through independent agents, online, or phone. It deals in Auto, Property, Motorcycle, Boat, RV, and Life insurance, etc. Besides, the firm competes with Allstate, State Farm, and GEICO, which are all found to have been resorting to bad faith practices for putting profits over policyholders.
Progressive Greed Knows No Boundries!
According to the American Association for Justice, the American insurance industry makes a trillion dollars yearly from premiums. Yet some firms work against the policyholders’ will – they deny coverage, reject claims, and jack up premiums of people who most need their insurance coverage to help pay for their damages.
Despite knowing the harsh reality, Progressive holds onto every penny it receives from the policyholders at the cost of innocent people like you and many others.
If you are fighting with them, you already know they are not on your side. Progressive has consistently been using bad faith tactics to get the victims to settle for lowball compensations rather than what they really deserve to recover from their financial injuries.
We fight these companies and make sure the victims receive their justified benefit. Progressive has its own bottom line in mind, but we make sure you do not anymore have to fall prey to their 3D (Deny, Delay, and Defend) trap.
Our clients put their trust in us, knowing we can handle every detail of their claim. Insurance companies like Progressive do whatever it takes them to pay the policyholders and victims as little as possible, or nothing at all. But we work aggressively to pursue the compensation of our clients. Our experienced attorneys know the tips and tricks to combat the pesky traps executed by Progressive against the victims.
Progressive Insurance Controversies
It is not just us who are talking about how Progressive Insurance tricks their clients and victims. Their controversies speak the story loud and clear.
In the year 2002, Progressive Insurance settled a class-action lawsuit with the State of Georgia against diminished value claims brought by several policyholders.
They later apologized in 2007 when it was discovered that progressive had hired private investigators pretending to be church members, infiltrating the group to collect data on litigants who were looking for compensation for the injuries. This gave rise to filing another lawsuit by the litigants over fraud and invasion of privacy.
In 2009, Progressive was sued for misleading policyholders by commissioning illegal and unlicensed body workshops to perform substandard repairs on client vehicles and save money.
The same year, they were accused of ordering commercials off the air during a Glenn Beck broadcast on Fox News Channel. They, however, responded mentioning how they never authorized any ads during Beck’s show. Their ads came up in that particular time slot due to the channel’s fault.
Till date, Progressive is recognized for one of its largest controversies on how it tackled claims filed by Kaitlynn Fisher family who were struck by a negligent driver. This 2012 case was massively criticized online. The 24-year old died in a car collision in Baltimore. Progressive defended the case and wanted to avoid making any payments to Fisher’s estate. The insurance policy, however, covered the circumstance of an accident with the uninsured driver. The firm was criticized for representing the defendant. Fisher’s family countered Progressive’s position, and as a result, a state insurance commissioner had to step in to determine that Progressive acted in bad faith. The firm lost the case and was ordered to pay the victim a separate settlement with the Fisher family to withdraw a hearing before the commissioner.
Online Reviews Tell The Same Greedy Story
Progressive has a substantial business presence. They cover almost 15 million vehicles in the country, which means if you are ever involved in an accident, there are strong chances the driver would hold a Progressive Insurance policy. Progressive is a corporate giant, and they did not build that kind of success by paying full claim amounts. They limit payments whenever possible, and their bottom line is always the priority, even when it means cheating on their obligations.
Progressive is amongst the largest auto insurance companies in the United States. It offers competitive quotes and discounts. However, Consumer Reports ranks Progressive Insurance Group as number 4 amongst others as one of the worst car insurance companies.
Out of 300 total reviews on Yelp, 265 reviews have a one-star rating. Here are some independent reviews that talk of the Progressive horror story:
Russ H wrote on 9/4/2020:
“I have been with them for years. I bought my policy online, and it has been a nonstop runaround. I used to at least get a decent premium but even that is gone now. The drones who answer the phones will not deviate from their scripts and the final straw came when I went to take a driver and car off my policy to find out that my CURRENT car was taken off in error 5 MONTHS ago. After n hour of back and forth they finally went to the recording of the call where they INSISTED that I removed the car. I then sat on hold for 25 minutes and when they came back they concluded it HAD been taken off in error. So now, they restore my policy and when I ask about my accumulated discount, no…they cannot restore those unless I pay $300 in back fees. Then the whole time keep telling me how “I came out ahead. This company is the worst and I am now shopping for new insurance. Progressive is a practically an online scam.”
Terri M. wrote on 10/8/2020:
“A Progressive customer rear ended me. It took a month to get my vehicle looked at and they didn’t replace my bumper, just put some kind of plaster to cover it up. When I submitted my information because my hide-a-key was knocked off when this knucklehead rear ended me. The adjuster/claims was Ellen Lindic. In a month’s time frame I had emailed her 4 times AND left her 8 messages. She didn’t do her job, respond or email back. I had received $3.10 for the key copy but didn’t receive payment for the actual hide a key magnetic box. I resubmitted this to her, her supervisor and also left a message for her supervisor. Worst service ever. They should have given me an extra payment just for having to wait 1.5 months just to get $3.10 from them. Ridiculous!”
Here are a few reviews from Wallet Hub, which again speak of the same story:
Joseph B. wrote on 10/29/2020:
“Wouldn’t honor my storm claim because boat wasn’t check on while in storage during Covid. Even took the boat to their recommended shop and paid out of pocket for misdiagnosis. Still have a broken boat after paying insurance on it for 5 years and never filing a claim.”
June S. wrote on 07/15/2020:
“Cheap rates for extremely poor coverage. Don’t trust Progressive will pay ANYTHING when disaster happens! They can keep charging cheaper rates because they never pay out for claims when need them most!!! Please learn from my misfortune. Don’t trust them!!! YOU WILL REGRET IT!!!”
Shannon M. wrote on 10/21/2020:
“In battle with them right now with a claim. They are refusing to pay because the car is a 1988 Chevy Celebrity and according to them, not worth anything. The car was hit on the right corner panel. Progressive is telling us that they need pictures of the entire car. Why?? It should only be of the area that was damaged. The rest of the car should not matter. They have been dragging their feet and refusing to take care of this.”
We always suggest our readers keep an expert attorney in loop right from when they file a claim case with insurance firms like Progressive, GEICO, Allstate, and State Farm. Not doing so only limits or hinders your chances of receiving full and fair compensation for your loss. With stakes this high, it is always better to engage a qualified legal team to represent you!
Handling Cases Against Progressive Insurance
In the case of a car accident, if you visit the official website of Progressive Insurance, they tell you the steps you must instantly take following the accident. They mention how you must make sure everyone in the vehicle is alright and then call the police. After this, call your insurance carrier to report the claim. Well, these steps sound very logical. In fact, this is how most insurance providers like Progressive lead you into thinking that the only way out available to the victim in such a case is to file a claim through them.
On the other hand, you must remember that Progressive Insurance adjusters are dedicated to avoiding paying full and fair value for your claim. Clients have faced this regularly – adjusters may sound very sympathetic on-call or emails, but they are always on the lookout to devalue or refuse your claim.
Progressive Insurance:
- Offers insultingly low initial offers – that is part of their settlement strategies, so do not sign any papers as you may sign away your rights. In fact, Progressive will record you telephone call, and if the offer a fast payment of a small amount “to help you out,” Progressive will use that recording to argue that you settled your entire claim. This sleazy practice is called “swoop and settle,” and is the subject of action by the Texas legislature to outlaw that tactic.
- Questions, invalidates, denies, or dismisses your injuries – you know how traumatic your situation feels; such mistrust may be harmful interrogating and insulting you.
- Promises to be on your side – they, however, are not, and we have seen how Progressive, for example, used a picture as normal as a client dining with family at a restaurant, to argue that the client wasn’t really hurt.
- Forces to record statements to accelerate the procedure – this results in leading questions where they twist your words to substantiate a lower reimbursement or deny claims altogether.
- Puts profit margins over policyholders’ loyalty/ needs – Progressive may reduce, deny, or delay your claims anytime for irrational reasons.
- Uses financial pressure against victims – most people accept offers to solve their immediate problems but later realize how it cannot cover all losses, and by then, it gets late.
For this reason, it helps to seek legal assistance with your personal injury case against progressive. When you feel unreasonable pressure from Progressive representatives, contact an attorney instead of making a rushed decision.
An experienced attorney can handle all the communication and paperwork for you so you can focus on recovering and receiving your compensation. You may feel the need to rush as your expenses may be piling up – we, however, assure most victim’s injuries are worth more than they think they are. Filing a lawsuit makes all the difference, so the adjusters cannot trick you into agreeing with their statements. Progressive adjusters believe you have no idea of the benefits you are entitled to receive – here is when we enter and turn the case around, so the victim is not cheated at an already-crucial time.
Remember, what might seem like friendly talk, can be an adjuster’s strategy to trick you into settling for something that wrecks your claim. File a lawsuit, and we will fight for you, so you receive the full amount and nothing less than what you deserve.
Having Issues With Your Progressive Claim? We Can Help!
The key to defeating Progressive Insurance in your case is to hire a qualified attorney in Dallas, Fort Worth, Lewisville, or Farmers Branch, who may recognize the games such insurance companies play day in and day out. Steve Samples is board-certified in personal injury trial law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.
We at Samples Ames PLLC know how to thwart such ill attempts with our years of legal expertise to go up against some of the biggest names in the insurance industry. Not all firms can point out these tactics – we, however, know how your case can be strengthened and your claim amount maximized.
So if you need legal assistance to fight and win your case, call us today at (817) 605-1505 or (469) 466-2600. You may also fill out this contact form to receive an initial consultation ASAP.
Our experienced personal injury attorneys will thoroughly review your case details and help obtain a fair settlement. We are one of the leading law firms in Dallas, Fort Worth, and Farmers Branch, representing insurance victims besides practicing in other important fields. We know how to play hardball and fight these billion-dollar corporate giants. Samples Ames PLLC works on a contingency basis, which again lets us develop trustworthy client-attorney relationships. Allow us to fight for your rights – you will not be disappointed!
