Drivers that stay home have fewer accidents and file fewer claims.

Many U.S property-casualty insurance companies are planning to refund a percentage of automobile policy holders payment due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the many stay at home orders that are in place across our nation.  As a result, trends show that Americans are “heeding the calls to suspend nonessential travel, leading to fewer miles driven and fewer accidents”.

For example, one the country’s largest property-casualty insurers indicated to its policy holders that it “will be returning $520 million to its members. This payment is a result of data showing members are driving less due to stay-at-home and shelter-in-place guidance across the country. Every member with an auto insurance policy in effect as of March 31, 2020, will receive a 20% credit on two months of premiums in the coming weeks.”

Refunding a percentage policy holders automobile premium payments makes sense since Americans are driving less and as a result, are involved in substantially less traffic accidents and filing significantly less claims.  During unprecedented times like these, it behooves all property-casualty insurance company executives to be a part of the solution and put cash back into consumers’ wallets by refunding a portion of policy holders premium.  Otherwise, they and the companies they lead will be unduly profiting from this pandemic nightmare that has spread across the U.S.

The amounts may be small relatively speaking, but every little bit will help if it puts dollars into Americans’ wallets.

1. https://communities.usaa.com/t5/Press-Releases/USAA-to-Return-520-Million-to-Members/ba-p/228150?_ga=2.107157259.825316722.1586454769-212589225.1586454769
2. https://www.aarp.org/auto/car-maintenance-safety/info-2020/coronavirus-car-insurance-premium-refund.html