Posted on 07/01/2013 3:53:07 PM PDT by InHisService
I’ve been living in Ohio for over eight months now, and it was about time I changed car insurance as I still had my Pennsylvania policy. So, I made a few calls to get some quotes.
First, I called Travelers, and their price was about the same as what I’d been paying, maybe a few dollars less. Not worth all the hassle to change. Then I called my current company, Progressive, and found out I could save some money by dropping something called “Medical Expenses.” I learned it was costing me $82 a year, and while Pennsylvania requires you have that on your policy, Ohio does not. Great!
The new Ohio policy with Progressive was reasonable, and about the same as what Travelers had quoted, so instead of making more phone calls and providing my information all over again, and having a lengthy discussion about my driving record and what I have and have not done in the last three to five years, I decided the next day to go ahead and stay with Progressive. Bad idea.
I spoke to a woman in customer service who either hadn’t had enough coffee, didn’t take her meds, or was in some kind of new customer service group at Progressive insurance called Progressively Bad to Worse.
The conversation went something like this:
“Hi…I called yesterday and got a quote from someone for a policy in Ohio. I would like to review that again and update my Pennsylvania Policy to an Ohio car insurance policy.”
The good news was it didn’t sound like she had an Indian accent, as in, most customer service calls are now routed to India. The Indian people are always very polite – overly polite in fact – but the problem is most times you can’t understand what they are saying.
You want to yell into the phone to please give me an American that I can understand, to which they would no doubt reply, “Thank you for that information, Ms. Kirchhoff. I am here to serve you. How else may I help you today?”
They are so excruciatingly polite, in fact, you just can’t really get mad at them. Anyway, this rep had no accent and that was a good thing. Or so I thought.
The rep, whose name I never caught began pulling up my information, and it went downhill from there.
“You would like to remove the medical expenses from the policy? You can’t do that in Pennsylvania. It is required.”
“I know that,” I replied. “I’m not in PA anymore, I’m in Ohio, and Ohio doesn’t require medical expenses from what I was told.”
“Well,” she said, “The quote you received did not include medical expenses.”
“I know that, but I have that on my policy now and I want to remove it.”
I started feeling that little tingle of annoyance. This was not starting out on a positive note. I was getting the feeling this rep was just not getting me and had no clue what I wanted to do, or why I was calling. A deadly combination for the one on the wrong end of the phone call. Especially for someone like me, who has been known to be just a teensy bit of a full blown, unadulterated b**** when I lose patience with someone.
I sighed loudly into the phone.
“I am not in Pennsylvania anymore. I am in Ohio. I want to remove the medical expenses portion from my policy. I would like to know exactly how much the policy is, because I wrote it down somewhere but I can’t find the paper I wrote it down on. I do not want medical expenses on the policy.”
“Your policy doesn’t have medical expenses.”
“Yes, it does. It currently does have medical expenses but I want to remove that.”
“The quote did not include medical expenses,” she stated, once again.
“Look, I don’t think you’re understanding me. It’s really very simple.”
“No, I don’t think I am understanding you.”
“Oh. My. God,” I retorted.
“Look – I live in Ohio now. I currently have a policy in Pennsylvania because in eight months, my lazy, procrastinating ass did not get around to changing the policy to Ohio, where I now live and have lived for the past eight plus months. Got that? My current policy has medical expenses because it is required in PA. I don’t live in PA anymore. I live in Ohio. I want to drop the medical expenses portion of the policy because it is not required in Ohio. It’s really not that difficult. I don’t know what it is that you don’t understand about this.”
“We did note quote you with the medical expenses,” she replied.
“I KNOW you didn’t quote me with the medical expenses! Stop saying that!!! I just want to change my policy to an Ohio policy without medical expenses!!!”
“That wasn’t in the quote.”
“Can you please give me someone else to talk to who will understand what the f*** I am trying to do?? You know what? I want to talk to Flo. Put Flo on the phone!!”
“Excuse me?”
“Flo, the Progressive Insurance Lady!!”
“I don’t know who you are talking about.”
“Why am I not surprised?! You work for Progressive Insurance and you don’t know who Flo is? Are you serious?”
“I don’t know who you are talking about. Do you have a last name?”
“No! I do not know Flo’s last name!! You should know who Flo is! She’s on every friggin’ channel, every day, at all times of the day and night. They even have Flo Insurance Lady Halloween Costumes, for God’s sake! How do you not know who I’m f****** talking about??!! I want to talk to her now! Put her on this damn phone now or I’m canceling my f****** policy altogether!!”
“Ma’m, I don’t have to listen to your abusive language. I have to have a last name in order to access any employees in the company. If you continue to use that kind of language I will hang up.”
“I wish you would hang up. All I wanted to do was make a simple policy change and you are clueless as to what I’m even talking about. I have medical expenses on my current policy. I don’t live in PA anymore, I live in Ohio. I want the medical expenses off my policy! That’s it!! It’s not that hard!!!”
“You weren’t quoted medical expenses.”
“Put Flo on the damn phone, now!!!”
My phone made that little bleeping noise, indicating the call had disconnected. My hellish nightmare with Progressive was over.
I immediately typed into an Internet search, “Steubenville auto insurance – non idiot.”
I reached a wonderful person named Tina at State Farm, who immediately knew exactly what I was talking about when I explained what I wanted. Later in the day, I went to meet this intelligent, on the ball woman who provided me with three policies, an auto insurance policy, rental insurance, and identity theft insurance, all for $20 dollars less than what I was paying just for auto insurance with Progressive.
Wait till I tell Flo.
who hasn’t?
Progressive Insurance is named Progressive for a reason.
The owner/CEO is a huge contributor to Marxist/Socialist political groups.
I can’t recall his name, nor am I going to waste 5 seconds doing a web search for it.
Just search for the company and the term CEO, and he’ll pop up, along with articles exposing him as a Commie.
Flo may work for a ratbag company.. but I’d hit it.
www.Progressive Insurance chairman has donated millions to the ACLU and liberal causes.com
Peter Lewis
You mean the kind of service where they won’t put the actress from the commercials on the phone? I have to admit it never occurred to me to ask.
As far as the rest of the call, she said she had medical expenses coverage. The agent said she didn’t. No documentation is mentioned, and from the information available I can’t tell who was wrong.
When progressive lost my business:
http://money.cnn.com/2012/08/17/technology/progressive-settlement/index.html
A coworker of mine switched to progressive not too long ago. Cheaper over all per month, true. He had a couple of issues to deal with and they have been a hassle for him to deal with.
Peter Lewis is the leftard scumbag who funds global communism with the premiums of his customers.
http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/peterlewis.ASP
With a bat?
Who’s on First?
Progressive’s CEO is a major contributor to Dems and to “progressive” causes. Starve the beast.
Working in a call center is an extremely stressful and demanding job for very little pay.
The rep was probably new and honestly didn't know how to do what you wanted.
When I get sub-par service from a business (fast food, convenience store, call center), it's usually a very low paying, very stressful, and high turnover environment. I try to be patient, because these people are busting their asses every day for very little money.
With Progressive? No, I've always managed to talk to Flo..........
I hate Flo. She is an ugly stooge. Also hate the commercials. Very stupid.
My fantasy is for the GEICO cavemen to invade the Progressive set, beat Flo with a club and drag her back to their cave where they make her their sex slave....
In all of my US life, I never had anyone but GEICO.
I do not know about now, but back then they were great.
Now that I have left the USSA, I have never needed or wanted a car. There has just never been a need.
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