How can I purchase an auto insurance policy online?

Some people won't purchase anything without an insurance agent. For others, it is easy and convenient to purchase policies online, compare quotes quickly and purchase the necessary coverage in the comforts of their own offices or homes. There are more and more people trying to purchase auto insurance policies online.

The numbers of auto insurance companies that can sell their policies online have grown dramatically.

Shyamala Reddy, a spokeswoman for Esurance, an online provider for auto insurance, says, "Auto insurance is by far the largest market. Almost everyone needs it and, in many cases, it's the only insurance product a consumer will buy.

However, each and every one of these companies must go through some serious hurdles to make online insurance binding attractive to consumers.

These hurdles include making the consumer who's online feel just as safe as if he was speaking to a live agent, and making sure that they gain trust from their consumers.

You usually have to sign your insurance application in order to bind your policy. An electronic signal sent over the internet to serve as your legally binding mark through a digital-signature.

The web-site where you purchase your policy might have to mail paperwork for you to sign, besides the electronic-signature, so that isn't really the last step.

Two key issues have to be resolved before your electronic signature can be legally binding says Toby Alfred, internet side general manager at Progressive. The fist issue is that states must pass laws making digital signatures as valid as handwritten ones.

The other issue is that consumers must accept the new process. Alfred admits, "Most of our group here at Progressive spends a lot of time online and we consider ourselves technology-savvy, but very few of us have digital signatures.'

Consumer demand and satisfaction are the aspects that will drive online insurance binding.

Consumers rate their experience at insurance marketplaces by the number of quotes they receive, according to Forrester Research, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The more quotes received, the more likely the consumer is to come back because the customer is then more satisfied.

According to Forrester, consumers do expect to buy online. The research group predicts, "Online purchase will become easier ... and auto insurance sales will surge.'