Insurance Commissioner Presents ‘Insurance 101’ to High School Students, Helping Them Learn About Auto Insurance, As Part of Wolf Administration…

Insurance Commissioner Presents 'Insurance 101' to High School Students, Helping Them Learn About Auto Insurance, As Part of Wolf Administration Financial Literacy Initiative

WILLOW HILL, Pa., Jan. 20 -- The Pennsylvania Insurance Department issued the following news release:

Insurance Commissioner Teresa Miller today presented "Insurance 101", a lesson on auto insurance, to 40 students at Fannett-Metal High School in Franklin County, as part of the Wolf Administration's financial literacy initiative.

Insurance 101 is a lesson designed to help high school students become better consumers, by showing them how auto insurance works, what costs are associated with coverage, and how being a better driver can help keep them safe and lower costs.

"Governor Wolf and I believe making insurance consumers better educated about the coverage they buy is a form of consumer protection, helping individuals understand what they are getting for their insurance dollar, how they can be pro-active to keep their costs down, and making sure they have the coverage they need," Commissioner Miller said.

The Insurance 101 lesson, developed by the Pennsylvania Insurance Department in conjunction with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, gives high school students an overview of what auto insurance is, how it works, and terms associated with this coverage. The lesson also presents students with several real-life scenarios teen drivers may encounter, and asks them to choose one of two alternatives for each scenario. The lesson then shows the students the consequences, good or bad, of their choices.

"Students are shown they can be pro-active by getting good grades and taking driver's ed courses, which can lower their auto insurance costs, and that poor choices, which lead to crashes, can be dangerous and also result in higher insurance costs for them and their parents, who in most cases are paying these insurance premiums," Commissioner Miller said.

Commissioner Miller and Education Secretary Pedro Rivera introduced Insurance 101 last fall. Since then, the Insurance Department's Consumer Liaison, David Buono, has presented the less to several schools around Pennsylvania. Teachers interested in arranging for an Insurance 101 presentation should contact David Buono at [email protected]. Teachers can also download the lesson on the Insurance Department website, www.insurance.pa.gov, by clicking on the Auto icon under Insurance Coverage Resources. The lesson is also available through the Pennsylvania Department of Education at http://www.pdesas.org/.

"I feel the sooner we can begin teaching consumers about the importance of insurance, how it works, how to make sure they get the coverage the need while also getting the most for their insurance dollar, and that there are actions they can take to control their costs, the better," Commissioner Miller said.

30FurigayJane-5752143 30FurigayJane