To get online car insurance quotes ten years ago, you would have to call an agent who would send a quote to you via email. This process was an advance on having the agent send you a pile of papers through the mail, but it still required at least a telephone conversation and often a personal appointment with the agent.

If a potential client wouldn't personally come in to the office for a meeting, most insurance agents, back then, wouldn't even consider giving them a quote. It used to be ridiculous to consider that agents wouldn't use their greatest strategy for obtaining customers.

A lot has changed for relationship-focused agents as they are being replaced more and more by price-focused, highly automated website sales. The young and urban demographic, which prefers the web to all other media, are the prime movers of this change. As companies make the change towards websites, the older and less technologically savvy customers will be forced to use these websites as their agents become less effective in comparison.

Online car insurance quotes have gained in popularity, though, as people continue to fill their days with more and more activities, and have become used to making major purchases without meeting a salesperson. Clients have become more aware of the terminology and options available to them, and have come to demand more self-service than ever before.

In this area, small insurance companies actually had a head start on the formerly major national carriers. When any customer could search for a free auto insurance quote online without any hassles or catches, they found real discounts and lesser companies were able to become major ones. Small companies gained national status and consumers made better deals before the industry leaders managed to catch up.

It seems that now, every American insurance company now offers online car insurance quotes in some form or another. The much greater number of competitors can be a good thing, as competition often leads to lower prices and/or better service from insurance companies.

It is in your best interest to spend a bit of time comparing the different offers of discount car insurance. Even though pronouncements of "big savings" and "free quotes" have become commonplace, just ten years ago it used to take a lot longer to search for deals; and even though technology may have changed to make your searching more convenient, there are still great companies out there fighting for your business. So take the time to consider all of your options.

In the past, it would have been unthinkable for insurance agents to forego the use of their greatest marketing leverage. Most agents refused to give a potential client a quote unless that person was prepared to meet in person. Ten years ago, "online car insurance quotes" meant that the agents you called sent quotes to prospective clients by email rather than through the post office. Now, almost every American insurance company now offers a free auto insurance quote in some form or another, including for popular and heavily advertised discount car insurance.