21st Century Insurance Takes Consumer Education & Advocacy Message on the Road; Provides San Diego Auto Show Visitors With Consumer Protection & Safety Guides

    WOODLAND HILLS, Calif.--Feb. 13, 2002--21st Century Insurance announced today it will take its consumer education and advocacy message on the road, participating in the much anticipated 2002 San Diego International Auto Show. Ever committed to expanding distinct and meaningful customer services, the company will provide, free of charge, two important consumer guides to auto show visitors, assisting them in their evaluations of potential new vehicle purchases.
    21st Century will unveil its "Insider's Guide To Buying California Auto Insurance", which combines an easily understandable guide to purchasing automobile insurance and a competitive price review of California's most prominent insurance companies in one simple booklet. Recognizing that consumers, for a variety of factors, often pay too much for insurance or don't obtain adequate or appropriate coverage, 21st Century created the informational guide to ensure auto insurance buyers obtain the price and service that is right for them.
    In addition to helping consumers select the best auto insurance, 21st Century has worked with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety to produce a handy "Crash Test Ratings Guide" that provides savvy consumers with nationally recognized safety rankings for 2002 vehicle models. The informative and easy-to-use brochure is intended to assist consumers in evaluating potential new vehicle purchases.
    Each year, the world renowned Insurance Institute for Highway Safety publishes crashworthiness evaluation results for a broad spectrum of vehicles, spanning a range of manufacturers and the largest portions of new car sales. The vehicle rankings, widely considered a national standard for consumer protection, evaluate different safety criteria and rank vehicles as "poor", "marginal", "acceptable", "good" and "best picks". 21st Century Insurance, with the permission of the Institute, prepared the printed version of the performance rankings, delivering the important and critical evaluations to a wider audience than ever before.
    "Beyond a long tradition of providing superior service at a competitive price, 21st Century is committed to consumer education," said Bruce Marlow, chief executive officer for 21st Century Insurance. "We believe we can play an instrumental role in helping educate consumers about the choices available to them and sincerely hope 21st Century's efforts can play a small role in ensuring consumers are both safe and smart."
    The annual San Diego International Auto Show is one of the West Coast's premier auto shows, debuting 2002 trend setting production and concept vehicles, as well as 2003 pre-production models, for both the automobile industry and the greater public. 21st Century will have a significant presence at the auto show, serving as the exclusive "Kids Day" sponsor on Sunday, February 17th. All children 12 and under are admitted FREE to the auto show when accompanied by a paying adult. Celebrating its California birthplace and 1958 founding date, 21st Century has recreated a 1950's theme diner, complete with a mint condition, cherry red 1959 Ford Thunderbird convertible, for its showcase booth at the auto show, which will run February 13-18, 2002.
    Founded in 1958, 21st Century Insurance is a pioneer of the direct-to-consumer marketing of personal automobile insurance, serving customers in California, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. The company provides full service 24 hours a day, 365 days a year at 1-800-211-SAVE and its company web site, www.i21.com. 21st Century is the 7th largest insurer of autos in California, holds an A+ (Superior) financial rating from A.M. Best, the world's oldest independent insurance rating and information service, and an A+ from Standard and Poors.