The Progressive Corporation Releases Its 2004 Annual Report

MAYFIELD VILLAGE, Ohio--March 1, 2005--The Progressive Corporation today released its 2004 Annual Report to Shareholders on its Web site at: http://www.progressive.com/annualreport. Printed versions of the report will be mailed to shareholders over the next few weeks.

The Company is scheduled to hold a one-hour conference call to address questions on Thursday, March 3, 2005, at 9:00 a.m. eastern time. Registration for the teleconference or webcast is available on the Company's Web site at http://investors.progressive.com/events.asp.

The Progressive group of insurance companies ranks third in the nation for auto insurance based on premiums written. The companies that offer insurance directly (by phone at 1-800-PROGRESSIVE and online at progressive.com) market their products and services through the Progressive Direct(SM) brand, while the companies that offer insurance through more than 30,000 independent agencies in the U.S. market their products and services through the Drive Insurance from Progressive(SM) brand. The Common Shares of The Progressive Corporation, the holding company, are publicly traded at NYSE:PGR. More information can be found at progressive.com.