"This milestone illustrates one of the significant differences between IIS’s Quicken InsureMarket service and many other online insurance sites, which can only provide preliminary information," says Steven Aldrich, president of the Intuit insurance subsidiary. " Our full-service site can offer individualized rate quotes and the option to select a policy and pay online, plus information and decision making tools to help consumers assess their insurance needs, as well as the ability to locate and contact a local agent. Many other Internet insurance sites are only designed to serve as a conduit for passing information about a consumer along to a licensed agent."

Prior to receiving this final state license, consumers in New York could not receive real-time rate quotes for term life policies from IIS’s Quicken InsureMarket. They were able to use the site to request information about policies from local agents from Allstate Insurance Company, State Farm Insurance and MetLife.

IIS also announced today that as a preview of the auto insurance capabilities it expects to introduce in 1998 -- which will include real-time rate quotes and online purchase options -- Quicken InsureMarket now includes a service allowing users to contact local agents from the Allstate Insurance Company and State Farm Insurance to receive rate quotes and other information about auto insurance. MetLife will also begin participating in this new service within several weeks. IIS and its designated employees are also licensed as agents for property casualty insurance in 49 states (all except Utah) and Washington, D.C.

Quicken InsureMarket is the leading insurance site on the Internet, with participation from major, national insurance carriers, and the ability to offer real-time rate quotes and online payment options, which can speed the process of buying insurance. The full-service site also features a library of educational material so consumers can learn more about insurance, as well as interactive insurance planning tools and information from independent insurance experts.

Insurance providers participating in the Quicken InsureMarket Web site include: the Allstate Insurance Company, John Hancock Financial Services, Lincoln Benefit Life, MetLife, Prudential Insurance, State Farm Insurance, Transamerica Occidental Life Insurance Company, UNUM and Zurich Direct.

Quicken InsureMarket is part of the Quicken.com, which provides individuals with information and software tools to help them make better financial decisions. It then provides links to leading financial service providers so consumers can implement those decisions more conveniently than ever. Quicken.com content is also offered at some of the most widely accessed sites on the Internet, as the exclusive provider of personal financial tools on such sites as CNNfn and Excite.