January 04, 2008
Toyota has been running commercials showing people going to great lengths to get rid of their current vehicle:
- A lady cuts a tree branch which falls on her car.
- A man throws a rope on his Ranger as a ferry pulls away from the dock, pulling it into the water.
- Another man pushes a Jeep Grand Cherokee off a parking garage.
I remember joking with my wife about Toyota advocating insurance fraud. How else would you get any money out of your old vehicle by dropping a tree on it?
Since it’s not unusual for me to be the only person on the planet who thinks something is funny, I’m glad the State of Idaho DOI and the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud missed the joke as well.
From the Idaho DOI website:
Department of Insurance Expresses Concern Over Toyota Ads
BOISE ID – The Idaho Department of Insurance (DOI) has joined forces with the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud, a Washington group that includes insurers, law enforcement officials, and consumer groups, in expressing concern over the recent Toyota ad campaign. This campaign shows people dumping their cars so they can buy new ones.
Every scene depicted in the ads is a crime. The DOI and the Coalition believe the message is as much about increasing insurance fraud as it is about increasing car sales.
DOI Fraud Investigator, Don Roberson, has written to the president of the Toyota company asking him to pull the ads. “Insurance fraud is a very costly and very harmful venture,” said Roberson. “It affects all of us in the form of increased premiums.”
Over one in four adults in the United States believe that it is acceptable to cheat on an insurance claim, up from 21% just nine years ago. The National Crime Bureau and the Coalition estimate 10-25% of each insurance premium dollar spent by consumers goes to insurance fraud. That annual cost is $60 billion.
In a response posted to the Coalition’s blog, Toyota had this to say, “The ridiculous situation portrayed in the commercial is intended only for levity, and is not meant seriously or to encourage ridiculous or antisocial behavior.” They added, “Our only intention is to advertise our products. We hoped the commercial would create a pleasant moment of laughter that would help the viewer keep Toyota in mind.”
I think the state DOIs are headed in the right direction. The next issue I’d like to see them tackling is superheroes throwing buildings at each other every time they fight. Talk about anti-social behavior. Who pays for new bridges after Superman beats a bad guy over the head with it?
