Casual Comments by Glen E. Hargis
Founded 1934 by John C. Leslie (1900-1975)
Glen E. Hargis
Editor
Carol J. Leslie Hargis
Advertising Manager
John H. Leslie Production and Classified Advertising Manager
Driving Advert Driven From the Airwaves
Picture if you will (really easy if you saw the Traveler’s video advertisement: “Driving Your House”) a man motoring down some two-lane road in the desert. His vehicle looks to be two interior rooms from his home (sans outside walls).
Mrs. John C. Leslie (1912-2004) Publisher Emeritus
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In a classic case of distracted driving, he reaches for his house phone and then must swerve to avoid a head-on smash-up. Careening off the road, home-sweet-home soon goes air-borne — scattering furniture, memorabilia, homeowner/driver, and house cat all over the desert floor. (Fortunately, the man lands in a comfy chair whilst puss alights on a cushy pillow.)
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During this disaster, we listen to New South Wales vocal and guitar man Tim Rice-Oxley perform “Hey Whatcha Doin’ Today” while the voiceover intones, “Without the right auto insurance a crash might impact more than just your car. Make sure you’re properly insured so that when you’re driving your car, you’re not risking your house. Travelers — take the scary out of life.” Texas Watch found the advert itself to be scary indeed. (The group styles itself a “Consumer Protection, Corporate Accountability, Citizen Advocacy” entity.) Alex Winslow, Texas Watch’s executive director, said, “Texas families should never be subjected to false insurance industry advertising that preys on the fears many homeowners have about losing their homes.”
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Such fears are groundless because around these parts, the Texas Constitution, following precedent stretching back to our Colonial Spanish La ley del Rey, provides homestead protections against the forced sale of a home in most circumstances. The wrongness of this particular scare tactic is every bit as much beyond the pale now as it was in 1995, when a comparable ad from Allstate met a similar regulatory fate.
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This time around, the Watch contacted both Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott and Texas Insurance Commissioner Mike Geeslin requesting an investigation into possible violations of the Deceptive Trade Practices Act and the Texas Insurance Code.
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In a teleconference, TDI jawboned with Travelers giving the company 10 days to drop the offending advert. The AG’s office not only wrote a Cease and Desist letter to the insurer but also let casually drop a broad hint that such misinformational ads could cost them up to $20,000 per airing. Travelers responded to these various efforts by vowing to jerk the offending ad from every television, multi-media, computer generated, and/or radio version in the Lone Star State. However in the undying land of YouTube, “Driving Your House” lives on. (see www.youtube.com/ watch?v=LwF8kUtDiHM). —G.E.H.
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