NetQuote is an insurance lead

Sales lead

A sales lead, or Sales Lead, is the identification of a person or entity that has the interest and authority to purchase a product or service. This step represents the first stage of a sales process. The lead may have a corporation or business associated with the person. Sales leads are generic...

 provider for insurance agents. The online insurance quote marketplace allows consumers to apply and comparison-shop for quotes, from a variety of major providers of auto, home, health, life and business insurance.

NetQuote does not directly provide insurance. It connects customers with insurance agents via its matching system. The information is then sold to insurance brokers. Customers are contacted by agents after the application process, at which point they can select from the interested providers.

History

NetQuote was founded in 1989 when Keith Lawton, an insurance agent, and Harvey Lawton, a software engineer, created the world's first interactive voice-response service to shop for insurance. It was named Telerate, Inc.

In 1993, Telerate joined forces with Auto Insurance Shopper to create a single company, using the latter's name. Later, the company launched its Internet platform and rebranded itself as NetQuote.

NetQuote was acquired by Spectrum Equity Investors

Spectrum Equity Investors

Spectrum Equity Investors is a Boston-based private equity and venture capital firm founded in 1994. The firm focuses on business services, entertainment, communications, information services, media, and related growth sectors. The firm currently has a capital base of approximately $4.7 billion...

 and Stripes Group in 2005.

Awards and recognition

In June 2008, NetQuote was named a finalist for the third annual Best Companies to Work For in Colorado, a competition run by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Colorado State Council.

Controversy

NetQuote has been involved in numerous consumer complaints both by customers and their purported leads. Customers claim that the many of the leads they receive are bogus. Also customers claim they are billed for service not received, and have had legal action threatened against them for non-payment of bills for which they had proof of payment. NetQuote "leads" complain that they are being harassed by insurance agents with an incessant barrage of e-mails and phone calls soliciting insurance. Many of these "leads" claim they did not make an inquiry for insurance, but that their contact information was illicitly obtained. Often "leads" will receive several phone calls from different agents at approximately the same time, as NetQuote will send out the "lead" to many agents at the same time.