article_snippet: Google is trying to shake up the auto industry with more than self-driving cars, as a new service launched in California will help drivers shop for car insurance.
article_snippet: Called Google Compare for car insurance, the tool allows people to compare offerings from different insurance providers.
article_snippet: The new service, unveiled on Thursday, compares auto insurance quotes from up to 14 carriers that are participating in the comparisons.
article_snippet: Google has unveiled a new service to help California drivers shop for car insurance, which could be the company's first step towards really shaking up the market .
article_snippet: To date 14 insurers are participating in the comparison site which sees Google take a cut from each sale which can be bought online or through an agent - the service is also mobile friendly .
article_snippet: The policies can then be bought online or through an agent and Google will receive a cut from each insurance sale.
article_snippet: Ellen Carney, an analyst for Forrester Research, wrote in January that Google may be making moves to ramp up Google insurance knowledge base through an acquisition of San Francisco-based Coverhound.
article_snippet: San Francisco-based Coverhound has developed San Francisco-based Coverhound own platform for consumers to shop for car insurance and an acquisition would also bring a lot of insurance market experience to Google.
article_snippet: Some of the largest auto insurance providers, including State Farm, Allstate, Progressive and Geico, haven't joined Google's service.
article_snippet: Progressive and Allstate's esurance.com also provide auto insurance price comparisons.
article_snippet: Google's service follows the successful launch of a car insurance comparison tool in the U.K. in 2012.
article_snippet: Google announced Google's service through Google AdWords blog and highlighted some of the features that should make Google attractive for both insurance providers and customers. '
article_snippet: Whether you're a national insurance provider or one local to California, people searching for car insurance on people phone or computer can find you along with an apples-to-apples comparison of other providers -- all in as little as 5 minutes,' said Google. '
article_snippet: Google plans to provide car insurance quotes in other states, too - Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Texas are suspected to be among the next states.
article_snippet: The service follows the lead of the Google compare service in the UK, which launched in 2012 and allows users to get quotes from 126 providers.
article_snippet: Google also has similar services in the UK for travel insurance, mortgage quotes and credit cards.
highlights_snippet: Google has launched a price comparison site for drivers in California to compare auto insurance quotes .
  
highlights_snippet: Similar Google services are already available in the U.K. for car and travel insurance, mortgages and credit cards .