Insurance Agents Take to the Hill to Combat Domestic Violence
Allstate agents speak with Congress about support for Violence Against Women Act
(3BL Media) Northbrook, IL - June 6, 2012 – Allstate agency owners from around the country joined domestic violence service providers in Washington D.C. today to advocate for laws that protect survivors of domestic violence. The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) was one of the pieces of legislation discussed with various congressional delegations as a part of the National Network to End Domestic Violence’s annual Advocacy Days.
VAWA, currently before Congress, supports comprehensive and cost-saving responses to the crime of domestic violence. Studies show that VAWA has saved over $14.8 billion in averted social costs and helped decrease the number of women killed because of intimate partner violence by 34%.[i]
“154 women are abused every hour, which is a sobering and eye-opening statistic,” stated Vicky Dinges, vice president of public social responsibility at Allstate. “Allstate is committed to helping prevent violence against women and girls and the Violence Against Women Act is key to achieving that goal. We know that the services provided by this life-saving legislation reduce violence and save money.”
The Allstate agents who participated in the event are members of the Allstate Against Abuse Team. This Team is composed of agency owners, personal financial representatives and employees who have a passion for ending domestic violence and volunteer their services to teach financial literacy classes at local social service agencies.
“Access to financial resources is the number one predictor of whether a domestic violence survivor will leave an abusive relationship,” stated Susan Whitmire, an Allstate agent who participated in the event. “Allstate and agents like me are helping survivors around the country obtain the financial skills and resources they need to live a life of safety and security. This is an important issue that affects too many people in our community and I hope I was able to do my part to bring an end to violence against women.”
For more information about Allstate’s work to empower domestic violence survivors visit http://www.allstate.com/social-responsibility and www.clicktoempower.org.
For more information about the Violence Against Women Act visit www.nnedv.org.
About Allstate
The Allstate Corporation (NYSE: ALL) is the nation's largest publicly held personal lines insurer. Widely known through the "You're In Good Hands With Allstate®" slogan, Allstate is reinventing protection and retirement to help nearly 16 million households insure what they have today and better prepare for tomorrow. Consumers access Allstate insurance products (auto, home, life and retirement) and services through Allstate agencies, independent agencies, and Allstate exclusive financial representatives in the U.S. and Canada, as well as via www.allstate.com and 1-800 Allstate®. As part of Allstate's commitment to strengthen local communities, The Allstate Foundation, Allstate employees, agency owners and the corporation provided $28 million in 2011 to thousands of nonprofit organizations and important causes across the United States.
[i] Uniform Crime Report (UCR) Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR), Federal Bureau of Investigation. (Decrease is based on data collected between 1993 and 2007).
