GEICO Indemnity Co. What about GEICO? We have recently changed our listing about which companies are 'anti-self defense' and have placed GEICO in the 'You Decide' category. Why? GEICO sent us a letter that they sent to the NRA in response to being listed on the NRA page. Below is the letter. August 14, 2000 Wayne LaPierre Dear Mr. LaPierre: The NRA has long prided itself on "setting the record straight"when it comes to addressing issues of critical importance to the NRA. Well, here's a chance to set the record straight as to GEICO Corporation's alleged position on gun issues. Way back in the spring of 1995 our policyholder magazine, GEICO Direct, offered an article on childproofing your home, written by a professional writer, Terry Andrews. What Andrews set out to do in the main was to model the article based on advices from the American Academy of Pediatrics(AAP). The article took the reader through an average American's home, room by room, offering tips to assure the safety of infants and toddlers in the home. For example, the author starts at the baby's bedroom and suggests, "Makesure the cords from blinds or curtains are out of reach of your baby's crib." Or, in the sibling's bedroom, "Children should understand that bunk beds are not playthings." In the kitchen, "Keep electrical cords out of reach." And so on. Following the lead of the AAP, Andrews cautions, "A gun in the home is more likely to shoot a family member than an intruder." And one of the points made with respect to the parents' bedroom states, "If you have a gun, you should keep it unloaded and locked and out of reach." Again, this from the AAP and, as you can read, the author actually assumes gun ownership on the part of the reader. For the record, GEICO Corporation takes no position whatsoever on gunownership. It makes no difference to GEICO Corporation whether or not a policyholder owns a gun or guns. The NRA Website statement,"The following listing includes the most prominent national corporations that have lent their corporate support to gun control initiatives or taken a position supporting gun control," is not correct with respect to GEICO Corporation. We just want to be the best auto insurer of the best policyholders in the USA. That's what we do - write auto insurance and service the policyholders' policies and claims. Now, to "set the record straight," the NRA should remove GEICO from its list of non-friends exhibited at its Website. (Go to the HomePage, then to NRA ILA, to Research & Information, to Fact Sheets, to Anti-Gun Support, to Anti-Gun Corporations/Corporate Heads.) Cordially, |