-By Della de Lafuente

NEW YORK Allstate has revamped and expanded its "Así piensa Allstate" ("That's what Allstate believes") advertising campaign with the launch this month of the first in a series of Hispanic-targeted TV and radio ads that drive home the benefits of its Your Choice Auto program.

Two Spanish-language spots have started rolling out nationwide in major U.S. Hispanic markets with the debut of "Big Drama," which premiered Feb. 21 during Univision's Latin music awards show.

The ads use humor "to connect Latinos with the message in a more personal way, focusing on the unique way Hispanics sometimes perceive risk, danger, safety and the insurance business," said Laurence Klinger, svp, chief creative officer at Lapiz. "The spots target anyone who owns a car and is Spanish-dominant."

In "Big Drama," a distracted driver literally becomes the star of an operetta, with bystanders and even a law enforcement officer breaking into a dramatic musical number (written by the Lapiz team), following a rear-end collision. The driver puts the incident into perspective, saying "stop the drama, it was just an accident."

Since the driver has coverage under the "accident forgiveness" feature of Allstate's Your Choice Auto insurance option, he isn't sweating it because his insurance premiums won't be affected, Klinger said.

A second spot, "Clones," centers on a woman who is driving home in her car when she is joined in the vehicle by three clones of herself, signifying the various roles and demands of her life. Her clones compete for her attention, but the driver keeps her eyes on the road.

When she arrives home, she finds an Allstate Safe Driving Bonus Check in her mailbox as a voiceover reminds consumers: "Avoiding distractions should be rewarded. For every six months without an accident, Allstate will give you a bonus check."

"These new commercials build on the success of our previous Hispanic-targeted advertising while more deeply leveraging Hispanic consumer insights," Lisa Cochrane, Allstate's vp, marketing, said in a statement.

Allstate's creative campaign is the first for Chicago-based Lapiz, a Publicis Groupe agency tapped by Allstate in September 2007 to handle creative duties following a review.

Allstate spent $45 million on Hispanic-targeted advertising in 2007, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus.