Experience with State Farm?

[Closet_Gamer]

Does anyone have experience with State Farm insurance?

We're revisiting out insurance situation. State Farm is coming in cheaper by far than our current providers. They are also willing to step up on umbrella coverage where others are not.

Anyone have experience with them in terms of quality?

Thanks.

 

[Winemaker]

In 1979, they were my insurer for my 1971 Chevrolet Chevelle. A truck hit me head on while I was sitting at a red light. I paid $1200 for the car and paid $600/yr for insurance. I just had it repainted. The truck driver was also insured by State Farm. They gave me $200 after they totaled it, and wouldn't refund my unused premium. I told them to shove it, and my father and mom took their business elsewhere as well.

 

[Aerides]

We have everything with them now. I had them forever for my car, from the time I started driving. They had a grandfathering clause where you could never be cancelled after 10 good years. In that 10 years they paid 3 big claims, none of which were my fault. (I had a bad habit of getting sidewiped or being on the wrong side of someone running a red.)

About 6-7 years ago their rates were just getting too high, so I switched to GEICO. Then our Homeowners got dropped so we went back to SF with better pricing all bundled together, HI, Car, Umbrella.

I'd put them up there with allstate and the other multi-decade companies. Still, only ever as good as your most recent claim!

 

[PaunchyPirate]

I've had State Farm insurance for many years in 3 different states. I have home, auto, and umbrella policies with them. I have had minimal claims experience with them, fortunately. But I had no issues with them when filing a roof damage claim in Texas or an auto claim for when a piece of metal flew up into my bumper on the highway. Both were efficiently processed. The auto claim was 2-3 years ago and I did it all online.

They will assign an agent to you if you haven't picked one already. You can call the agent to have them do things to your policies, but it seems all they do it enter the stuff into a computer so that some process in the corporate offices can take care of it. But it works.

I like their online account website. It has everything I need -- bill pay, document downloads, coverage info, etc.

Prices have risen gradually over the years, but so have everyone else's. I did a comparison of all 3 policies with Erie Insurance a year ago and the total for all 3 policies were very similar, so I just decided to stay with State Farm.

 

[Route246]

We've used them for 30+ years and never price shopped. Friends have hopped around but for us it just seemed like too much trouble. How much umbrella were you seeking? I think we have $2M here in California and it costs very little for that.

 

[foxcreek9]

#1 car insurer since 1944 and #1HO since early 60s says something. All insurance companies are hated and vilified by someone, but check your state's complaint ratios and SF won't be the best (namely because of size) but they will be near the top.

Also SF will not "bait" you with a low price and nail you the next year, like some.

 

[harllee]

My mother had State Farm and was involved in a car accident, State Farm was mother's insurer and also the insurer for the guy who hit her (the other driver was charged). Should have been an easy claim to settle but mother got the run around. State Farm delayed and delayed on getting her car fixed and treated mother awful. I finally got a lawyer and State Farm finally paid. Mother canceled her polices with State Farm and went elsewhere. I would not recommend them.

 

[Ian S]

I've been with them a long time and their rates seem competitive here in Arizona. Only one accident, my fault, many years ago and it was dealt with well. Recently, a friend had an accident, not their fault and had myriad problems but many were his fault e.g. getting approval for one repair place then deciding to get the mechanical damage repaired first and try to change to another body shop later for those repairs. All without getting approval from State Farm until after the fact. Oh and the guy who ran into his car was some kind of Uber driver whose insurance didn't cover that. Total mess but I hesitate to put the blame all on State Farm.

 

[euro]

I have had SF for my rental portfolio as well as car/homeowners and umbrella for 10+ years. I occasionally shop rates but SF tends to be the best fit. I also happen to work with a really good agent who pays attention and helps out with any wrinkles. So, overall, I am very satisfied with SF.
Alas, this is with the caveat that I have never had a homeowner, umbrella or rental property claim and only very minor auto claims when my kids were newbe drivers, so I can't really speak to how good their claim processing is.

 

[Closet_Gamer]

Thanks for the all the responses. Very helpful.

We are seeking a very large umbrella and intend put it over our personal needs and the LLC which houses a beach house we rent. I'm in the camp of "you can't have too much liability coverage" and am particularly paranoid about potential claims arising from beach house renters. People do unbelievably stupid and irresponsible things.

DW is in a FB group for our beach town and at least once/week someone will post a message like "If you own the house at 123 Drunk Idiot Ave, here are photos of your renters on the roof of your three story house in lawn chairs with beers and their children. We've called the cops but you should reach out to your rental management agency."

One never knows what a jury will do.

SF is not only willing to write an umbrella this big but is OK with putting it over the LLC to cover both claims against the LLC and against us personally. So far they appear to be the best option.

 

[freedomatlast]

They've earned the nickname "Snake Farm" and it's well deserved. Everything's fine as long as you keep sending them money year after year. Make a claim and it's a whole different story.

 

[Another Reader]

Had State Farm since the beginning. Parents used them as well. They insure the rentals, and were easy to deal with on a hail damaged roof 15 plus years ago, Their umbrella max here is $5MM.

A lot has to do with the agent and who they have as support staff. Both my local agent and the agent that covers the rental houses out of state are long term agents with large, stable businesses. Get referrals from friends that have been customers for decades.

 

[EastWest Gal]

My parents had State Farm through a friend of my dad's. Started out with him, then, when we moved across country, established a relationship with a local State Farm broker. We've only had a couple of claims over the years, but the relationship has been solid. We have auto, home, and umbrella policies through them.

No complaints at all. We had two flooding situations through a frozen duct in our AC system-frozen pipe and water on the basement floor, flooding the carpet. They paid 100%. Sitting down with the broker now and then may make a world of difference. IDK.

 

[jazz4cash]

We had them for home and auto up until ~6 yrs ago. We had two auto claims and they were beyond excellent. The home owners premiun went sky high so we asked for the “discount double check” but that was more gimmick than solution so we switched and saved 50% with Nationwide. Our local broker was part of the problem because the young people answering the phone were clueless. The other complaint I had was their antiquated billing. They defaulted to monthly billing and per payment ‘convenience fees’ as if they were hiding the total premium. I always try to pay in one or two payments.

 

[euro]

Thanks for the all the responses. Very helpful.

We are seeking a very large umbrella and intend put it over our personal needs and the LLC which houses a beach house we rent. I'm in the camp of "you can't have too much liability coverage" and am particularly paranoid about potential claims arising from beach house renters. People do unbelievably stupid and irresponsible things.

DW is in a FB group for our beach town and at least once/week someone will post a message like "If you own the house at 123 Drunk Idiot Ave, here are photos of your renters on the roof of your three story house in lawn chairs with beers and their children. We've called the cops but you should reach out to your rental management agency."

One never knows what a jury will do.

SF is not only willing to write an umbrella this big but is OK with putting it over the LLC to cover both claims against the LLC and against us personally. So far they appear to be the best option.

You will need a commercial liability policy then. I have that too for my rentals. Different and in addition to personal liability policy. StateFarm will write those almost as high as you'd ever want (my commercial policy is about the same price as my personal policy - all with StaeFarm

 

[euro]

We had them for home and auto up until ~6 yrs ago. We had two auto claims and they were beyond excellent. The home owners premiun went sky high so we asked for the “discount double check” but that was more gimmick than solution so we switched and saved 50% with Nationwide. Our local broker was part of the problem because the young people answering the phone were clueless. The other complaint I had was their antiquated billing. They defaulted to monthly billing and per payment ‘convenience fees’ as if they were hiding the total premium. I always try to pay in one or two payments.

I always pay annual premiums and have never had a problem with that. Also, StateFarm will let you use a credit card without any extra charges/fees, so you can pocket your cash-back benefits.

 

[frayne]

I've had SF for home and auto for over fifty years and never had a problem with the exception of premium creep. I carry the highest deductible allowed. I think I've had maybe two claims over that period and no problems with either. I do make it a point to sit down with my agent once a year to review my policy coverages.

 

[BeWealthy]

I have had home, auto, and umbrella policies with State Farm for about 35 years. Their service of claims has been outstanding - until now. Last summer we had extensive hail storms along the front range of Colorado. I've heard that upwards of 500,000 roofs were damaged. I filed a hail claim for my house and State Farm approved only one pitch of the roof to be repaired. This resulted in a whopping $4,000 payout. My roofer, other roofers, and neighbors have not seen such a limited assessment for a hail claim. We submitted pictures of damage to every surface of the roof and State Farm recognized that there is damage, denied it is damage from hail and refused to come reinspect. I have neighbors who have 1/3 of their roofs protected by solar panels and their full roofs were replaced. I'm just over 6 months in trying to get State Farm to pay for a full roof and In the mean time State Farm has warned me that they may not renew my policy because of multiple hail claims over the past 30 years. To be fair, State Farm's rates have not increased as much as other carriers. Recently a friend was shopping for insurance and was told by a competing firm that State Farm may be withdrawing from Colorado. This is likely FUD, but time will tell. YMMV.

 

[DJRR]

They've earned the nickname "Snake Farm" and it's well deserved. Everything's fine as long as you keep sending them money year after year. Make a claim and it's a whole different story.

I have had them for over 30 years and they have paid out over $100k in claims for me, so not my experience. There claims are always fast and efficient. I think the key is working with their approved vendors.

 

[Tom52]

We switched to State Farm a year ago for homeowners, one vehicle and golf cart coverage. After 6 months the vehicle premium went from $570 up to $780, now 6 months later the rate has increased to $908. Same vehicle, no claims or tickets for many years. Coverage was unchanged. When I called to complain their only response was, " yeah we had a price increase". Duh! Now I will have to start shopping again.

 

[mrfeh]

Does anyone have experience with State Farm insurance?

We're revisiting out insurance situation. State Farm is coming in cheaper by far than our current providers. They are also willing to step up on umbrella coverage where others are not.

Anyone have experience with them in terms of quality?

Thanks.

We were customers for 30 years before moving in 2021. Always very happy with their rates and service.

 

[VanWinkle]

We've used them for 30+ years and never price shopped. Friends have hopped around but for us it just seemed like too much trouble. How much umbrella were you seeking? I think we have $2M here in California and it costs very little for that.

Us insurers love guys like you!!

VW

 

[RetiredAt55.5]

SF customer for 30 years, home, auto, and umbrella.

Several auto claims over the years. They were all the other parties fault, except for 2 claims with very minor damage (less than $1500). We were happy with the resolution on all of them, and we choose the repair facility each time.

Except .... Pre-covid, our at the time 21 year old son hit a line of stopped cars at 25 mph. We had no collision on our car, so no payout. The car he hit was totalled, and the next 2 stopped cars had some damage.

I kept fearing a significant rate increase. It never occurred. The rates stayed pretty much the same for the next few years. Since we were customers so long, evidently their accident forgiveness rule kicked in.

This is all YMMV, but we have not had any significant rate increases in the last few years. It helps I guess to be in a location that is away from rivers/oceans/hurricanes/tornadoes and that we drive older cars.

 

[RetiredAt55.5]

Also, State Farm has an affiliation with the U.S. Bank credit card.

I got an initial bonus (maybe $150 or something), plus on ongoing 3% cashback if you pay the monthly SF bill with that card.

I never turn down free money.

 

[OldShooter]

SF is not on my preferred bidder list. I avoid doing business with companies who have tied agents, who are basically employees of and advocates for the company. So if there are claims problems they are not there to help the insured. Hard to evaluate from anecdotes, though, the degree to which this is an issue in any one case.

With independent agents I have an advocate who can swing his clients away from any insurance company that causes problems. IMO that is far more leverage and easier to employ than anything a tied agent has.