Big daddy State Farm is watching

[bmcgonig]

I just got my auto insurance bill which had a decent increase. I discovered that they believe I’m driving 19300 miles a year. Actually it’s about 5000 or 6000. So I called and asked them how they figured the 19,300? They said that they didn’t know in my particular case but told me it was from things like oil changes and smog checks etc. so apparently they have access to this data. I was amazed. My guess is that since the last two oil changes were pretty close together as I drove across country, they extrapolated that into me driving a couple thousand miles a month. The local agent is going to submit my version to see what happens.

It’s easy for me to prove my case since the car has only 13k on it in the two years since I bought it so I’ll see what they do. But I was pretty astonished by the info they thought they had.

 

[Walt34]

So if you live in a state that doesn't require smog checks and you change your own oil (paying cash for it so big brother doesn't know) they'll lower your rates since it looks like you're not driving at all?

Wishful thinking I am.

 

[audreyh1]

What’s really annoying is that they gather pretty indirect data and come up with way wrong conclusions. Why not simply ask for an odometer reading at renewal time? A photo could be required as verification. It could be voluntary and they use their other metrics if the insured fails to provide the odometer reading.

 

[marko]

Why not simply ask for an odometer reading at renewal time? A photo could be required as verification.

But that would make it fair.

 

[OldShooter]

Why not just ditch the company? I would.

 

[CardsFan]

Why not simply ask for an odometer reading at renewal time? It could be voluntary and they use their other metrics if the insured fails to provide the odometer reading.

But that would make it fair.

That is exactly how my insurance company (AAA) handles it. Not sure if is their policy or state required. Basically, it is to get a discount for fewer than 7,500 miles per year. It is on the honor system, but they reserve the right to confirm, and it is probably the first thing they do if you file a claim.

 

[aja8888]

What’s really annoying is that they gather pretty indirect data and come up with way wrong conclusions. Why not simply ask for an odometer reading at renewal time? A photo could be required as verification. It could be voluntary and they use their other metrics if the insured fails to provide the odometer reading.

When they smog check a vehicle, the odometer reading is recorded in the state database along with the test output. No guessing involved.

 

[audreyh1]

Well whatever they used they were way wrong as the 2 year old odometer reading was way under their estimate for just 1 year of driving. Seems quite suspect to me.

 

[frayne]

How did you discover that they believed you were driving 19,300 miles a year ? I also have SF and recently got my insurance bill with a pretty decent bump on it as well. Not due until March and I plan to question the increase.

 

[COcheesehead]

Shop, shop, shop.

 

[cathy63]

That is exactly how my insurance company (AAA) handles it. Not sure if is their policy or state required. Basically, it is to get a discount for fewer than 7,500 miles per year. It is on the honor system, but they reserve the right to confirm, and it is probably the first thing they do if you file a claim.

That's how they do it in CA also.

 

[bmcgonig]

How did you discover that they believed you were driving 19,300 miles a year ? I also have SF and recently got my insurance bill with a pretty decent bump on it as well. Not due until March and I plan to question the increase.

The bill came last week by email and I just paid it online. Today it came by snail mail so I looked. The information is in the middle of page 2 of 5 pages.

 

[bmcgonig]

Why not just ditch the company? I would.

Possibly. I have combined house, car umbrella etc., with them and new house insurance is sometimes tough to get. But indeed worth checking,

 

[bmcgonig]

What’s really annoying is that they gather pretty indirect data and come up with way wrong conclusions. Why not simply ask for an odometer reading at renewal time? A photo could be required as verification. It could be voluntary and they use their other metrics if the insured fails to provide the odometer reading.

Absolutely. It would be easy.

 

[old medic]

OMG.... Sorry but this is to funny not to share....

Picture this... You get your insurance bill and it jumps thru the roof... I'm talking triples.... You call and try to figure out WTF happened... They turn around and tell you that since you signed up on such and such program...
THEY TRACK YOUR CELL PHONE!!!!!!
You have been consistently speeding, running redlights, driving on the wrong side of the road!!!!!

This is a true store from an EMS coworker... Her phone was in her pocket so BOOM any time she was in the truck, driving or not... ... It took her several months to get it fixed.

 

[bmcgonig]

OMG.... Sorry but this is to funny not to share....



Picture this... You get your insurance bill and it jumps thru the roof... I'm talking triples.... You call and try to figure out WTF happened... They turn around and tell you that since you signed up on such and such program...

THEY TRACK YOUR CELL PHONE!!!!!!

You have been consistently speeding, running redlights, driving on the wrong side of the road!!!!!



This is a true store from an EMS coworker... Her phone was in her pocket so BOOM any time she was in the truck, driving or not... ... It took her several months to get it fixed.

Now THAT is funny [emoji1]

 

[brucethebroker]

What’s really annoying is that they gather pretty indirect data and come up with way wrong conclusions. Why not simply ask for an odometer reading at renewal time? A photo could be required as verification. It could be voluntary and they use their other metrics if the insured fails to provide the odometer reading.

+1

 

[brucethebroker]

My agent offered a 10% discount if the ins. co. could attach a tracking device to the car to monitor use. I turned it down and asked if it was popular with others. He said more people turn it down than agree to it.

 

[plex]

I remember starting out Geico just used an estimate, then asked me to send a form of what I actually drive if it is wrong (obviously it was way off). So, after doing that and confirming again it was way lower, my bills from then on were 30-40% less.

These days they let you choose to use their app that tracks your driving distance for a 10-15% discount, so they can tell much more accurately that way, though you do need to manually note down it wasn't you driving your car such as in a rental or someone else is driving their own car (which will happen a LOT with certain people, so use this with care). I don't recommend that particular step for most people, but it works great for my really limited traveling habits. With those two discounts combined, along with some smaller ones since it has been over a decade, my auto insurance is extremely low, I've never had an estimate from another company come anywhere close.

 

[RetiredAt55.5]

My agent offered a 10% discount if the ins. co. could attach a tracking device to the car to monitor use. I turned it down and asked if it was popular with others. He said more people turn it down than agree to it.

I've been using the State Farm phone app (with Bluetooth receiver) for a couple of months, in all 4 cars.

Supposedly, it's saving us $225 every 6 months, but that includes the low mileage discount we were already getting. After 6 months at renewal, we'll be able to see if it's worth continuing, based on our 6 month driving scores. I'm consistently getting scores over 90%, well except when I take out the Miata ....

2 of my sons (25 and 23) are also using the app to save money on their own policies.

Caveat - I've been with State Farm for over 30 years and they've always treated me well, through accident claims, repairs, accident forgiveness, etc. Once or twice the low mileage discount was questioned but a quick call to the agent fixed that.

 

[OldShooter]

Possibly. I have combined house, car umbrella etc., with them and new house insurance is sometimes tough to get. But indeed worth checking,

This is why I only use independent agents. Their job is to represent me, not some insurance company that they are beholden to. Find a couple via referrals from friends and turn them loose to shop your business.

 

[38Chevy454]

There's not a chance of snowball in hell that I ever put a tracking device on any of my cars. Or put an app on a phone that tracks. We have enough big brother over reach already without me voluntarily subjecting myself to more.

I will submit odometer proof if needed. They can look at my license record and claim history to see I am probably one of their best drivers. But tracking devices, no F'n way.

All this is just one more example why my old cars are my preference. No car connectivity, no emissions testing, no inspections, and no tracking. No computers in them reporting back to anybody.

 

[aja8888]

There's not a chance of snowball in hell that I ever put a tracking device on any of my cars. Or put an app on a phone that tracks. We have enough big brother over reach already without me voluntarily subjecting myself to more.

I will submit odometer proof if needed. They can look at my license record and claim history to see I am probably one of their best drivers. But tracking devices, no F'n way.

All this is just one more example why my old cars are my preference. No car connectivity, no emissions testing, no inspections, and no tracking. No computers in them reporting back to anybody.

+1000

When we bought 2021 Hyundai, the dealer added my to the tracking software, whatever it's called (blue something or other). I called them and said close that tracking account or the car comes back to you. Now there is a red circle with a diagonal line through it on the rear view mirror.

No car apps on my phone, either and never will be. Emissions testing is annually and they can record my results and odometer reading as I can't get around that.

 

[Texas Proud]

I used the Progressive snap device and was able to get a really good discount... I do not drive much but did even less driving when I bought the car until I sent it back...


Still, about 5,000 miles in 18 months..

 

[SecondAttempt]

What’s really annoying is that they gather pretty indirect data and come up with way wrong conclusions. Why not simply ask for an odometer reading at renewal time? A photo could be required as verification. It could be voluntary and they use their other metrics if the insured fails to provide the odometer reading.

This is exactly what State Farm used to do - odometer reaading, no photo. When I moved to Hawaii about 9 years ago they stopped doing it. I assumed it had to do with different state rules. Maybe they just got more [-]stalky[/-] tech savvy about that time.