I had State Farm many years ago.
No claims - no problems. . . . . however,
they liked to "bump" the premiums at pretty regular intervals
until "premium" meant what I paid SF . . .in more ways than one, LOL!
Seems they figure you will just smile and write the check.
So, flushed 'em and never looked back.
IMO - my "personal rating" for State Farm is on a par with Farmers
and Allstate. The three PITAs.
Thanks, but no thanks.
I have had State Farm for 45 yrs. always had great experience with them. Had a roof replaced on motorhome after first trip out. Cost $6,300. No problems getting it replaced and no increase in premiums. I believe any insurance company is only as good as your agent. Actually, switched agents a few years ago and have even better success with them since then. have not found any company with as good of coverage for less money.
Ron Stevens 38 ft. Damon Intruder
Penny Elrod 3 felines
FMCA #F360271
Saturn Toad
Lots of good and bad stories about SF which are interesting individually, but repeat this thread for each of the major insurance companies and you will see the same types of responses. Most people don't rant or post about positive occurrences so all the online bashing can paint a tainted picture if you don't keep everything in perspective.
In my case I have always used SF for home and auto going back 20+ years and we just recently insured our new TT through them. We have moved several times over the years and all of our agents were very nice and helpful. We processed roughly 6 vehicle accident claims through them with 2 of them being our fault. In all cases they were very easy to deal with and quite prompt/fair in settling our claims.
I only had one major disagreement with them: My last vehicle accident in Feb 2007 did about $8K damage to my truck which was only worth a little over $11K at the time. The approved SF repair estimator was the manager of my local dealership service dept. and he recommended my truck to be totaled due to such high damage. SF wanted to fix it because it was just a few hundred shy of some magic calculation they did to determine the repair limit. I was not about to accept a totaled vehicle with that much repair done to it - the book value would be about nil - who would buy a truck with that much work done to it? It would have problems forever. I argued with them for weeks and never could get them to give in. My agent and the estimator fought for me but the claims rep. wouldn't budge. I finally had them write me a check for the repair amount and I sold the wrecked truck to a mechanic to make up the difference, so I got what I wanted in the end but not from SF and it was a fight. I was pretty mad at SF for this but then I realized it was my only problem over all these years, and SF had handled all my other claims fine, and my rates haven't gone up too much considering how many claims they paid, so I have stuck with them ever since.
When I called them about insuring our TT they were quick to point out that homeowners covers our personal property and auto covers the TT if anything happens while it is on the road. I still purchased the policy anyway since I want it to be covered if it is stolen or damaged while parked. Our trailer MSRP is $22K and the annual policy is $330 for full coverage with a $250 deductible. This seems a little high but we might raise our deductible slightly and lower the total coverage amount since we only had to pay $14K for the trailer despite the high book value.
So I would recommend SF based on my history but I can understand why some would avoid them if they had a bad experience.
I've had State Farm insurance for over 30 years on my home & autos. I’ve had several auto claims and usually have had to pressure them to settle for reasonable amounts and their agents have little authority to help (I guess that's why they have always been cheaper).
I started out with State Farm for my MH but after reading their policy I concluded that they have no idea how to insure a motorhome. Content & road service coverage was VERY limited. I checked with Progressive & got better collision, more liability, additional content coverage and road service equal to Good Sam’s for less money than I was paying State Farm.
Just after switching I had both windshields damaged by flying rocks and they were VERY proficient in dealing with the claim.
I still have my home & autos with State Farm.
Dave
Plus New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island & Nova Scotia
the only issue that I have had with State Farm and RVs in when I had a previous motorhome that had a 95 motorhome on a 94 chassis. they called it a 94 and obviously would have paid out only based on that on any claim. at that time there was virtually no difference between those chassis years. Since it was a P-30/32 it sucked to begin with.
after I pointed out that I would have to find an insurance company that could properly cover it, they added into the policy that it was a 95 on a 94 chassis.
bumpy
chuckster11 wrote: Maybe you should adjust your title to "Don't buy State Farm insurance IF you live in an Area that has a CHANCE of having a CATASTROPHE!" Come on, be fair here.
I did not work for State Farm but I sure competed against them and they are an excellent company with an excellent reputation for customer satisfaction.
Here you are admitting that the cause of your loss was a major hurricane that was regions wide and you are expecting business as usual from an over taxed insurance company? Did you think about the folks that have lost homes, commuting vehicles, necessary items that are and should be ahead of you in the settlement chain after a huge storm?
It is correct that MOST insurance companies do not have software on RV type vehicles because there aren't enough losses in those types of items to build and keep current replacement and repair information. Yes, I know, we here are all "into" our RVs but most of the waking world isn't--too many types of vehicles, too many models, too many lengths, etc., keep even the pro RVers busy sorting it all out.
In a normal loss in a normal time, an RV dealer would jump at the chance to come out and survey your loss but, in your area, these aren't normal times--they are anything but normal.
That State Farm and the dealers didn't snap to the minute you called should give you your first clue--they are busy with folks that really need service or who can tow their wrecks to the dealerships--not someone that is at the end of camping season that has had a minor (perhaps not to you) loss!
Like so many of the "I hate insurance" posts on this forum this one miscommunicates reality.
It does, however, smoke out every one with a dull State Farm ax that needs grinding, Keep this in mind as you let the sparks fly--State Farm insures more cars, homes, and RVs than any insurance company in the nation--there is a reason.
True, but this claim is just as important to them as a $250,000 brick & mortor is to some one else. Lighten up, State Farm Employees are getting paid to take care of every customer, big or small.
Been there done that for 25 years working for a Insurance Company!
chuckster11 wrote: Maybe you should adjust your title to "Don't buy State Farm insurance IF you live in an Area that has a CHANCE of having a CATASTROPHE!" Come on, be fair here.
I did not work for State Farm but I sure competed against them and they are an excellent company with an excellent reputation for customer satisfaction.
Here you are admitting that the cause of your loss was a major hurricane that was regions wide and you are expecting business as usual from an over taxed insurance company? Did you think about the folks that have lost homes, commuting vehicles, necessary items that are and should be ahead of you in the settlement chain after a huge storm?
It is correct that MOST insurance companies do not have software on RV type vehicles because there aren't enough losses in those types of items to build and keep current replacement and repair information. Yes, I know, we here are all "into" our RVs but most of the waking world isn't--too many types of vehicles, too many models, too many lengths, etc., keep even the pro RVers busy sorting it all out.
In a normal loss in a normal time, an RV dealer would jump at the chance to come out and survey your loss but, in your area, these aren't normal times--they are anything but normal.
That State Farm and the dealers didn't snap to the minute you called should give you your first clue--they are busy with folks that really need service or who can tow their wrecks to the dealerships--not someone that is at the end of camping season that has had a minor (perhaps not to you) loss!
Like so many of the "I hate insurance" posts on this forum this one miscommunicates reality.
It does, however, smoke out every one with a dull State Farm ax that needs grinding, Keep this in mind as you let the sparks fly--State Farm insures more cars, homes, and RVs than any insurance company in the nation--there is a reason.
True, but this claim is just as important to them as a $250,000 brick & mortor is to some one else. Lighten up, State Farm Employees are getting paid to take care of every customer, big or small.
Been there done that for 25 years working for a Insurance Company!
I made no suggestion about how "important" the OP was to State Farm, my complaint was directed at the impatience of the OP with State Farm.
This was a catastrophe loss, the damage was very wide spread, thousands of insureds had been effected--some to the point of losing every worldly possession. In these situations and with an insured in a second home, where they apparently parked their "beloved" RV was griping about the fact that the adjuster could not immediately assess the damage and write a check, that the RV repair facilities were unwilling to drop everything (note, they were probably FULL of RVs that were towed to their facility for adjustment and repair) and come and tell the OP and State Farm what the toll was.
It was my impression that the OP was making this Draconian public castigation of a fine insurance company without taking into consideration the extreme and temporary situation that existed at the time.
Insurance companies don't, cannot, and should not staff their claims offices for huge catastrophe losses like a hurricane--they rush as many claims people as they can into the area from offices around the country, call in retirees, and farm out some claims to other adjustment firms. All of them have to be brought up to speed in a chaotic situation. Everything is difficult, usually the adjusters are not local, are not familiar with the RV repair shops, and often try to triage the losses so that those most seriously effected can be handled on a priority basis.
The OP was trying to make a very complex human tragedy into a "business as usual" situation where a legitimate corporation was failing a loyal, long term customer--I think that is B.S. and called him on it. It was not a simple claim under a simple situation--it was a situation where even the most dense insured ought to have understood why answers and checks might be hard to receive, or, at least should have waited until the matter was resolved before expressing such a castigating report on his insurance company.
chuckster11 wrote: Maybe you should adjust your title to "Don't buy State Farm insurance IF you live in an Area that has a CHANCE of having a CATASTROPHE!" Come on, be fair here.
I did not work for State Farm but I sure competed against them and they are an excellent company with an excellent reputation for customer satisfaction.
Here you are admitting that the cause of your loss was a major hurricane that was regions wide and you are expecting business as usual from an over taxed insurance company? Did you think about the folks that have lost homes, commuting vehicles, necessary items that are and should be ahead of you in the settlement chain after a huge storm?
It is correct that MOST insurance companies do not have software on RV type vehicles because there aren't enough losses in those types of items to build and keep current replacement and repair information. Yes, I know, we here are all "into" our RVs but most of the waking world isn't--too many types of vehicles, too many models, too many lengths, etc., keep even the pro RVers busy sorting it all out.
In a normal loss in a normal time, an RV dealer would jump at the chance to come out and survey your loss but, in your area, these aren't normal times--they are anything but normal.
That State Farm and the dealers didn't snap to the minute you called should give you your first clue--they are busy with folks that really need service or who can tow their wrecks to the dealerships--not someone that is at the end of camping season that has had a minor (perhaps not to you) loss!
Like so many of the "I hate insurance" posts on this forum this one miscommunicates reality.
It does, however, smoke out every one with a dull State Farm ax that needs grinding, Keep this in mind as you let the sparks fly--State Farm insures more cars, homes, and RVs than any insurance company in the nation--there is a reason.
True, but this claim is just as important to them as a $250,000 brick & mortor is to some one else. Lighten up, State Farm Employees are getting paid to take care of every customer, big or small.
Been there done that for 25 years working for a Insurance Company!
I made no suggestion about how "important" the OP was to State Farm, my complaint was directed at the impatience of the OP with State Farm.
This was a catastrophe loss, the damage was very wide spread, thousands of insureds had been effected--some to the point of losing every worldly possession. In these situations and with an insured in a second home, where they apparently parked their "beloved" RV was griping about the fact that the adjuster could not immediately assess the damage and write a check, that the RV repair facilities were unwilling to drop everything (note, they were probably FULL of RVs that were towed to their facility for adjustment and repair) and come and tell the OP and State Farm what the toll was.
It was my impression that the OP was making this Draconian public castigation of a fine insurance company without taking into consideration the extreme and temporary situation that existed at the time.
Insurance companies don't, cannot, and should not staff their claims offices for huge catastrophe losses like a hurricane--they rush as many claims people as they can into the area from offices around the country, call in retirees, and farm out some claims to other adjustment firms. All of them have to be brought up to speed in a chaotic situation. Everything is difficult, usually the adjusters are not local, are not familiar with the RV repair shops, and often try to triage the losses so that those most seriously effected can be handled on a priority basis.
The OP was trying to make a very complex human tragedy into a "business as usual" situation where a legitimate corporation was failing a loyal, long term customer--I think that is B.S. and called him on it. It was not a simple claim under a simple situation--it was a situation where even the most dense insured ought to have understood why answers and checks might be hard to receive, or, at least should have waited until the matter was resolved before expressing such a castigating report on his insurance company.
You have a lot to say, but you don't read the OP postings. First you misread that my “beloved trailer” was my 2nd home. Then you misread that my real “home” was also damaged where the trailer was parked. I have no idea where you got that I wanted to be taken cared of before anyone else. You also didn't read that I have experience with state farms capability in responding to a huge catastrophe of losses like a hurricane. (Gustav was no where near a Katrina). My first “beloved home and possessions had major damages from Katrina and they were there timely under the circumstances. My daughter’s car was under water and they responded timely as well. Although it took them 4 months to pick up the car, understandable, but we were already taken cared of. You did not understand that I said state farm is not a good insurance for RV’s which is true no matter WHEN your have an RV claim. With Gustav we sustained a huge loss with our "beloved RV, our beloved HOMES and beloved TRUCK" which is still in the shop.
I’ll type it again so you can comprehend what I’m posting. “STATE FARM $UCKS AS AN RV INSURER”. Otherwise it’s fine company. You are not correcting me and I stand by what I wrote. State Farm puts their customers though to many obstacles to get an RV claim processed particularly doing a catastrophe when you need them to most. I can’t live in my home for a while but I CAN replace a trailer quickly so I can have a place to live. Which we did, in our new Hornet for months after Katrina. You are dead wrong in your assumptions. I recommend to all my RV friends to find RV insurance from companies that specialize in RV’s. You must be either an agent or a troll.
* This post was
edited 10/11/08 11:05pm by edfoxx68 *
Offline
Then you misread that my real “home” was also damaged where the trailer was parked. I have no idea where you got that I wanted to be taken cared of before anyone else. You also didn't read that I have experience with state farms capability in responding to a huge catastrophe of losses like a hurricane. (Gustav was no where near a Katrina). My first “beloved home and possessions had major damages from Katrina and they were there timely under the circumstances. My daughter’s car was under water and they responded timely as well. Although it took them 4 months to pick up the car, understandable, but we were already taken cared of. You did not understand that I said state farm is not a good insurance for RV’s which is true no matter WHEN your have an RV claim. With Gustav we sustained a huge loss with our "beloved RV, our beloved HOMES and beloved TRUCK" which is still in the shop.
