Comments on: State Farm Insurance uses ridiculous, underhanded tactics…Anyone know of a really good auto insurance co.?

By: marvelboy74

marvelboy74 — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:50:59 +0000

Working in claims for a large, national insurance company I deal with many other insurance companies. When it comes to claims, each insurance company handles them differently: some better, some worse. It also may be your expectation of an insurance carrier. Unfortunately, there is no one good insurance carrier. And your problem is with the agent. If there are multiple agents in your town, you may be able to request a different one. It sounds like your mother may be able to stick with State Farm as she is clean. You're 29, maybe you should get out on your own policy so it keeps her rates low. She may be having enough problems with Gramps.
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By: mbrcatz17

mbrcatz17 — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:29:59 +0000

Sure there are.

If the other family members were household members, he had to tell them. If not, well, that was a privacy violation, IMO.

But now, you’ve got a problem . . . you have a policy with, what, seven accidents? And a dui, and a buncha moving violations. DON’T tell me you’ve got a parent who’s 70 or older, because NO ONE wants to write auto policies on the over 70 crowd, they have more accidents per mile driven than the 16 year old boys!!

So regardless of where you WANT to get insurance, I think you’re going to end up at Progressive. You can get a PRogressive policy at a small agent near you, but the service bit is going to be hit or miss.
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agent, 21+ years

By: mymoon

mymoon — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:11:59 +0000

State Farm has a very strict privacy policy. They would only notify the family members which are listed in your household. You should check with your agent to find out who all is listed as drivers in your household. This will probably solve the question as to why all of your family members were notified. Also – if you are concerned with your family losing their insurance policies due to your driving record – they can exclude you as a driver in order to keep their policies. Check with your agent.
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By: oklatom

oklatom — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 12:38:59 +0000

If it was two weeks before you "got your license back" you had no business driving any car, and if you would have had an accident during that time period, you would have voided their insurance coverage if you had borrowed one to drive.

All those telling you State Farm ‘had no right to tell’…are dead wrong. It’s a matter of PUBLIC record, and they can tell anyone about your lack of a license, and in fact it can be argued that they had not only a right but a legal obligation to tell those who might be affected of your status.

You would only have a case if they "Damaged your reputation by telling others things that were NOT true."
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By: lady

lady — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 12:02:59 +0000

State Farm Agents office are independently owned..Your problem is not with State Farm as a whole, It’s with one State Farm Agent. And you are right, he had no right to share your information with non-household members.

Each agent has a head office that you can complain to or you can file a complaint with the insurance department for your state. I have been inured by and employed by them for years and believe me when I say that it’s not a common practice to give out any ones information . You can change your State Farm agent anytime you want if you are not satisfied with the office’s service. I’m sorry that you are having a bad experience but don’t blame an entire company for the poor judgment of one person or one agents staff.
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By: UCANTCME

UCANTCME — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 11:14:59 +0000

CHECK WITH THE BOARD OF INSURANCE WHICH IS ON LINE AND THIS WAY YOU WILL BE ABLE TO SEE FIRST HAND ALL INSURANCE COMPANIES INCLUDING THEIR RATINGS AS WELL AS HOW THEY PAY AND TREAT CONSUMERS AND MAYBE BE ABLE TO ASSIST YOU.
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By: Farmers Insurance Guy

Farmers Insurance Guy — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 11:09:59 +0000

You're blaming your agent when you should be mad at State Farm, the letter your family received about not letting you drive their cars may have had the agents contact info at the the bottom but I can assure you he did not send the letter. State Farms underwriting department would have sent you the letter, they are the ones responsible to protect the company and other policy holders from excess liability. Once again the underwriting department decides who to insure or not insure, your agent can not change that process and most of the time the agent is unaware of letters that have been sent to a customer until the customer calls and asks question about it, thats why the underwriting department puts your agents name at the bottom of the letter because its his job to handle your questions or concerns. I hope this info helps.
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By: BoysSchoolTn

BoysSchoolTn — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 10:51:59 +0000

There is no such thing as a minor DUI. If you hit the legal limit, you drank too much, period. That said, State Farm should have only notified those on your policy.

In reference to your personal email to me… Yes, I understand that some states have "tiers" for how they determine how drunk you are when they test for blood alcohol level. What I was trying to say is that is really irrelevant as you have NO business driving with any alcohol in your system. When you do, you are risking other people and not just yourself. That is the bottom line.
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By: wuffo_97

wuffo_97 — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 10:30:59 +0000

No offense but I think you should look into public transportation or a bike.
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By: southminneapolischris

southminneapolischris — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 09:51:59 +0000

All insurance companies suck! Money is the only cure for that is all they are here for. Just end your relationship with all agents and get your policies online at Geico.
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