I have to ask all.. Because State Farm insurance will not cover Mississippi..Do you trust State farm anymore?

Question

If Start Farm will not cover New Orleans and southern Alabama, Mississippi? Would you trust them for Auto Insurance? The outcome of this question will be a MinnesotaRick's yahoo 360 blog..

Answer 1

sorry to say I really don't trust any insurance agency, but its a law that you must have one. but I would never go with state farm. I just don't like that company.

Answer 2

I would trust them, and here's why.....

Insurance is about risk and doing business with the least amount of it. If you were an insurance company, would you want to pay claims in a high risk area? Most likely not. And what poses a great risk? Homeowners claims.

When compared to auto claims, the monies paid out are minimal. Also, auto claims do not carry the same exclusions as homeowners policies, where even if something is excluded there is still a "loop hole" that will eventually afford coverage. I understand State Farm's position in the recent lawsuit they lost, but I disagree with their position wholeheartedly. The damages Katrina sustained were a result of wind, not water, and those claims should have been paid--it never should have gone as far as it did.

But with auto insurance....there's not much argument, you have damage from an accident or you don't. Granted, there's a lot of issues surrounding that, but not like with homeowner claims.

Answer 3

State Farm is one of the few companies that still operate on the Customer Service principal. They key to understanding your coverage is to have someone that you can sit down face to face with. The reason State Farm is no longer insuring in Missisippi is because of the dollars that they are currently paying out. To date billions of dollars have been paid out by State Farm alone in the Katrina areas. Like any type of insurance, price is matched with risk, when risk surpasses any dollar value that can be charged then drastic measures have to be taken in order to remain "in business" In simplist terms... if a company is paying out more often than not, chances are they tend to be higher in rates and they may have to back off writing policies in certain areas until they can even out. People need to understand more about what their policies cover then they can understand how a potential claim will be handled. Like any buying decision, do the research. Just because a company has experienced unfavorable losses on the homeowners side does not mean they will not accept business for auto. In fact the opposite is true they will generally try to write more auto, life etc. to help offset other losses. I would most certainly trust State Farm not only because I know I'm not just another caller on an 800 line, but because I've been on the inside of the Katrina efforts and have witnessed our Canadian claims people leaving their families behind here to go help in the efforts of our US counterparts, not because State Farm told them to, but because they wanted too. Any State Farm agent and employee will tell you that the salary isn't any better than the competitor but the ability to impact our clients is why we work for this company. Like any business there is bound to be bad experiences but relative to the competition I feel that we are leaps and bounds ahead.

Answer 4

I think that State Farm has made a wise business decision to avoid covering areas that can have very widespread damage due to natural disasters.

In fact, for car insurance, I would be more willing to go with a company that avoids disaster prone areas, because a really bad disaster could bankrupt any insurance company and leave you with no car insurance in some other state. For example, a bad earthquake in California would bankrupt many insurance companies instantly. (Maybe that risk has been passed to government insurers like the flood insurance-it was private insurance when I lived there in 1998).

I think it is stupid for so many people to live in these disaster-prone area, and government flood insurance has just made matters worse. Some people have to live in dangerous areas because there is a port there or something, but I dunno. I trained as a geologist, and we studied all those places in the US that can go down the tubes in a hurry. So I guess state Farm agrees with me, the actuaries got nervous.

I also have a low opinion of insurance companies avoiding paying claims that actually WERE covered by insurance, but I don't know if state farm is any worse than any other insurance company for that.

Answer 5

I trust them, and I put my money where my mouth is - ALL my personal insurance (homeowners, auto, umbrella) is with State Farm.

I have READ the policies, I understand what they cover, and more importantly, what they DON'T cover. I understand there is no FLOOD coverage on a homeowners policy. Flood means any water that comes in at ground level - ie, anything except rain. I understand there is no MOLD coverage. I'm in Houston, Hurricane Alley, so I also know I'm in a 100 year flood zone, and likely to have storm damage.

I've compared the coverage offered by State Farm with coverage offered by other carriers. I'm talking about COVERAGE here, not pricing, not deductibles. I'm WITH State Farm, because it has the most BROAD coverage offered in my area. It is NOT the cheapest coverage I found - actually, it's the most expensive. But it has MORE PERILS INSURED AGAINST.

Believe me, I've done the homework, and I don't know anyone who could do a more thorough job. I double and triple check my agent, and actually changed agents because the prior agent wasn't up to my standards.

I trust myself. And I know that insurance companies will follow their contracts - also known as policies. It's up to the CONSUMER to be responsible for knowing what you buy.

Answer 6

If I had my autos with State Farm, I would be concerned.
I read the other answers above mine, and they all make valid points, but...
I, myself, would fear that they would do something similar in my area if a catastrophe hit. I live in an area known for incredible hail. If a storm came through and everyone in my area, called their agent and filed an auto hail claim and a home hail claim, would they stop insuring us all? That's the message I get from their recent actions. The policy I have now, guarantees my policy rates will not go up on my first claim and I will never be cancelled because of a claim. Sure, it cost an extra $50 a year, but when that freak hail storm comes in, it's worth it.

Answer 7

Why would a business decision make me less trustful? They have a history of losing money in those areas. Many insurers have moved out of the Gulf Coast and Florida areas. If they charged the premiums required to even break even, you would be upset about that, too.

Business have to make money. Everyone seems to see Insurance as a bottomless pocket. Look at your mutual funds in your 401k. Chances are that some of your retirement fund is invested in an insurance company. As an investor, would you want that company to lose money? I wouldn't. I also wouldn't want to insure my home, auto, or life with a company that didn't charge a high enough premium to be able to pay claims.

Answer 8

Heck yea I trust state farm. The price we pay for living in low lying flood plains.... *sigh*

I've got a few policies with them. Never a hiccup. Their decision to leave those area doesn't make me weary of trusting them. Its how it is. They're not the only company with issues in those areas. Just the biggest I assume.

Answer 9

I lost confidence in State Farm many many years ago. They do not have good customer service in my opinion.

I would have expected them to react just like they did in Mississippi.

Answer 10

I heard that they will not cover the flood areas anymore i can see that to an certain extent. As for auto no i heard bad things about them before the flood.