I hate insurance companies

I’m speaking of home owner insurance specifically. Of course none of them have your best interests in mind. A few months ago our finished basement flooded. The sump pump had failed and of course there was no warning. The insurance covered the removal of carpet and two couches. Then had fans that dried out the floor. They replaced the carpet and padding along with two couches. The total amount of the claim was $10,000. With a $2,500 deductible they paid out $7,500 for the claim. Now keep in mind we have not had a claim in over 30 years. We found out today that our insurance rate was increased by almost $300 a month. The insurance company will recoup what they paid us in about 2 years. Then of course the monthly amount will not go down after that time. After talking to our agent, his response was a very flip response of “That’s how insurance companies work”.

There is no doubt in my mind that this is why people hate them so much. Of course there is nothing we can do about it other than search for better companies, which there are none. In case you are wondering, it was Grange.

Thanks for letting rant about all this. What are some of your experiences.

Wow, that’s frustrating! It’s crazy how quickly rates can skyrocket after a claim, even with decades of no issues.

I do everything I can to avoid filing a claim with my carriers. I have what most would very large deductibles on our policies ($5K house, and $2500 on the cars) and like you I haven't filed a claim.....well, I can't remember filing a claim. But I know for sure if I do they will get it back. These TV ads where they always have your back are just BS. To me, happiness would be seeing the Allstate Mayhem guy stuff the gekko down Flo's throat. This ideally should happen while that serving that emu for dinner.

You also have an opportunity to look elsewhere annually. I think my insurance is going up like that annually without claims.

What’s worse is if you live in a humble state, they may just decide that the total policy value doesn’t support doing business there and leave you high and dry. Iowa has suffered this. They had a high claims rate an low average policy values and like 5 companies just left.

What’s worse is in the background, they have a cross company system tracking rate tables, risk, claims paid on you so when you go, your bad info follows you. On their side, it is almost impossible to find out if they have money, pay claims, harass customers, etc. Even google reviews are bought and paid for. If you leave a 1 star review, it will be down in a week, if it goes up. If you leave 5 stars, it will be part of the star rating for 50 years.

nksmfamjp said:

You also have an opportunity to look elsewhere annually. I think my insurance is going up like that annually without claims.

What’s worse is if you live in a humble state, they may just decide that the total policy value doesn’t support doing business there and leave you high and dry. Iowa has suffered this. They had a high claims rate an low average policy values and like 5 companies just left.

What’s worse is in the background, they have a cross company system tracking rate tables, risk, claims paid on you so when you go, your bad info follows you. On their side, it is almost impossible to find out if they have money, pay claims, harass customers, etc. Even google reviews are bought and paid for. If you leave a 1 star review, it will be down in a week, if it goes up. If you leave 5 stars, it will be part of the star rating for 50 years.

Click to expand...

We are looking at other companies but I’m sure it won’t do any good. Like you said, once you have a claim that info follows you around. I’m sure the info showing we had no claims for 30 years will be lost in the translation. Increasing our deductible is the other option which we will probably do.

Is anyone content or satisfied with their home or auto insurance company? It sounds like many are unhappy with their carrier(s) but don't think they can improve their situation by going elsewhere. I'm open to changing after nearly 50 years with USAA but don't know where to start.

The Quiet Man said:

Is anyone content or satisfied with their home or auto insurance company? It sounds like many are unhappy with their carrier(s) but don't think they can improve their situation by going elsewhere. I'm open to changing after nearly 50 years with USAA but don't know where to start.

Click to expand...

That’s interesting you mention USAA. We were thinking of looking at them. Have you had any issues with them or have they been raising rates like all the others.

Dstegjas said:

That’s interesting you mention USAA. We were thinking of looking at them. Have you had any issues with them or have they been raising rates like all the others.

Click to expand...

I have not had any issues with them (or claims) but constantly read about other members who are having customer service and performance issues. Their website function is a mess and they are difficult to reach for fixes. Rates have increased but I enjoyed a decrease upon moving from Oregon to Ohio last year. My primary issue with them is all their liberal/progressive political stances and advertising over the passed 10 years. They used to laser focus on providing insurance at an excellent price and with spectacular customer service. I think their prices are likely competitive in this inflated market but their customer service level has definitely declined precipitously. It's as if they have lost their "mission focus."