Y2K4 TSX

I can't wait to see the controversy this starts but, I'm curious to know who you think is the best insurance provider. I know, kind of an oxymoron, since they are all crooks, but....

I have used GEICO for many years and then got a company car and now I am replacing it with my TSX (which arrives in less than 2 weeks, WOO HOO!) I was going to re-sign with them, but after looking at State Farm, their rates are almost $140 a year less. It seems surprising, since GEICO always claims how low their rates are, but it's true.

Same coverages, State Farm is almost $140 less/year. Does anyone have feedback about GEICO, State Farm, or anyone else?

One thing I do know - Progressive SUCKS THE BIG ONE. An ex of mine was in a car accident (rear was crushed) and instead of totalling the car, the only thing they would do is take the rear of another car from a junkyard they would locate and "graft" it onto her car. She fought them and won (they gave her a settlement for the "totalled" amount of the car") Talk about cutting corners and being cheap. F them.

Thanks for your input.

BaltoTSX

Just switched to Geico because they had the lowest rates I could find BY FAR!! Obviously I think it depends on who you are (age/sex/driving record), but as a 28 y/o male with no tickets or accidents in the past 10 years, I was able to get some amazing coverage for relatively low amounts. For the coverage I got, I had other insurance companies quoting me $300-500 more than Geico did... I know a couple people who have been using Geico for years and have been extremely happy with them as well... (NO I DO NOT WORK FOR GEICO OR KNOW ANYONE THAT DOES!)... just heard very good things and my experience with them so far is superb... just my 2 cents...

shaf

I have had state farm for a very long time, and every time I've compared rates, geico was at least 20% higher (and progressive was even higher). Allstate was about 10% more. One thing that you should always do is make sure that you're being quoted for the exact same amounts of coverage.

Skull One_RENAMED

I have been with State Farm for 20 years, 2 months and roughly 25 days. That fact that I can tell you that, might give you the impression I like them. Here is why. I finally had the big nightmare happen with my Volvo S80 this year. It was caught in a massive hail storm. Every surface of the car was damaged. The adjuster stopped counting dings on the hood alone at 70 (They wanted to see if I had set a new record at that claims office. I did.) They originally told me it would take about $5k to repair it back to 100%. I was like "Are you sure?" and their respone put my mind at easy. "If it isn't enough, we will take care of it, no questions asked". I took it to the leading Volvo body repair shop and 30 days later I had a car that looked as good as the day it was made. The final bill with car rental was $10,500. I paid my $500 deduct and State Farm took care of the rest without batting an eye. My agent even wanted to inspect it to make sure it met his standard and to note that I had a perfect car incase I ever had to make another claim.

I will never consider leaving State Farm. Their customer service was perfect.

jackspat2

I have Farmers. The most expensive out of any other insurance company besides AAA; I think. It really depends on how long your insurance company has been around, where you live, your age, your vehicle, driving record, etc. It goes on. I think they're not allowed to use your credit report anymore. My insurance is registered 100 miles away, in Palm Springs, instead of here in Torrance. I saved at least a 100 bucks over the year. Also, if you have family near by, multi-car discount! Both parties benefit, their rates go down and so do yours.

Search around on the Net:

www.InsWeb.com
www.Insure.com

And also, about Progressive. Are you expecting not to see this from other insurers?

kenbiddulph

State Farm is the best in my case followed by Allstate. When I wrecked my Accord in a blizzard on some nasty black ice, they gave me more money than it was really worth and were VERY helpful and told me exactly what to expect. Their rates are reasonable and they have lots of locations.

Every once in a while I shop around, Allstate was about 15% higher for me (I have one non-fault accident and no tickets) and Geico was about 35% higher. State Farm was the cheapest and best in my situation, give them a try.

TWong1200

ENOUGH SAID.....

rb4580

I have had state farm for 7 years, and they are the cheapest I've found with the BEST costumer service... I pay 900$ a year and my wife pays 700$ a year, We're both 23 with no tickets.....

Skyhawk

Amica always ranks very highly in Consumer Reports' rankings of insurance companies. I have been quite happy with them for the last four years.

larchmont

I'm very interested to see State Farm getting such nice feedback. I don't work for them or anything like that -- it's just that I've had State Farm forever, which is 34 years, and they've always been great. I really didn't know about anybody's else's experience.

lshenretty

Larch has me beat. I've only had State Farm for 33 years except for about 4 months when I lost my mind and found a little cheaper coverage. For reasons having nothing to do with wealth, we went through three cars coming in and going out during that period, and the new company (or maybe it was the agent) seemed unable to get the changes officially made. Scared me. Went back to State Farm.

7eighteen

....IT ALL DEPENDS ON WHERE YOU LIVE......

BrandonK

I saved lots of $$ going through Costco for AMEX. 2 cars + house coverage. Former claim-free PEMCO customer of 7 years.

RJC RSX

There's absolutely no contest. USAA is the best insurance company. They are consistantly rated #1 all around. The only downside is it's a members only organization.

vitocorleone

I get the best rate through PEMCO (WA state only? Pretty sure it's Northwest Region only....) - better than USAA.

Crazytree

24yo male CA
no accidents/tix
good student discount

21st Century

100K/300K liability
$500 comprehensive
$1,000 collision

$654 6-month premium

adam fiooz

allstate is the bomb!!!!!

OldManTSX

I was with State Farm about 3 years ago and switched to Amica. I had a problem with State Farm on my home insurance. When absolutely everyone around me had their roof replaced for hail damage, State Farm said no damage.
Amica has one of the best records so I didn't mind paying more for home insurance with Amica. Their car insurance is competitive. Just used the car insurance for hail damage. They handled it with no problem or hassle.

jcg878

Man my state sucks. Most of these companies don't even operate here. If there are any accident-free single males in their 20s in NJ around, I'd like to hear from him as to what carrier they have.

Allstate quoted me the biggest ripoff...

(this is an issue with much bitterness for me)

TWong1200

Since we're in the same area, you should give Mercury a try. I got a quote from 21st Century and it was ridiculous. Here are my stats:

27yo Male in CA
No Accidents/Tickets
Good driver discount

25k/50k liability (not as high as yours)
$500 Comp/Collission deductable (better than yours)
25k/50k uninsured motorist (you didn't mention having this)
$79 for towing

$443 6 month premium. Is that great or what?

I'm happy. This is cheaper than my 01 Jetta!

Crazytree

oddly enough my coverage was about $50 more than for my 99 Explorer. What I think is most unusual is how carrier's quotes can vary so much from person to person. For example, all the big insurers gave me really high quotes, while 21st has been consistently low. This is probably due to the fact that I've been with them for so long.

Another plus is that I know that they're pretty good about claims. My mom is a HORRIBLE driver and is always crashing/getting crashed in to (never serious)... and 21st Century never gave her a hard time. This as opposed to friends that I've had with other carriers (read SURVIVAL) who had to wait MONTHS to get claims paid.

LeMasseHammer

AAA insurance here.

27, male in CA
Clean record
Good driver discount etc
50/100k Liability
30/60k Uninsured motorist
$500 deductible
= $1500/year

I've never shopped around. I 've only had one claim -- got rear-ended by a hyundai excel 7 years ago, and it did $1200 damage. I got my check from AAA the next day.

jackspat2

Any News on your search for the "best" insurer?

Crazytree

$845 at Mercury

shaf

TWong1200, you should really up that 25k/50k liability. You could easily do twice that much damage in an accident, and have to end up paying out-of-pocket (or garnished from your paycheck). To get 100/300, it should only be another $100 - 150 or so.

Even if you're a great driver, you could get blamed for something that really wasn't your fault and have to pay anyway.

Y2K4 TSX

State Farm seems to be the "best" from my research. Their rates are definitely the lowest, they have top-notch underwriters (the people who pay the claims) and their customer service seems to be world-class. GEICO seems to have gone downhill from when I had them over a year ago. Their salespeople are VERY PUSHY on the phone and they would rather sign your contract then answer questions. One agent even bashed State Farm, which is a huge no-no in sales (bashing your competition).

I had a question and got transfered **5** times because it seemed that because "I wasn't looking to sign a policy >today<" they would rather pass me to the next rep. Terrible service.

State Farm's agents on the phone have been excellent, so far.

Keep the feedback coming - I won't pick a company until around Friday.

Crazytree

I would really recommend 100/300 insurance for everyone. For me, the difference between 15/30 and 100/300 is about $5 a month. When you consider that a big accident could ruin you financially... it seems like a good idea. ESPECIALLY if you own property or plan to buy a house in the near future.

lshenretty

One small correction. The underwriters don't pay the claims. Most companies use their actuaries to set a class of rates. Then the underwriters set individual rates based on claims history.

It's the claims people who decide what to pay and what to contest. And State Farm's claims people have always been terrific.

lshenretty

I agree with the direction, but I don't think it's enough. $100/300K is a good number for auto liability coverage IF you have an umbrella policy over it. I argued with my wife for years about this. I think anyone making enough money to buy a TSX oughta have at least a $1M umbrella over all their liability coverage, raising it to $1.3M or so. $1M these days is way too easy to reach. Think about it - do you ever have people over and serve them alcohol?

Y2K4 TSX

Question time again - I noticed State Farm doesn't have a 24/7 phone number like GEICO does. With GEICO, I could call anytime to get a new insurance card faxed to me, file claims, ask questions, etc, etc. It seems like State Farm makes you call a local agent and it has to be during business hours.

Not that I'd need to call my insurance company all the time (I hope I won't need to!) - It just seems like GEICO is way more reachable and way more customer oriented.

Any insight to the availability or "reachability" of State Farm?

Thanks!

Crazytree

I'm with you 100% on the umbrella policy.

However, on the "if you make enough money to afford a TSX" statement... you have to remember that there are in fact two worlds in the United States. Southern California and then there's everything else.

In SoCal, the car is king, and many people drive cars that are out of their league, financially. Heh, but that's a topic for another thread.

BUT STATE MINIMUM LIMITS ARE NOT ENOUGH.

shaf

Y2K4 TSX,

There is a "good neighbor" 24 hour number for things such as filing claims, roadside assistance, and asking questions. I do not know if the 24 hour number people can fax you an insurance card or not, but you could always call them to find out.

I have no experience with GEICO, but I can say that with State farm, the customer service people are great. I've never had to go through 2 or 3 clueless people to get the answer I need. Even if it's an out-of-the-ordinary question, the first person I talk to can usually answer it.

Plus, they have a pretty comprehensive online site where you can get official quotes for theoretical new purchases, pay online, add cars or people, change coverage, etc.