Posted on 03/15/2025 3:53:35 AM PDT by vespa300
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara provisionally approved State Farm’s request for a 22% property insurance rate hike, citing a need to stabilize the insurance market.
Lara said State Farm must justify its provisionally approved rates with data it provides in a public hearing. He also called upon the company to both halt non-renewables and secure a $500 million cash infusion from its parent company.
“To ensure long-term choices for Californians, I had to make an unprecedented decision in the short term,” said Lara in a statement. “It is evident that other California insurers are unable to absorb State Farm’s existing customers, which poses a significant risk of these customers ending up on the FAIR Plan — a scenario we all wish to avoid as my Sustainable Insurance Strategy is implemented.”
(Excerpt) Read more at justthenews.com ...
Allstate’s expensive, but we got significant hail damage a few years ago here in Texas, and they were quick and fair in getting me paid for the repairs. Folks with cheaper insurance were the ones complaining about the adjustment process.
All things considered, I’d rather complain about rates than settlements.
Allstate’s expensive, but we got significant hail damage a few years ago here in Texas, and they were quick and fair in getting me paid for the repairs. Folks with cheaper insurance were the ones complaining about the adjustment process.
You never want to collect on insurance, it means you lost. Especially life insurance.
Insurance policies ought to be priced to actual risk, with the federal government out of the business of redistributing to those who don’t carry adequate coverage.
If I were paranoid, I'd almost wonder if banks ever collude with insurance companies. You know: "You give the loan and take the down payment, we'll jack up the insurance till he can't pay it or sell it, you foreclose... and we'll sell it again next year to someone else!" I mean, it would work. They could collect down payments and hefty sums from a different person every couple years on the same house.
May I ask if the money Allstate reimbursed you added up to more than all the money you’ve paid them over the years? I’m not challenging you, I’m just wondering if it’s still a better deal than simply saving your money and paying for it yourself.
But for the deductible, it should. You calculate how much loss you can absorb, and insure for the loss above that. And it should make you whole on the insured loss.
No, it didn't. If it had happened the first year of the policy, it would have. 30 years down the road, they've made money off of me. Life insurance companies have made a lot more off of me. And I'm glad about that.
Thing is, I insure not just for the roof, skylights, and some ancillary damage. Yes, I would have been able to pay that out of retirement savings. But a catastrophic loss (fire or tornado) is what I'm insuring against. And if either of those ever happened, yes, I'd be well ahead on the deal.
California is pretty much uninsurable. Californians populated a desert pretending it was a moderate climate. It isn’t. It is desert and average rainfall projected for ever is inadequate to produce the faux moderation pretended.
That’s what I worry about: sudden, catastrophic loss. Smaller things I could pay for myself if I wasn’t giving that money to the insurance company instead. Same with the car, really.
I had an AllState insured vehicle back into me in the parking lot of a Home Depot. I even saw him coming and blasted my horn for 5-10 second. He hit me anyway. (He was extremely hard of hearing... AND had his radio on.) He was apologetic.
Cop came and assessed blame 100% on him.
All State wanted me to assume 50% liability. No amount of talking or reasoning with them did any good. I volunteered to drive to the sheriff’s office to get a copy of the accident report to send to them. Which, after I did, they told me they already had it. I asked them what their client had told them about the accident. They said that was private and they wouldn’t say whether he told them he was at fault or not.
They want to just wear you down.
I eventually filed through my insurance (State Farm) and they had me get the vehicle fixed, then reimbursed me the deductible that they received from All State.
Basically, they’re all crap.
Try saying, “Like a Good Neighbor State Farm is there.” when you’re on the phone trying to get satisfaction. They’re just as bad.
Of course CA approves, it impacts inflation. What they need to do is clean out brush, keep reservoirs filled, and reduce government regulations on building.
My neighbor has State Farm - his rate went up so much last year (after 30 years) that he called the company - they said the rate increase was because so many people had filed in 2023. It will be far worse this year.
Another friend had the property she’s lived in for 40 years declared a “fire zone” - and State Farm dropped her. She found another insurance company but it wasn’t easy.
Mebbe a good,first step. But, I doubt it.
How about reversing the regs that drove all the other insurers out of the state, yah pack of morons?
Just let insurers refuse to insure a particular house or neighborhood for a particular risk. If yah live in a fire-prone area, no fire insurance. But, that does not mean you can’t be offered insurance for wind, water, etc.
E.g., right now it is difficult to get insurance for water leaks inside an older house, like 50+ years. No amount of inspection will get insurance. Yah have to replace everything — imagine the expense. This potential risk of a minor expense scares off insurers on ALL risks.
“secure a $500 million cash infusion from its parent company”
F that: that would mean i’d be paying for california’s gross mis-governance ...
worse for the REST OF US would be for State Farm national to cave and GIVE CA State Farm a half a billion of the money the REST OF US have paid for OUR insurance ... OUR rates would have to go up to pay for california’s gross mis-governance ... F that, State Farm! ... not all of your customers are stupid ...
From MoonShineInk:
“ According to Cal Fire incident maps, the FAIR Plan estimates its potential exposure at $4 billion for the Palisades Fire and $775 million for the Eaton Fire. As of March 2024, the FAIR Plan held approximately $200 million in surplus capital and $2.6 billion in reinsurance. If available funds fall short, all insurers operating in the state may be assessed to cover the gap. While the full impact remains uncertain, this could lead to higher premiums not just in California but nationwide.”
That’s the reason they approved the rate hike.
I’ve priced adjusting the deductible but it doesn’t seem to make that much difference.
In keeping with State policies that defy common sense and sound economics, California Insurance Commissioners have not approved ANY increase in property premiums for five or six years … 22% maybe covers inflation in that period.
“If I were paranoid, I’d almost wonder if banks ever collude with insurance companies.”
No need to be paranoid, that is exactly how greedy industries work. Healthcare, Auto repair, Banking, Real Estate, Insurance... Anything and everything they can do to screw the customer out of one dime more. It is crooked business.
Individuals are that way too. I knew a retired Sheriff who sold his business over and over and over and kept the down payments. He would plant drugs on their property and then call in Drug Enforcement to bust them, break their pocketbook, then get it back as the lien holder. His wife finally felt guilty and turned him in for it. Of course he didn’t go to jail for it, he had a get out of jail free card and was buddies with the local judge and DA.
Oh my God. I am speechless.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.