State Auto Home Insurance Reviews: Customer Satisfaction
A.M. Best reduced State Auto ’s rating from A to A- in 2015 after one of State Auto ’s wholly owned subsidiaries, Risk Evaluation and Design LLC (RED), went into runoff (or stopped underwriting policies) in 2014. Moody’s also withdrew A3 financial strength ratings from five State Auto insurance company subsidiaries in December 2015.
Still, State Auto ’s 100 years in the industry have proven its ability to financially recover after periods of stress. While recovering from RED’s closure, State Auto reported a negative $18.5 million net income in 2017. But by 2018, three years after the subsidiary went into runoff, State Auto was back to reporting positive net incomes.
When it comes to customer reviews, State Auto has earned itself a good NAIC complaint index (any value less than one indicates fewer complaints than average), but current, past, and prospective customers have left complaints on review platforms like Yelp, Google, the Better Business Bureau, and the NAIC. The most frequent complaints were regarding customer service and issues in the claims process.
Since State Auto issues policies through independent insurance agents, claims and customer service issues are typically handled between policyholders and their local agents. This can leave some customers completely satisfied while others are left in the cold with their claims and complaints.
Still, many customer reviews share the same concern: State Auto customer service representatives are largely unresponsive.
Other reviewers noted experiences when State Auto unexpectedly raised their monthly premiums by hundreds of dollars. One customer said State Auto charged them $165 for insurance coverage the first month and raised their premium to $515 the next month.
Jesse, another unhappy policyholder, noticed their premiums increased slightly each year, but 2020 brought the most significant price change yet.
Multiple unsatisfied customers even referred to State Auto as “unethical” after the company failed to reimburse what they felt should have been covered losses.
Possibly the most surprising reviews came from people who had canceled their State Auto policies or who never had a policy with the company at all. Past policyholders noted ongoing communication and billing issues with State Auto after cancellation. And others reported State Auto issued insurance policies without their knowledge after asking for a quote from the company.
Across review platforms, State Auto ’s response to complaints remains the same:
While most State Auto complaints seem to come from car insurance customers, the overwhelming volume of policyholders who reported negative experiences with the company in the last three years depicts State Auto as unreliable at best and unethical at worst. If you’re considering purchasing a State Auto home insurance policy, be sure to talk to your local agent and read through your potential policy’s fine print before you sign.
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