Been with State Farm for 30 years. They increased our deductible from $500.00 to $5,000.00!! Was told this was just for a couple years then deductible would be reduced. Called today and was told be happy for the $5,000.00! Grrrrrrr.

Anyone have a good suggestion for reasonable home owner insurance????

Thanks in advance for any help!

I just finished shopping around on home insurance. Unless you file claims every year or your credit stinks, State Farm is ripping you off and telling you tales. Nobody I shopped with insisted on a $5,000 deductible.

I just finished shopping around on home insurance. Unless you file claims every year or your credit stinks, State Farm is ripping you off and telling you tales. Nobody I shopped with insisted on a $5,000 deductible.

I think so too! Haven't had a claim for at least 5 years. I'm so pissed about this. "Like a good neighbor State Farm is there"???? Yeah right.

Call an independent agent who could tell you right off if they're ripping you off. Independent agents deal with many companies and don't just sell policies for one company.
Sounds fishy to me.

Anyone who has homeowners insurance should read this:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&refer=home&sid=aIOpZROwhvNI
(Its an old article, but telling...)
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`There's a fundamental economic conflict between the customer and the company,'' he says. ``That is, the company doesn't want to pay. The first commandment of insurance is, `Thou shalt pay as little and as late as possible.'''

I like how they managed to change the "you're in good hands to boxing gloves" part...

Here's one little example:

`Thin Air'

Farmers had offered to pay him $470,000 to rebuild the house. Royal Construction Inc., based in Collinsville, Illinois, estimated the cost at $1.1 million. Hazlett, 52, accepted a settlement for an undisclosed amount.

Hazlett says Illinois Farmers, a subsidiary of Farmers, used the Xactimate software program to first determine what it would pay out. ``They're just pulling numbers out of thin air,'' he says. ``There's no rhyme or reason.'' Farmers spokesman Jerry Davies didn't respond to requests for an interview.

Bo Chessor, owner of Royal Construction, says he sees insurers refusing to pay coverage limits all the time. ``Most people just roll over and take it because they don't have the money to fight it,'' Chessor says. ``What the insurance companies are doing is purely robbery.''

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Homeowners whose properties have been destroyed by catastrophes contend with low payouts, higher premiums, software programs that underestimate rebuilding costs and sudden changes in policy values -- all of which have been calculated methods for insurers to increase profits.

Tunnell, the San Diego accounting teacher whose home burned to the ground, says she thought State Farm had adequately insured her family when they bought their three-bedroom house in 1992. She says the policy, destroyed in the fire, provided for ``full replacement coverage.''

It guaranteed to rebuild the house, no matter the cost, she says. The company offered to pay $220,000 -- which was $86,000 less than a $306,000 figure her family got from State Farm's own estimator, Hersum Construction Inc. of San Diego, for rebuilding the 1,700-square-foot house.

What was their reasoning behind the deductible jump?

I have Travelers (via Geico) and my deductible is $500. However, I feel my premium of $2,300/year is a bit high for my $120,000 house, when I've never made a claim. I got quotes from a few other major companies, however, and the premium would have been similar with them. So I guess I just live in a high-risk area of some sorts (read: in OKC limits).

What was their reasoning behind the deductible jump?

We had a claim due to the major ice storm several years ago. Then 3 years ago a hail damage claim. From the time distance between the two - I don't see how being a customer for over 30 years would jeopardize your policy so much. Sure hope a few more of you will be able to share more insurance leads....I sure need them!

Some companies are trying to get out of Oklahoma by these means. If your deductible is 5 grand it keeps you from filing a claim for hail damages and broken windows. It's a tactic to either get you to move on or for you to become a very profitable customer. It's kindof like I don't want to sell you my $500 car so ill quote you $5000 if you buy it I'm happy if not no biggie I did not want to sell anyways

Also one question did they quote you a smaller premium with the increased deductable. That big of a spike in deductable should come along with a 25% or so reduction in premium

Check with Allison Insurance. They don't sell insurance per say but they do the footwork to find you the best price for your situation.

Something's rotten in Denmark here. I've had SF for everything for years, had excellent claims service, found their premium rates to be reasonable, and never found myself being "gouged" with a sudden or unexplained premium jump. Not saying premiums haven't gone up, but I've never been "forced" to accept a 10x increase in deductible.

If your agent is honest/credible, (s)he or one of the reps should be happy to explain what's going on. Approach them professionally, and they should give you a professional, reasonable response. If they're hesitant, or give you the "go to heck" attitude, I'd visit another SF agent and tell them exactly what's going on. What you've described doesn't make sense, short of some sudden jump in risk category, claims experience, or significant adverse change in your personal credit record.

In all honesty, I'd suspect the latter. Grab a copy of your credit record (you're entitled to one free report per year) and make sure nothing fishy is going on.

SF jacked up my rates even with an 800 credit score. I went to Chayse Ins in Edmond and halved my bill. Thanks Chayse!

I have Travelers (via Geico) and my deductible is $500. However, I feel my premium of $2,300/year is a bit high for my $120,000 house, when I've never made a claim. I got quotes from a few other major companies, however, and the premium would have been similar with them. So I guess I just live in a high-risk area of some sorts (read: in OKC limits).

I got a similar quote last year when I had to find new homeowners insurance because GHS quit writing insurance in Oklahoma. My house is valued at 148,000.00 I got several quotes and went with AFR, American Farmers and Ranchers, an Oklahoma based company. I got a discount for the new rood that was put on in 2010 and my premium was around 1400.00. I filed a claim last month for the May hail storm and was treated more than fairly. I just got the check for the storm damage and the roofers start putting on another roof in a week or so.

Wow, home insurance is high in OKC, I suppose due to all the crazy weather and related roof problems.


You guys are all paying way more than me here in Cali, and my home value is much higher (very humble place, houses are just crazy expensive out here).

Wow, home insurance is high in OKC, I suppose due to all the crazy weather and related roof problems.


You guys are all paying way more than me here in Cali, and my home value is much higher (very humble place, houses are just crazy expensive out here).

I guess that is due to Oklahoma City being dubbed "The Hail Capitol". Everyone's rates went up after the 2010 hail storm and will go up again after this year I am sure. The recent huricaines will also impact our rates since they usually spread it out across the board.

I wonder why more homes in Oklahoma don't use concrete tile roofs?

It's more expensive than asphalt shingles but lasts a lot longer and I would think it would hold up against hail and severe weather much better.


All the homes in my neighborhood have concrete tile for the look and my roof has lasted almost 30 years and it still has some life in it.

They need to be built to support the heavier tile roofs. I saw one house in Shawnee that tried it without having an engineer do a pre-inspection. Hopefully they did a repair to the sway-backed ridge line eventually.

But why aren't newer houses built with the heavier roofs in mind?

I really like the way concrete tile looks as well.

It would be pretty simple to run a comparative analysis of the two, factoring in initial construction (including reinforcements for concrete roof), replacement cost, and insurance savings.

I suspect owners don't want to go to the added expense because that drives up the prices of their homes.

It's very hard to sell long-term benefits when people don't tend to stay in homes nearly as long.

But why aren't newer houses built with the heavier roofs in mind?

I really like the way concrete tile looks as well.

Heavier roofing = more wood structure required to support it = more $ to build = less profit for homebuilders.

Take a look at The Hartford insurance (http://www.thehartford.com/). I have them for my car and home and their rates are very affordable. They also offer some cool discounts that make your premiums much cheaper and their rates are locked in for an entire year and not 6 months like most companies so you don’t have to worry about sudden increases.