Farmers

From humble beginnings to a major insurance company now serving more than 10 million homes, Farmers insurance is a big player in the game.

Overview

The year was 1928, and two ambitious men, Thomas E. Leavey and John C. Tyler, saw an opportunity that just couldn’t be passed up. They knew that rural farmers needed insurance coverage to protect their interests, and so they began going door to door selling insurance policies to all of the farms in need. This company has grown to be made up of about 46 separate companies, and they offer an extensive array of insurance policies, products, and services for all 50 states of the USA.

Well-known actor J.K. Simmons has been the spokesman for Farmers for years now, and offers a distinct sense of humor to their insurance commercials. From their humble beginnings, this insurance company now staffs 48,000 agents and 21,000 other employees. Not a bad jump from just two men going door to door selling policies to farmers.

When it comes to car insurance, Farmers offers many coverage options, including liability coverage, collision coverage, comprehensive coverage, and uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, plus other types of insurance like personal injury protection. Farmers also offers multi-policy discounts when you purchase both home and car insurance through them, as well as multi-car discounts.

Farmers Pros And Cons

Pros

• There is only a slight increase in rates between those that are low mileage drivers, and those that are high mileage drivers.

Cons

• Farmers insurance tends to rank among the highest in rates out of the big auto insurance companies.

Farmers Coverage

• Antique And Collector Vehicles are a type of coverage offered by Farmers insurance, to protect special collectible automobiles.
• Roadside Emergency Coverage will cover you for battery charging, tire changes, reimbursement for towing costs up to $150, and winching in case your car is trapped in mud.
• App Access which allows for Farmers policyholders to access their insurance cards, pay your bill, talk to an agent, and make any necessary claims while traveling.

Standard Coverage

• Liability Coverage covers you in case of any damage that might be caused to someone else’s body or property.
• Collision Coverage will cover the damages done to your car during an automotive accident.
• Comprehensive Coverage covers damages done to your car outside of automotive accidents, i.e. vandalism, and theft.
• Uninsured And Underinsured Coverage will protect you against motorists that don’t have coverage, and those that don’t have enough coverage, to repair your car after a collision.

Car Insurance Rates

Much like all car insurance rates, Farmers’ insurance rates will vary dependent upon the age of the policyholder. Younger driver profiles on average for 25-year-old males comes to around $1,996, and for 25-year-old female drivers it comes to around $1,908. If the drivers were 60-year-old males then the rates were a good deal lower at $1,507, and $1,431 for 60-year-old males. In the middle of age rates were 35-year-old males and females, where males received rates at $1,631, and females received $1,619.

Mileage is often a deciding factor when choosing insurance, because rates will differ greatly based on how far and often the policyholder is going to drive. That’s not the case with Farmers insurance, because their rates don’t really change that much when taking mileage into consideration. Policyholders that drove 12,000 miles a year had an average rate of $1,682, and $1,670 for policyholders that drove 6,000 miles a year. It only oscillated $12 between those two mileage counts.

When choosing the level of coverage offered by Farmers insurance, the rates varied greatly. Low coverage offered an average rate of $1,582, and high coverage rates averaged at $1,787. It does only come to around a $200 difference, but is more than most of Farmers’ competitors. Higher coverage is often going to be worthwhile, so that you’re actually protected in the case of an accident.

The policyholder’s driving record will make one of the biggest differences in how large their premium is going to be. For drivers with a clean driving history the average rate came to around $1,682. Having only a single speeding ticket raises the average rate to $2,099, whereas an accident raises the rate to around $2,446. The one driving offence that will do you the least favors is when a policyholder receives a DUI, which then raises the average rate to $2,640 for yearly premiums. The rate rase for DUI’s with Farmers insurance is one of the highest among all of the insurance companies.

As is true with most insurance companies, maintaining a good credit rating will affect your premiums in a very positive way. For drivers that maintain a good credit rating Farmers insurance offers an average rate of $1,642, and for drivers with poor credit the average rate comes to $2,669. That comes to over a $1,000 difference between rates, which is better than most insurance companies, but because Farmers insurance starts at a higher rate for good credit ratings to begin with, it still comes out pretty high.

Car Insurance Discounts

Farmers insurance offers a number of discounts for its policyholders.

• Mature Driver’s Discount means they offer lower rates for older drivers.
• Clean Driving Record will give lower rates for anyone that maintains a clean driving record, sans accidents, tickets, and DUI’s.
• Insurance Bundling for any drivers that bundle their homeowner’s policies with their auto insurance policies.
• Good Grades offers reduced rates for students that retain a good grade average.
• Safety First for those drivers that have the latest safety equipment installed in their vehicle.
• School Discounts for parents whose children are away at school and not driving their automobiles.

Farmers Insurance Vs. Competitors

Allstate Vs. Farmers: The last comparison we’ll use is between Farmers auto insurance and Allstate auto insurance. Farmers ended up having better premiums for its policyholders across the board. Allstate ended up ranking as the most expensive in multiple demographics. Farmers ranked at 7th in our studies of 9 different auto insurance companies, beating Allstate out by 2 in the rankings.

Here is a list of annual rates for 9 of the most well-known auto insurance companies, from lowest to highest average annual rates:

• USAA $885
• Travelers $1,267
• Progressive $1,373
• American Family $1,391
• Farmers $1,682
• Nationwide $1,864
• Allstate $1,880