State Farm auto insurance - car damaged by hit and run - lack of real help from State Farm in trying to best serve a long-time, loyal customer

# 11 for October 12, 2003

Complaints.com received the following on October 11, 2003:

From:

RE: State Farm auto insurance - car damaged by hit and run - lack of real help from State Farm in trying to best serve a long-time, loyal customer

On July 3, 2003 my daughter's car was sitting parked in front of a friend’s house. After approximately one hour, another friend yelled at her and said that someone had hit her car. When she got outside, she discovered that her car had been hit.

The person who hit her car was driving away from the accident. One of the other people who had witnessed the accident jumped in his truck and went after the hit and run driver. A few minutes later, one of the witnesses returned with the person who hit her car. He stated he didn’t realize he had hit her car. He told her he would rather pay for the damages himself instead of turning it in on insurance because one more claim would make him lose his insurance. She fell for his story and did not call the police. She got two estimates on her car; each over $1000. She called Taylor Orr, the person who hit her car, and told him she wanted to meet him Monday, July 14 and give him the estimates. He said to call him Monday, so she did. She didn’t get an answer so she left him a voicemail message and he didn’t call back. So two days later she called again and he didn’t answer so she left another message. After she didn’t hear anything from him she called his girlfriend, and told her that if he wasn’t going to pay for the damages, we would need to file a police report and have his insurance company pay for it. She called him at work and told him. The next day there was a voicemail from him apologizing for not calling and stated that he had been busy.

He was shaking like a leaf when my daughter and her friend approached him and gave him the estimates.

After they left, he claimed to some other people that they were not 'real' estimates and that he was not going to pay for her damages.

She then went to the police department and they handed her a form and told her that because she did not call them at the time of the accident, she would need to fill out the form and turn it in on insurance.

She took the completed form to the State Farm office and was told that the claims department would locate his insurance company (through his license-tags number we provided) and have them pay for the damages.

The State Farm claims department never contacted us regarding this until after we contacted the agent again. The claims department said that they could not pursue the matter any further until we paid $500 out of our pocket to start the repairs and they would pay the rest THEN they could go after the guy's insurance company.

I told them I did not have $500 to pay for repairs. They said they would try to locate his insurance company.

After waiting a couple of weeks, I stopped by the agent's office and she called the claims department for me and told them that I did not have the $500 to pay for the damages. They told her also that they would try to locate the other insurance company and have them pay the damages.

That was several weeks ago and still no word from State Farm's claims office. They want us to keep calling them...

I realize (and now so does my daughter) that she should have called the police instead of letting him talk her out of it. But should we allow him to get away with a hit and run, then lying about paying for the damages?

My complaint is against the State Farm claims office for not doing more to assist a customer who has been with them since before 1971 in time of need.

My agent has done all she can do in this matter to the best of my knowledge but State Farm Claims appears to be very 'weak' when it comes time to pay their claims.

I have homeowner's insurance and flood insurance through them, not to mention two automobiles. We have had no automobile moving-violation accident claims since before 1971.

If they do not come through for us, I will be leaving them when my next renewal comes due. Thanks!

William C Allen, Jr.

Fort Oglethorpe, GA 30742