Texas Farm Bureau Insurance Review 2020 - NerdWallet

Posted: 11 Feb 2020 07:42 AM PST

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Offers some of the cheapest auto insurance rates in Texas, on average.
Has far fewer than the expected number of complaints to state regulators relative to its size for auto and home insurance.
Requires membership in the Farm Bureau, which anyone can join.

Whether you drive a Toyota or a tractor, Texas Farm Bureau Insurance is worth a serious look if you live in the Lone Star State.

You can join the Farm Bureau for $35 to $50 a year, depending on your county. That gives you access to some of the cheapest auto insurance in Texas, along with other types of insurance and a variety of discounts.

Although the Farm Bureau offers insurance from coast to coast, Texas Farm Bureau Insurance is available only to Texans. Texas Farm Bureau Insurance is one of more than 20 separate Farm Bureau-affiliated insurance companies, many of which operate in just one state.

» MORE: How Farm Bureau insurance works

Texas Farm Bureau auto insurance

5.0 NerdWallet rating

Texas Farm Bureau auto insurance earned 5 stars out of 5 for overall performance. NerdWallet's ratings are determined by our editorial team. The scoring formula takes into account a number of details, including pricing, discounts and ease of filing a claim. Other factors analyzed include website transparency, financial strength and complaint data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

It will be eligible for ranking in our list of the best car insurance companies starting in March 2020.

Texas Farm Bureau Insurance has some of the best prices in the state, according to NerdWallet's 2020 rate analysis. For many drivers, its auto insurance is hundreds of dollars a year cheaper than its nearest competitor, on average — more than enough to offset the membership fee.

The company also appears willing to give fast drivers a break: One speeding ticket for driving 16 mph over the limit didn't increase average auto insurance rates in our analysis.

In every category we checked, Texas Farm Bureau Insurance was the state's cheapest option for single drivers, with prices $223 to $1,141 below the state average.

Texas Farm Bureau Insurance average annual rates

For couples and families, Texas Farm Bureau Insurance was typically the second cheapest insurer, with rates that remained well below the state average. We found these average annual rates for a Texas husband and wife, both 50 years old, with and without an 18-year-old driver on the policy:

$1,759 for the couple alone, buying full coverage insurance on two cars. That's $561 below the average for Texas, but $68 higher than the cheapest option.
$3,717 for the couple plus a teen driver, insuring two cars. That's $601 below the state average, but $470 above the cheapest choice.

Texas Farm Bureau auto insurance discounts

As an auto policyholder, you may be eligible for discounts for:

Bundling auto and home coverage.
Insuring more than one vehicle or multiple drivers.
Having a claims-free record.
Driving a car that has air bags, an alarm system or other safety and security features.
Having your car's vehicle identification number etched onto its windows, making the car less appealing to thieves.
Having good grades, if you or someone on your policy is a student.

» MORE: 8 ways to get the cheapest car insurance possible

Texas Farm Bureau auto insurance coverage options

Texas Farm Bureau Insurance policies include liability insurance and give you the option to add comprehensive and collision plus a few other coverage types:

Personal injury coverage, which covers expenses like lost wages and child care if you're injured in a covered accident.
Accidental death coverage, which pays out to a person you choose if you die in a crash.
Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, which helps pay for your injuries and property damage if the driver who caused the crash doesn't have enough liability insurance to cover your costs.

» MORE: Best cheap car insurance in Texas

Texas Farm Bureau homeowners insurance

Homeowners insurance policies from Texas Farm Bureau include all the standard coverage types. You'll have liability coverage in case someone is injured on your property, along with coverage for damage to your home, outbuildings and belongings. If the damage makes your home uninhabitable, your policy will help pay the cost of temporarily living somewhere else.

You can also get extras designed for a farm or ranch, such as coverage for farm machinery, livestock and other farm property.

Texas Farm Bureau home insurance discounts

You may qualify for discounts for:

Bundling home and auto coverage.
Having security features such as keyed deadbolt locks or a monitored alarm system.
Using impact-resistant roofing.
Having a dry fire hydrant, which is a pipe that lets firefighters tap a local water source like a pond or cistern in areas without standard fire hydrants.

Texas Farm Bureau Insurance complaints and customer satisfaction

Texas Farm Bureau Insurance policyholders report they are largely content with their choice.

In J.D. Power's 2019 U.S. Auto Insurance Study, Texas Farm Bureau Insurance was the highest-ranked insurer in the Texas region. It was rated "among the best" for overall customer satisfaction and for each of five factors: policy offerings, price, billing, interaction and claims.

The company had far fewer than the expected number of complaints to state regulators relative to its size for both home and auto insurance, according to three years' worth of data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

More about Texas Farm Bureau Insurance

In addition to auto and home policies, Texas Farm Bureau Insurance offers several other types of coverage:

Life insurance through Southern Farm Bureau Life, an affiliated insurer that operates in 11 states.
Health insurance through Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas.
Medicare supplement plans through Transamerica Life.
Renters insurance and landlords insurance.
Business property and liability policies, including coverage tailored for a farm or ranch.

Texas Farm Bureau members also may qualify for $1,000 to $2,500 in accidental death insurance, plus discounts on dental and vision care, prescriptions, hearing aids and other products.

Website: You can locate an agent, request a quote, pay your bill and file a claim online. For full details about insurance options, the website refers you to a local agent. You cannot get an online insurance quote.

Mobile app: On your mobile device, you can connect with an agent, report a claim and upload damage photos. The app also gives you proof of insurance and details about what your policy covers.

METHODOLOGY: AUTO INSURANCE RATINGS

NerdWallet's auto insurance ratings reward companies for customer-first features and practices. Ratings are based on weighted averages of scores in several categories, including financial strength, consumer complaints, website transparency and affordability. Using our editorial discretion, we also consider customer satisfaction surveys. These ratings are a guide, but we encourage you to shop around and compare several insurance quotes to find the best rate for you. NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.

Methodology: Auto insurance rates

For our "good driver" profile, NerdWallet averaged rates from the largest insurers in the state for 40-year-old men and women in all ZIP codes with 12,000 annual miles driven. The policy includes:

$100,000 bodily injury liability per person.
$300,000 bodily injury liability per accident.
$50,000 property damage liability per accident.
$100,000 uninsured motorist coverage per person.
$300,000 uninsured motorist coverage per accident.
Collision coverage with a $1,000 deductible.
Comprehensive coverage with a $1,000 deductible.

If required, minimum additional coverages were added. Our "young driver" had all the same characteristics, but average rates were for 25-year-old men and women. We used the same assumptions for all other driver profiles, with the following exceptions:

For drivers with minimum coverage, we adjusted the numbers above to reflect minimum required coverage by law in the state.
We changed the credit tier from "good" to "poor" as reported to the insurer to see rates for drivers with poor credit.
For drivers with one at-fault crash, we added a single at-fault crash costing $10,000 in property damage.
For drivers with a ticket, we added a single speeding violation for driving 16 m.p.h. over the speed limit.
For drivers with a DUI, we added a single drunken driving violation.

We used a 2016 Toyota Camry LE for all single drivers.

Couples in our analyses were 50-year-old men and women with good credit and clean driving histories, averaged across all ZIP codes with the same policy outlined above. To see rates for families with a teen, we added an 18-year-old licensed two years ago, averaging rates for male and female teens. For couples and families, we added a 2016 Nissan Rogue S to create a two-car household.

These are rates generated through Quadrant Information Services. Your own rates will be different.

METHODOLOGY: INSURER COMPLAINTS

NerdWallet examined complaints received by state insurance regulators and reported to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in 2016-2018. To assess how insurers compare to one another, the NAIC calculates a complaint index each year for each subsidiary, measuring its share of total complaints relative to its size, or share of total premiums in the industry. To evaluate a company's complaint history, NerdWallet calculated a similar index for each insurer, weighted by market shares of each subsidiary, over the three-year period. Ratios are determined separately for auto, home and life insurance.

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