State Farm drops Miss. coast

[flashl]

Source: USA Today

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — State Farm Insurance Cos. won't renew homeowners policies within 1,000 feet of the beach on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, an area devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the company said Wednesday.

State Farm spokesman Jonathan Freed said the change will not take effect until after hurricane season is over Nov. 30.

Freed said no more than 892 policy holders would be affected by the 1,000-foot limit. However, he said about 4,000 more customers living between 1,000 feet and 2,500 feet of the water won't have their wind coverage renewed.

Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney said he has been working with other major carriers.

"We feel certain and confident that those homeowners ... will be able to get coverage," Chaney said.

USA Today

Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-06-11-state-farm_N.htm

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State Farm, the state of Mississippi, anemic follow-up from Katrina, and some Mississippi official's collusion against Mississippi citizens will be known as another 'crime of the century'.

[southern_belle]

1. They decided this after Hurricane season started

on June 1st. :eyes:

[ElectricGrid]

15. did you read the link? The coverage doesn't

stop until the season is over. I hope more insurance companies do this so people won't build houses in stupid locations.

[raccoon]

2. I have a feeling we'll be seeing more of this sort of thing. nt

[bluestateguy]

3. Rep. Gene Taylor once compared insurance co. executives to child molesters

nt

[provis99]

21. only after his OWN house was flattened by Katrina

Taylor is a johnnie-come-lately.

[Kolesar]

4. Taxpayers bailing out vacation home owners bothers me

PBS NOW did a segment on this. Dauphin Island was rebuilt multiple times. Only the builders make out.

[OwnedByFerrets]

5. I live very close to DI....

I have never been in agreement of the rebuilding of the west end of the Island. Not at taxpayer expense, anyway.

[jus_the_facts]

13. There were entire towns wiped off the face of the gulf coast in MS...

...it wasn't JUST vacation homes.

[ElectricGrid]

16. homes that never should have been built there.

[jus_the_facts]

17. Where do you live NEWBIE...bet there will be some kind of disaster there eventually...

...there is NO safe area to live in...or haven't you noticed? :eyes:

[ElectricGrid]

20. No company is under obligation to insure someone for

building in a poor location. That's why insurance comapanies where I live won't insure if you build in a flood plain. Sure it may not flood there in 100yrs but next year it could.

[TheWatcher]

22. .......

[newfie11]

23. so where is there not tornado's, wild fires, flooding, wind damage, hail damage

ETC! State farm used to be our insurance company. We were hit by a tornado in the South Dakota black hills and they took months to pay off. In fact the adjuster didn't come out for a month to even look at the damage. That was after calling them repeatedly.

[underpants]

6. How the HELL could an insurance company lose money!??!

Oh wait, they didn't they just didn't make as much as they thought they would because they had to FULFILL THE CONTRACT!!!! :grr::mad:

[harun]

8. Insurance is the biggest scam out there, politicians won't touch it either (n/t)

[Alcibiades]

7. We've always used State Farm

And have been very happy with the way they have settled claims. Of course, we've never filed a claim for an entire house.

Typical of insurance companies. More than happy to take your check, until they think they will have to pay out, and then--sorry, you'll have to get coverage elsewhere!

[Lars39]

9. Record profits, yet claims continue to drop:

http://tinyurl.com/3zf853

“We saw record profits in 2004 and 2005 despite significant hurricane activity. Profits in
2006 rose to unprecedented heights, with pre-tax profits likely to increase by over $30 billion for
property/casualty insurers, a jump from the previous record of more than $100 for every man
woman and child in America.
Meanwhile, the amount that insurers paid in claims and expenses
as a percentage of the premium collected in 2006 plummeted to a 50-year low,” he said.
“Unfortunately, a major reason why insurers have reported record high profits and low
losses in recent years is that they have been methodically overcharging consumers, cutting back
on coverage, underpaying claims, and getting taxpayers to pick up some of the tab for higher
risks,” said Hunter.

[TransitJohn]

10. Miss. Insurance Comm. Chaney needs

to revoke State Farm's ability to to any and all business in the State of Mississippi.

[jus_the_facts]

11. Criminals....I'll be forever grateful my job with them ended two months before Katrina ...

....they closed their regional corporate offices here in July '05...putting 1500 people out of work...who either had to retire or be laid off....about 500 others had to relocate to stay with them....I had wanted to try to stay with them but decided I couldn't live with myself working for criminals like them....and then disaster happened....ironically they used the empty 300,000 sq. ft. office building to house the displaced people from NOLA up here after our Civic Center was overloaded.

State Farm had been one of the biggest employers in my town for 30+ years...it's really hurt us too...then the GM Guide plant closed not a year later as well...just wondering how long it'll take Chase Manhattan to leave and completely ruin my town. :evilfrown:

[slackmaster]

12. California knows how to deal with that kind of crap

The last time State Farm said it wasn't going to write homeowner's policies (right after the Northridge Earthquake), the California Insurance Commissioner told them:

"OK, then you aren't going to be permitted to write auto policies either."

State Farm backed down.

[pleah]

14. K&R Now you know why they went after Scruggs and his crew.

Scruggs may have been guilty of bribing a judge, but now no one is going after these thieves.

[flashl]

18. IMHO, it was ALWAYS about Scruggs' Class action suit. nt

[KamaAina]

19. "And like a good neighbor..."

...oh, never mind. :banghead:

[sarcasmo]

24. This practice should be illegal. If you wont' insure everyone you can't insure anyone.

That's a quote from myself by the way.