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State Farm and Ford recently announced the companies have entered into an agreement to share connected vehicle telematics data for usage-based insurance (UBI) products. State Farm customers with eligible connected Ford vehicles will be able to opt-in to Drive Safe … Continue reading
Fortune 500 magazine ranked the biggest American companies in its June/July 2020 issue, a few of which are related to the auto glass and insurance industries. Several were in the top 100: Ford Motor landed the 12th spot earning $155,900 … Continue reading
MRI Associates of Tamps Inc. (MRI Associates) went to the Supreme Court in hopes of overturning a previous ruling in favor of State Farm Insurance Co. (State Farm). The lawsuit centers on State Farm’s method for calculating reimbursements under Florida’s … Continue reading
Heather Hack, Gregory Hack and Skylar Hack, became the first individuals to file a class action lawsuit against State Farm Fire and Casualty Insurance Co. (State Farm) for allegedly withholding thousands of dollars in policyholder’s personal injury benefits. The group’s … Continue reading
State Farm’s Glass Claims Services sent out a notice to its National Glass Program participants yesterday that will impact the rotation of jobs among retailers and change the limit for customized offers. According to the company, its new policy changes … Continue reading
State Farm recently filed a lawsuit in Florida arguing against the state Office of Insurance Regulation’s (OIR) requests for public record information required by the state. Many of the records involved assignment of benefits (AOB) and insurance claims. State Farm … Continue reading
Fortune 500 magazine, ranked the biggest American companies in its June 2018 issue, a few of which are related to the auto glass and insurance industries. Three were in the top 100: State Farm Insurance landed the 36th spot earning … Continue reading
Usually when a car accident leads to a windshield replacement, the victim contacts his or her insurance provider. From there, he or she goes through a series of steps in order to get their vehicle back on the road. Recently, … Continue reading
A jury recently found Texas-based John Eagle Collision Center liable for injuries sustained by Matthew and Marcia Seebachan following a 2013 crash because a repair was not done according to OEM specifications, according to the verdict. Now, State Farm is … Continue reading
After much discussion, Arizona SB 1155, a bill aimed at strengthening the state’s current anti-steering laws and requiring timely inspections of glass claims, cleared the state’s Senate Committee on Government. “I come here before you today as someone who’s been … Continue reading
Not getting paid in full for parts, time and labor is easily one of auto glass shops’ biggest grievances when it comes to working with insurers and Third Party Administrators (TPAs). This, at least, is according to a recent survey … Continue reading
The reinstatement of a lawsuit by five auto repair shops against insurers for violating antitrust laws has spurred more auto shops whose lawsuits have been stagnant since 2015 to follow suit. In September, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed … Continue reading
“Greedy insurance companies have been bullying auto body shops into fixing damaged vehicles with unsafe practices and materials for decades,” said attorney Todd Tracy, who recently filed a lawsuit against State Farm Mutual Auto Insurance on behalf of his clients … Continue reading
Five auto repair shops, who claimed several insurance companies fixed repair prices, have had their case reinstated by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. The shops, which are located in different states throughout the country, originally had … Continue reading
Hurricane Harvey, now a tropical storm, pounded Houston and surrounding areas over the weekend, bringing with it devastating amounts of rain, which in some parts, have yet to cease. The National Weather Service forecasters expect some areas to see rainfall … Continue reading
Matthew and Marcia Seebachan have dismissed their cases against State Farm Mutual Automobile Company, which alleged the insurer influenced an auto repair that didn’t meet OEM specifications in order to increase its bottom line. The lawsuits, which were filed separately, … Continue reading
Texas Watch, a non-partisan citizen advocacy organization, has asked the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) to investigate the insurance industry’s “corner cutting automobile repairs.” This is in light of State Farm’s alleged role in influencing an auto repair that wasn’t … Continue reading
Motorist Alleges State Farm Failed to Provide Benefits After Collision
Louisiana’s Lawsuit Against State Farm, Filed by Former Attorney General, Lies Dormant
Making Car Care Easier – State Farm® Teams Up with Openbay
A Georgia woman recently won a $40,000 award from State Farm when the Georgia Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal by the insurance carrier.
State Farm Insurance and Bloomberg Government have released the results of a survey
designed to gauge public attitudes about driverless cars.
An Illinois judge has granted State Farm a stay in the class action lawsuit brought against it by more than 5 million customers.
The damage from Hurricane Matthew is still being assessed and cleaned up and insurance claims are being filed, but many local glass companies haven’t seen a spike in automotive glass claims.
Plaintiffs in a class-action suit against State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. responded October 10 to a request by the insurance company for a stay to have the case reviewed.
Customers of State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. brought a class-action suit against the insurance company, claiming it helped elect a judge and block a billion-dollar award against State Farm.
The AGRR industry had a mixed reaction to news that State Farm is changing its “offer” on September 19. “We’re bracing ourselves,” says Dennis Farrar, president of Oesterle Auto Glass & Paint in Parkersburg, W.Va.
State Farm is changing the “offer” in its offer and acceptance program, effective September 19.
Noting there has been no change, Dave Phillips, a State Farm spokesperson, says, “We manage our offer to the glass industry to meet our customer’s needs.”
In the latest move in the national case consolidated in the U.S. District Court in Florida, attorneys representing several Arizona collision repair shops allege in an amended complaint that State Farm and dozens of other insurers force the companies to use aftermarket or salvaged parts when repairing vehicles. “Aftermarket windshield glass poses a serious safety risk to vehicle occupants,” the attorneys allege.
Automotive glass replacement claims throughout the country are growing, says Dave Phillips, a spokesperson for State Farm. He points to claims’ statistics in Virginia and Pennsylvania as indicators of this increase.
Collision repair shops from throughout the country have objected to a Florida judge’s recommendation that many of the cases alleging antitrust violations by insurers be dismissed without prejudice. Collision repair shops from 12 Federal District Courts had alleged “steering and price fixing” by dozens of insurers. The cases are consolidated before a Florida U.S. District Court judge.
Hail damage to homes and vehicles cost State Farm policyholders more than $2.4 billion in 2014. Which states took the hardest hit?
A group of Florida collision repair shops have filed a third-amended complaint against State Farm and dozens of other insurers, alleging the insurers use their direct repair programs to illegally control and depress rates and they say if the shops don’t comply, customers are steered away. “With occasional exceptions, defendant insurers write estimates requiring use of aftermarket [such as aftermarket replacement windshields] or salvage parts. Aftermarket and salvage parts are, ostensibly, less expensive than OEM parts and, at least according to defendant insurers, of equal quality to OEM parts. This is simply not true,” attorneys for the collision repair shops allege in the complaint.
A U.S. District judge in Florida has dismissed much of the antitrust lawsuit filed by group of Florida collision repair shops against State Farm and dozens of other insurers without prejudice, meaning attorneys for the repair shops can file an amended complaint. The shops allege the insurers use their direct repair programs to “illegally control and depress” repair rates and if the shops don’t comply, customers are steered away. The judge says more “evidence” is needed to support the allegations.
J.D. Power and Associates has issued its 2014 U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study. Coming in first on its list for satisfaction is Amica Mutual.
Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell filed a lawsuit today against State Farm in East Baton Rouge Parish judicial court alleging the insurer has “engaged in a pattern of unfair and fraudulent business practices aimed at controlling the auto repair industry” and uses “scare tactics to steer Louisiana consumers to State Farm’s preferred repair shops.” Similar allegations have surfaced over the years from independent automotive glass repair shops in regards to third-party administrators (TPAs), which handle automotive glass claims for insurers, so this case has potential implications for the AGRR industry.
State Farm and other insurers have asked the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, Northern division, to dismiss allegations of antitrust and steering by more than a dozen collision repair shops in the state. This move comes soon after a Florida judge found an initial complaint in a similar case suffered from a “host of problems” and told those companies to re-plead their case.
Dozens of Florida collision repair companies have filed an amended-complaint against State Farm and dozens of other insurers, which alleges the insurers use their direct repair programs to “illegally control and depress rates and if the shops don’t comply, customers are steered away. The action comes after U.S. District Judge Gregory Presenell ruled their earlier complaint “suffers from a host of problems” and gave them permission to re-plead their case.
U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell has dismissed the antitrust lawsuit filed by group of Florida collision repair shops against State Farm and dozens of other insurers, which alleged the insurers use their direct repair programs to “illegally control and depress” repair rates and if the shops don’t comply, customers are steered away. “The complaint is more than 30 pages long and suffers from a host of problems,” the judge for the U.S. Middle U.S. District of Florida, Orlando division, writes in his decision to dismiss.
Attorneys for Florida collision repair shops that sued dozens of insurers recently responded to Hartford Accident and Indemnity Co.’s request for the U.S. Middle District of Florida Court, Orlando division, to dismiss their antitrust and steering lawsuit, writing, that, “The defendants misrepresents both the contents of the complaint and quite often the holdings of authority to which it cites.” The Florida repair shops sued Hartford, State Farm and dozens of other insurers. The case has potential implications for the AGRR industry, as some automotive glass repair companies allege similar issues with third-party administrators (TPAs), which handle automotive glass claims for insurers.
Crawford Auto Center of Downington, Pa., has asked the U.S Northern District Court of Illinois, Eastern division, to approve a national class action under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) against State Farm, Allstate, Geico and dozens of other insurers for allegedly “long-running unlawful conduct to suppress compensation to repair facilities for automotive collision repairs covered by insurance.” Like the cases filed in Florida and Indiana, this lawsuit has potential implications for the AGRR industry, as glass repair companies allege similar issues with third-party administrators (TPAs), which handle glass claims for insurers.
Following in the footsteps of repair companies in Florida, a group of repair shops in Indiana have filed a lawsuit against State Farm and dozens of other insurers, alleging the insurers use their direct repair programs to “artificially depress” repair rates and if shops don’t agree, customers are “improperly steered” away. Like the case in Florida, this lawsuit has potential implications for the AGRR industry, as automotive glass repair companies allege similar issues with third-party administrators (TPAs), which handle glass claims for insurers.
Attorneys for repair shops that sued State Farm recently responded to the insurer’s request for the U.S. Middle District of Florida Court, Orlando division, to dismiss their antitrust and steering lawsuit, writing, that there is “more than sufficient facts asserted to satisfy the pleading requirements.” The Florida repair shops sued State Farm and dozens of other insurers. The case has potential implications for the AGRR industry, as some automotive glass repair companies allege similar issues with third-party administrators (TPAs), which handle automotive glass claims for insurers.
State Farm’s attorneys deny the company has violated antitrust laws in their court response to a group of Florida collision shops which filed a lawsuit alleging State Farm (and dozens of other insurers) use a direct repair program to “illegally control and depress” repair rates and if the shops don’t comply, customers are steered away. This case has potential implications for the AGRR industry, as independent automotive glass repair shops allege similar issues with third-party administrators (TPAs), which handle automotive glass claims for insurers.
A group of Florida collision repair shops have banded together to file an antitrust lawsuit against State Farm and dozens of other insurers, alleging the insurers use their direct repair programs to “illegally control and depress” repair rates and if the shops don’t comply, customers are steered away. This case has potential implications for the AGRR industry, as independent automotive glass repair shops allege similar issues with third-party administrators (TPAs), which handle automotive glass claims for insurers.
The Ohio Supreme Court has overturned a lower court’s decision by rejecting the class certification status of a lawsuit that alleges State Farm denied some policyholders full payment on windshield damage claims because instead of paying for replacement of the windshields, it allegedly steered some policyholders toward repair. A lower court upheld the class certification and State Farm appealed the ruling to the Ohio Supreme Court.