Success Story of State Farm

A Insurance Article Contributed by Shobha Cutting

State Farm - the Humble Beginnings

The founder of what has now come to be known as the State Farm conglomerate was a farmer called George J. Medherle who lived in the countryside with his wife worked on his farm. As the health of his wife began to deteriorate, they gave up farming and moved to Bloomington since medical facilities were easier to access there. Mr Mecherle took up a job as an insurance salesman there.

He was a successful salesman but did not agree with some of the policies of his employers because he considered those unsuitable to the needs of farmers. When he spoke to his employers on the subject, his employers remarked that he had better start his own insurance company if he thought that there was anything wrong with their policies. So that is exactly what he did.

State Farm was started in 1922 as a mutual automobile insurance company owned by the policyholders. Today the group is the #1 insurers of cars in the U.S. and has held that ranking for several years. Their meteoric success is due to their policies of mutual trust, integrity, relationships, maintenance of financial discipline, and quality service.

Listed below are the more dominant factors that have contributed to the success of State Farm.

State Farm Customers are Satisfied Customers

Over 80% of the customers of State Farm Insurance return to the company every year for all their insurance needs. Not only that, they recommend State Farm to their friends. This word-of-mouth publicity has had a multiplier effect on the growth of business by the State Farm Insurance, coming as it does, free of cost, thanks to their progressive policies. The company, because of their attractive rates and reputation for quality service has earned this loyalty and trust of State Farm customers.

Claims are promptly and judiciously settled, to the satisfaction of the reasonable customer. State Farm handles more than 30, 000 claims every day and is able to give personal attention to each of these claims to ensure speedy settlement. This is why today the State Farm insures one in every 5 cars in the U.S. and they keep coming back to State Farm every year. State Farm has therefore retained the number one position in car insurance uninterrupted since 1942.

Financial Strength & Integrity of State Farm

Professional Rating Agencies assess and analyze the financial strength and competence of various insurers, to provide an accurate, independent and unbiased assessment of the capability of that insurance company to fulfill the obligations that the company undertakes in course of business. These Rating Agencies have specialized skills and utilize both qualitative and quantitative data available in respect of the company being assessed, to arrive at their ratings.

Here is how some of the better-known Rating Agencies have assessed State Farm:

· A.M. Bests - A++ (Superior)

· Moody's - Aa1 (Excellent)

· Standard & Poor's - AA (Very strong)

· Fitch Ratings - AA+ (Very strong)

Affordable Rates of State Farm

· State Farm offer a very competitive package in terms of excellent service combined with economical rates to their customers.

· State Farm policies take into consideration almost every discount in the book. They offer discounts in respect of safety and anti-theft devices installed, the lifestyle and driving habits/driving record of the person seeking car insurance, the academic record of youngsters who will be driving the car, the distances that the car will be covering, to name just a few.

Easy Accessibility of State Farm

They have over 16,700 insurance agents and 800 Claim Service Centers all over the U.S., where the policyholder can walk in, call up or reach through the Internet, apart from their own offices, to cater to the needs of their customers. Few, if at all any other insurer can offer such accessibility.