North Carolina Farm Bureau Federation, Inc. (Headquarters)

There is a clear police report describing what happened, yet the company is dragging it's feet with a response.I was invovled in car accident on 9/6/14. This accident was 100% the fault of Farm Bureau's insured. My statements have been 100% correct while their insured is lying. I waited patiently on the police report to corroborate my statement. The police report came out shortly after the accident and 100% corroborated my statement. Their insured filed a claim against my insurance, [redacted], which was promptly denied once the police report came out. Farm Bureau, however, has chosen to ignore the statements of the officer and instead listening to their insured say things that are 100% false and totally opposite of the report. They are saying there was no crossing guard in the street and they were in plain clothing. This is totally false. Farm Bureau has been waiting now for 2 weeks to contact the officer to get him to corroborate his already written statements in the report that is VERY clear cut and dry. These people are claiming injury. I am 9 months pregnant and had to have an extra doctor visit and receive a Rhogam shot because my blood type is negative so that my blood didn't mix with my child which could cause complications. The stress of this is honestly horrible. This is my first child. I should be happy and getting my car seat ready in my car. Instead, I cannot even drive my vehicle because the alignment is so off, and it is not safe. My car was purchased brand new and was never in an accident. Now I have to deal with this. I have had to borrow vehicles or have my husband take me to and from work which leaves me without a vehicle at work and unable to go out and get lunch when I need to. I have gestinational diabetes and have to eat healthy foods and specific times. This has been the hugest inconvenience and Farm Bureau seems not to care. [redacted] has not kept me as informed as I would like. He was on vacation last week per one of his co workers. Then another agent called me and said he would be back Friday when someone else said he wouldn't be back until Monday. I feel as though I am getting the run around and this case is not being made a priority at all. At this point, I will probably call them daily until this is resolved. I think their service is extremely poor and the lack of urgency is just adding to an already stressful situation. I have been getting headaches lately and I feel they could be due to the stress of this. Bottom line, I want this resolved ASAP.Desired SettlementI want them to accept liability and move forward with my claim so that my car can be fixed in a timely manner. It is going on 3 weeks now that I have been without a vehicle. I am 9 months pregnant, and the stress of this is unbearable. I have had to receive a Rhogam shot because of the accident which has resulted in an extra doctor visit and fee that I should not be responsible for. I am about to have a child, and I should not have to be worrying about this due the negligence of this company in accepting a claim for liability in a case that is clear cut.Business Response Thank-you for your inquiry. We have been in contact with the consumer throughout this claim process. Our duty as an insurer is to complete a proper and fair investigation for all parties involved. This present accident was a disputed accident and involved multiple parties and witnesses. A police report is an important part of the investigation, however it indicates on the report that "determinations of 'fault' are the responsibility of the insurers or of the state's courts." Our Casualty Adjuster has been in contact with the consumer and we are now in a position to move forward with a settlement. This should be in line with the consumer's desired resolution.

Cancelled Policy and still being drafted from my checking accountFarm Bureau has been using unethical practices regarding my auto insurance over the past year. They over charged me July/August 2013 and I caught it and called my agent, [redacted]. They realized the problem and then decided to set up a payback plan to reimburse me over the coarse of 4 or so months. If the shoe had been on the other foot, I would have been cancelled. I did not agree to this payment plan, but felt I had no choice. Then the first of the year, they took away all of my auto policy except what is required by law and threatened to cancel my home owner policy if I did not pay $25.00 fee. I called Mr [redacted] regarding this and he said this was indeed a fact. I am not understanding why when I am set up for auto draft, why I was not drafted this amount. After he sent me to a web site to pay this fee, my auto policy went up by a whopping $90.00 a month. My monthly premium was about $64.00 a month and I have had no accidents or tickets and drive the same vehicle. I once again called Mr [redacted] and he says this is the amount I need to pay. I felt I was being gauged, so I cancelled my policy after moving to [redacted] as of July 1. In spite of cancelling my policy, Farm Bureau has decidedly drafted my account for the amount of $129.27 and I have some sort of cryptic statement that I cannot make heads nor tails out of. I had better not be charged any cancellation fee when my policy went up so much in an unexplained manner and at what I am at best, guessing they went up because it's a new policy year (????). Please assist. I don't feel I owe anything else to Farm Bureau and I would like to severe ties after this 14 year relationship. I am very disappointed in this company, their ethics and the lack of assistance from [redacted]. Assistance needed to get reimbursed for the entire draft.Desired SettlementI am requested an immediate refund in full for $129.27Business Response July 16, 2014Revdex.com Serving Eastern North Carolina5540 Munford Rd., Ste. 130Raleigh, NC XXXXX-XXXXRe: Case No.: XXXXXXXXInsured: [redacted]Policy Number: [redacted] XXXXXXXTo Whom It May Concern:This letter is in reference to the correspondence received July 10, 2014 regarding the above mentioned policy.North Carolina Farm Bureau provides a property discount on personal automobile policies if a qualifying policy is in force on or before the effective date of the auto policy. Ms. [redacted] was previously receiving this discount on her auto policy until she cancelled her homeowners policy effective July 20, 2012. She purchased a new homeowners policy effective June 28, 2013. Prior to the homeowners policy being issued, the auto policy renewed on May 25, 2013 for the July 1, 2014 renewal. A change request was received in the state office to add the property discount to the auto policy. The change resulted in a $98 credit.Ms. [redacted] elected to have her premium payments drafted on a monthly basis via Electronic Funds Transfer or EFT. Our billing rules state that for EFT policies on a payment plan, all endorsement premiums are divided evenly among the unbilled installments only. When the discount credit was applied, there were three remaining unbilled installments. The credit was applied evenly per our standard operating procedure, reducing the installments from about $94.01 to roughly $61.30.In conjunction with paying the policy premiums to keep the policies and coverage in force, our insured is also responsible for paying membership dues for voluntary coverage. Upon purchasing a policy with North Carolina Farm Bureau, a policyholder becomes a member of our organization and as such, agrees to pay the annual membership dues. In accordance with our bylaws, the membership must be renewed annually in order to maintain voluntary insurance coverage. Therefore, if the dues are not paid as requested, we will initiate a cancellation or nonrenewal of coverage depending upon the type of business.If membership is delinquent for a personal automobile policy, it is our standard operating procedure to remove all physical damages at renewal and allow the policy to renew with liability only. Two membership notices are mailed advising of the dues that are outstanding. If the dues remain unpaid, a Notice of Cancellation (Comp/Collision) is mailed alerting the insured that the physical damages will be removed at the next renewal. If the membership status is inactive at the time of renewal, the policy renewal declaration will state, "Selected coverage has been cancelled effective XX/XX/XXXX due to delinquent membership dues." This notice was mailed on October 26, 2013.If the dues remain unpaid at the next renewal, the policy will be ceded to the Reinsurance Facility. Notice of Cession was mailed to Ms. [redacted] on April 26, 2014. The policy renewed ceded effective July 1, 2014 with liability only. If the dues are paid, however, the previously deleted coverage will be reinstated effective the date the payment is received. Just as the company initiated removing the coverage, we will automatically replace the coverage. The coverage was added back effective May 31, 2014 increasing the premium by $41.00 from May 31, 2014 to July 1, 2014. As the membership was paid, the previous action to cede the policy was also reversed. Hence, the current renewal was cancelled and the policy was reissued through the Mutual Company with voluntary coverage. The renewal term premium went from $302.54 with liability only to $511.54 with physical damages.North Carolina Farm Bureau Federation, Inc. is the parent company for North Carolina Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company and the North Carolina Farm Bureau Agency. Each company has specialized contracts and billing systems for the products being provided. Membership is issued through and maintained by the Federation. Insurance coverage, either voluntary or those issued through the Reinsurance Facility, is issued and maintained through the Mutual Insurance Company. Therefore, by law, the comingling of funds from the membership payments and insurance payments are not allowed.In regards to the $90.00 increase in the installment amount, it appears Ms. [redacted] is comparing the installment amounts from the policy term effective January 1, 2014 to the billing for the term effective July 1, 2014. The installment amounts for the term effective January 1, 2014 were roughly $37.34, which reflects liability coverage only. The installments at the next renewal effective July 1, 2014 were $85.27. The premium and therefore the installments increased due to adding physical damage coverage for a full six months. When the policy renewal billed with the coverage added back, the first installment came to $88.27, plus the cost of adding coverage back on the prior term effective May 31, 2014, $41.00. The total bill for prior term premium and renewal installment was $129.27. The difference between the prior installments and the renewal billing was $91.93. The increase was due to adding coverage. It was not due to increasing the installments by $90.00.A billing notice generated June 17, 2014 stating the bill due of $129.27 would draft on July 2, 2014. A request to cancel the policy was signed on June 30, 2014. It was received in our state office on July 2, 2014 and was processed on July 7, 2014. The processing of the change request was handled in a timely manner. As the policy was cancelled on the renewal date, all premiums collected for the renewal term are being refunded, $88.27. However, the premium of $41.00 was due from the prior policy term and is due in full. In addition, as the policy was cancelled on the renewal date, there are no fees associated with the cancellation.If I may offer any further assistance in this matter, please feel free to contact me at (XXX) XXX-XXXX or [redacted]@ncfbins.com. Unless otherwise notified, we will consider this file closed.Respectfully,NORTH CAROLINA FARM BUREAU MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY, INC.[redacted]Customer Service Representativecc: [redacted] XXXXXXXConsumer Response My coverage was moved to [redacted] as of July 1st with a $50 savings per month for the exact same policy. My rate will be further decreased after I move the Home Owner Policy. I don't care anymore what Farm Bureau's rate is. It's irrelevant. However, they need to refund the entire amount. I cannot rationalize why they would be keeping anything after my policy was cancelled. This has become the norm with Farm Bureau and a typical response. They overbilled me last year and decided on their own to set up a payment installment plan to reimburse me. If the shoe had been on the other foot, they would have cancelled me. Final Business Response July 24, 2014Revdex.com Serving Eastern North Carolina5540 Munford Rd., Ste. 130Raleigh, NC XXXXX-XXXXRe: Case No.: XXXXXXXXInsured: [redacted]Policy Number: [redacted] XXXXXXXTo Whom It May Concern:This letter addresses concerns received in the follow up Revdex.com correspondence dated July 16, 2014 regarding the request for a full refund of $129.27.North Carolina Farm Bureau provided coverage from January 1, 2014 to July 1, 2014. The total cost of coverage for the full six month term was $283.00. Ms. [redacted] made the following payments:$40.34 on 1/3/14$40.34 on 2/3/14$40.34 on 3/3/14$40.34 on 4/1/14$40.32 on 5/1/14$40.32 on 6/2/14These payments totaled $242 leaving a balance of $41. On July 2, 2014, a payment of $129.27 was received. Of this payment, $41 was retained for the January 1, 2014 thru July 1, 2014 policy term since there was a balance owed of $41. The total payments received since January 3, 2014 equal the premium charged for the coverage that was in force. The policy was cancelled per the insured's request as of July 1, 2014. No coverage was provided beyond this date. Therefore, a refund of the difference from the July 2, 2014 payment of $88.27 has been generated representing unearned premium. This refund was mailed on or about July 21, 2014.In regards to the supporting coverage discount that was applied, it was added back to the date that it had been removed, providing a full six-month term credit of $98.00. As there was a balance due on the policy, the credit was not refunded. Again, this is per our standard operating procedure and billing rules. Rather than apply the credit in full to one installment, our billing system applies credit endorsements evenly to unbilled installments reducing each of them evenly. We appreciate the opportunity to address these concerns. Unless otherwise notified, we will consider this file closed. Respectfully,NORTH CAROLINA FARM BUREAU MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY, INC.[redacted]Customer Service Representativecc: [redacted] XXXXXXX2014-07-24I do not consider this complaint closed. Farm Bureau is trying to charge me insurance for July and I have cancelled my policy for July and paid another company to cover my auto policy. If the full amount does not get refunded immediately, I will be forced to pursue legal action.Sincerely,[redacted]