Progressive insurance claim question

[Eric]

Not to throw a rock at a glass wall here but I've had NO problems with progressive on the bus...i called the #800 number they made me send a copy of the title a few pictures of the bus and an affidavit of what I've done so far..we agreed on a value they set the premium! They have a Great Fulltimers package and they cover our car... just my 2 cents worth!

[luvrbus]

You are doing good Tully these guys need the info you are providing here it is all black and white with insurance co's and their little got you sucker clause hidden some where in the policy

good luck

[bd3]

We have had some claims with Progressive on our automobiles. Never had an issue with them paying off promptly and quickly.

[gus]

Tully,  I fully agree. I have no great need to have OEM (Whatever that means, many many OEM parts are not made by OEM companies!!) parts installed on my older vehicles. As you said, none of the other parts are new so why worry about getting new ones now??

My insurance company, on of the best, tells you upfront it will use non-OEM parts when required. My wife just had a used door installed on her wrecked Cad, works fine and looks just as good as the others.

We need to get over this aversion to using foreign on non-OEM parts, in many cases they are probably better since foreign cars seem to be better than the junk we mfg here.

[Lin]

As long as the replacement parts are manufactured to the safe specs and standards, I don't have a problem with using them.  Tully's example of the old Suburban is reasonable.  As the car gets older and more used, not only does it have less value, but all of the parts do.  My only question would be that since the car has less and less value, and the insurance company is going to be willing to spend less and less on it, shouldn't my premiums be going down also?  I have not found that to be the case.

[Melbo]

the other thing to remember is that insurance companies pay out for the "loss of value" that a vehicle has because it has been "repaired" and is no longer original --- so not all are trying to avoid their obligations

Melbo

P.S. I have also had to contest a claim or lack of payment from an insurance company

[Tully Lee]

It is true that the value of the vehicle does go down each year. One would think the auto rates would go down.  However, what off-sets that is the labor rate at the body shop, the material rates and the biggest of all- MEDICAL.  Hospital rates are off the charts and there is no end in sight.  Also, attornies filing for "less than honest" people and insurance fraud just keep adding more and more to our premiums.

Tully

[kyle4501]

Insurance is not a lottery, If you approach it that way, you are in for a tough time. It is set up to make the insurance company a proffit, not the claimant. I look at it as a way to minimize my losses - not a way to make some $$$

My experience with State Farm has always been pleasant. I also look at my stuff as for what it is - used. I also acknowledge the fact that it will not be perfect after the fact.
In the cases I have been involved with concerning State Farm, the problems begin when someone tries to 'make money' on the deal. (My brother tried to stick them with doubling the size of his house after a small fire - SF paid up to the value of the house before the fire & then stopped - dearest brother still thinks he was 'owed' a bigger house.  )

However, "the good hands people" have consistently been very difficult to deal with. Needless to say, I won't recommend them for anything except heartache, frustration & disappointment.

[happycamperbrat]

I have never filed a claim with Progressive for an accident, so I cant speak to that. But both my bus and my car are insured by them and I have used them for road side assistance with the bus. I had absolutely no problem whatsoever with them and at least for the road side assistance I liked my service.

[mcilee]

We have had several claims with Progressive and all have been handled to our complete satisfaction. One involved an emergency stop that resulted in water damage and failure to our inverter. The claim was handled promptly and we ask them to upgrade our inverter to a 4500 watt that was just slightly more money but we offered to handle the installation and they agreed with the deal. We switched our two motorcycles and UTV and a travel trailer/toy hauler to them.  Been good to us!

[Tully Lee]

There are companies that you will hear will routinely not settle claims in a fair fashion.  I do believe that Progressive is fair and tries to be fair in the settlement
of their claims.  They try to fullfill their obligation each and every time.  At times,
things can go South like anything.   For the most part though, they are towards the top in paying claims and are ethical.

Tully Lee

[Paladin]

It sounds like nothing to worry about with Progressive. We're going to look into National Explorer as well.

On a side note about companies nor paying or being fair. Back in the day when I did body work there were a few top name companies that we knew would always be tight with the purse strings but as stated, you also have to be fair with expectations.

I have a brother in law who used to be a claims adjuster with a local workers comp company here. He used to deny all claims as a matter of routine. He said that he was representing the company and doing his job, I of course debated that assertion though his supervisor appeared to agree with him. He would always wait and see if the claimant would protest or threaten to go over his head etc and then he would look into the claim. He figured that anyone who would protest might actually have a valid claim. I asked him once about the loss of income and the added stress and expense he put these people through but he didn't care, it was all part of his job he said. I worked in the I.T dept of the company and Michelle was an underwriter there and we were embarrassed by his actions.

[jackhartjr]

Melbo, you said, "the other thing to remember is that insurance companies pay out for the "loss of value" that a vehicle has because it has been "repaired" and is no longer original --- so not all are trying to avoid their obligations"

That was my problem with progressive, they DID NOT pay a 'loss of value' on my claim which is why I would not use them.
Jack

[skihor]

We had a claim with Progressive over hail damage last July. When I first bought the bus I had it insured for the purchase price, (which was more than fair value), and I paid a premium based on that value. It turns out that they would only pay "fair market value". Since no two buses are alike...... Long story short, I had to provide all receipts and show all changes/repairs/upgrades and still ended up over 3K short of the value I had insured it for. They started well below that. I didn't try to insure it for more than I bought it for. It was part of the contract that I insure it for what I was buying it for, (which was 35K). I didn't try to "make money", but since they totaled it I expected my just due. Apparently they don't do "Agreed Value", any more, (It's called Fair Market Value/Actual Cash Value now). They are more than happy to insure your bus for any value that you want, and charge you a premium reflective of that value, but in a "total loss" situation you WILL have to prove that it is worth what you said.  Progressive's idea of salvage value was very inflated IMHO also.
The claims process was fast and easy, and the customer service was top notch. My problem was with "perceived value versus salvage value). My nearly flawless low mile '94 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited had a lower salvage value than my '99 6'X12' enclosed transport trailer. HUH ? Now, since I can't get full coverage until repairs are completed on the bus, I can't get towing, contents, roadside, trailer coverage, full timer, etc... (even salvage value is around 13K). I estimate that I lost somewhere around 7K between the bus, two cars, and the transport trailer. (That's actual cash value versus salvage value), BTW this is the first claim I've EVER made in my life, and it was weather related.
Bottom line I felt my losses were not paid fairly and I ended my association with them. I ended up with GMAC who's rates were MUCH lower. (I was with Progressive for 7+ years so all applicable discounts, that they offer, were applied). I switched everything over. Cars, bus, motorcycles, etc...  Funny thing, on our classic car, ('65 Corvair convertible), GMAC was $200 a year cheaper than Progressive wanted, and on my Gold Wing motorcycle, almost $400 a year cheaper. Even funnier GMAC farmed out the Corvair's insurance to Progressive. HUH ? $200 a year cheaper than direct from Progressive, (before switching over so multi car discount was applied).
BTW I have a full timers policy with GMAC, now, with towing, transport trailer full coverage, 250K/500K limits, the whole boat deal, for under $700 a year.
Don & Sheila