| Type | Mutual (main company) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Finance and Insurance |
| Founded | June 7, 1922[1] |
| Founder(s) | George J. Mecherle |
| Headquarters | Bloomington, Illinois, U.S. |
| Number of locations | 17,700 agents 343 claim offices 30 operations centers[2] |
| Area served | USA and Canada |
| Key people | Edward B. Rust, Jr. (Chairman/CEO) |
| Services | Insurance, Banking, Investing |
| Revenue | US$61.611 billion (2007) 1.8%[3] |
| Net income | US$3.664 billion (2007) US$687 million[4] |
| Total assets | US$104.842 billion (2007) US$6.494 billion[4] |
| Total equity | US$58.142 billion (2006)[5] |
| Employees | 68,000[2] |
| Divisions | Insurance; mutual funds; State Farm Bank |
| Subsidiaries | see Companies below |
| Website | www.statefarm.com |
State Farm Insurance is a group of insurance and financial services companies in the United States. The company also has operations in Canada.
The group's main business is State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, a mutual insurance firm that also owns the other State Farm companies. The corporate headquarters are in Bloomington, Illinois.
State Farm is ranked 34th in the 2010 Fortune 500, which lists American companies by revenue.[6] According to the Fortune Global 500, State Farm is also the world's largest mutual "P&C" (property & casualty insurance) firm.[5] In October 2008, State Farm Insurance Companies in Canada was named one of Greater Toronto's Top Employers by Mediacorp Canada Inc., which was announced by the Toronto Star newspaper.[7]
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State Farm was founded in 1922 by retired farmer George J. Mecherle as a mutual automobile insurance company owned by its policyholders. The firm originally specialized in auto insurance for farmers. The company later expanded its services into other types of insurance, such as homeowners and life insurance, in addition to banking and financial services.
State Farm's jingle ("Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there") was written by American songwriter Barry Manilow in 1971. A cover was released by Weezer in 2011.[8][9]
As of December 2008 State Farm had 67,000 employees and 17,000 agents. March 2009 figures show the group servicing 77 million policies in the United States and Canada, of which over 40,000,000 are for automobiles, and more than 2 million bank accounts.[2]
Edward B. Rust, Jr. is the current chairman and CEO of State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company,[2] as well as president and chief executive officer of State Farm Fire and Casualty Company, State Farm Life Insurance Company, and other principal State Farm affiliates.
On March 1, 2007, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company announced it will pay $1.25 billion in dividends to its mutual auto insurance policyholders in 46 states, the District of Columbia and the Canadian province of New Brunswick.[10]
State Farm's interlocked tri-oval logo was first created in the mid-to-late 1940s and was later updated in 1953.
On December 15, 2011, State Farm updated its tri-oval logo.[11]
State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is the parent company of several wholly owned State Farm subsidiaries:[1]
| CEO | Years Served |
|---|---|
| George J. Mecherle | 1922–1937 |
| Raymond Mecherle | 1937–1954 |
| Adlai Rust | 1954–1970 |
| Edward B. Rust, Sr. | 1970–1985 |
| Edward B. Rust, Jr. | 1985–Present |
State Farm has expanded into the financial services arena, such as banking and mutual funds. The bank opened in May 1999 and is operated by State Farm Financial Services, FSB, a subsidiary of State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. These are separate from its insurance products. State Farm Bank does not have branch offices. Its regular banking services, which include checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, and money market accounts, are available to consumers countrywide via the Internet or over the phone, and through agents in Arizona, Illinois, Missouri, Nevada, or New Mexico. Home mortgages are available countrywide over the phone or through agents in those five states.[12]
In early 2009, State Farm's Florida subsidiary, the state's largest insurer, threatened to withdraw from writing property insurance business in Florida after state regulators refused to approve a 47% property rate increase. State Farm said that, in Florida, it had paid out $1.21 in claims for every dollar in premiums since 2000. Several other home insurers have pulled out of Florida as well; many homeowners are now using the Citizens Property Insurance Corporation run by the state government.[13] State Farm has since decided to remain in Florida, although with a reduced amount of property policies.
In 2010 State Farm and Renaissance jointly formed DaVinci Reinsurance Ltd. which insured more than 3.5 million homes in 2010.[14]
A 2007 investigation by CNN reported that major car insurance companies, including State Farm and Allstate Insurance, are increasingly fighting claims from those injured by their insured members. In some cases, the settlement proposed amounts to just $50 or the threat that any lawsuit would be made so expensive and time-consuming that it would not be worth the victim's time. State Farm and Allstate have denied these allegations.[15] This followed on the heels of criminal investigations by the states of Louisiana and Mississippi, which found that State Farm had wrongly denied claims stemming from Hurricane Katrina.[16] Richard F "Dickie" Scruggs pleaded guilty in March for his role in trying to pay Judge Henry Lackey of Mississippi a $50,000 bribe for a favorable ruling in a dispute involving a $26.5 million settlement after Hurricane Katrina.[17]
State Farm's top automobile insurance competitors, based on premium written, include Allstate, Progressive, GEICO, Zurich Financial Services, Nationwide, USAA, Liberty Mutual, American International Group, and American Family Insurance Group.[18]
State Farm, in partnership with several U.S. highway authorities, operates a service called the State Farm Safety Patrol which provides free roadside assistance to stranded motorists on participating highways, when you call the designated telephone number for the Safety Patrol they will respond and provide the following services: fuel refills; radiator refills; engine oil refills. Safety Patrol personnel are also CPR and Automated External Defibrillator certified. They work to reduce accident rates, minimize the duration time of incidents, assist disabled drivers and remove road debris. Highways which currently participate includes, E-470[19] in Denver, Colorado, Florida's Turnpike in the State of Florida[20] and the Pennsylvania Turnpike in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.[21]
The State Farm Youth Advisory Board, composed of thirty students from across the United States and Canada, helps the company design and implement their largest service-learning initiative, which is targeted at addressing issues important to State Farm and communities across the United States and Canada. Every year, the Board is granted $5 million to distribute to local community projects across the United States and Canada.
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