State Farm files 10% rate cut for auto insurance customers

Ron Hurtibise, South Florida Sun-SentinelSouth Florida Sun Sentinel

State Farm is getting in on Florida’s auto insurance rate-cutting action.

In a news release on Thursday, State Farm said its latest rate cut would bring down premiums for its customers by an average of 10%.

Going back to October 2024, the company has cut its average rates by more than 20%, the release said.

All of the cuts are saving customers more than $1 billion or an average of $400 per vehicle, the company said.

Filings submitted to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation show that the company on Tuesday submitted a proposed rate decrease averaging 10.2% for its State Farm Mutual Automobile product and 8.8% for customers of its State Farm Fire and Casualty product.

The rates would take effect on Jan. 2 for new policies and March 14 for renewal policies, the filing says.

In August, the company implemented a 4.4% rate decrease for State Farm Mutual and a 7.9% decrease for State Farm Fire and Casualty.

State Farm has about 2.5 million Florida policies, the filings show.

The company, one of the nation’s largest insurers, announced the latest round of cuts a week after Gov. Ron DeSantis convened a news conference to announce that Progressive Insurance plans to return nearly $1 billion in excess profits to its auto insurance customers, or an average of about $300 per vehicle.

Florida law requires auto insurers to return excess profits if their underwriting gains exceed anticipated underwriting profit, plus 5% of earned premium, over three years.

During the news conference, DeSantis called on other major auto insurers to follow suit, stating that the statewide insurance reforms of 2022 and 2023 have delivered dramatic cost savings to the industry.

A spokeswoman for the Office of Insurance Regulation urged companies to “proactively report profits and credits to OIR before the Office orders them to do so.”

The news release acknowledged the reforms’ impact on the company’s revenue.

“State Farm is solidly committed to our Florida customers and has long worked for improved market conditions,” the release said. “We agree with recent comments by the Florida governor and the Office of Insurance Regulation that the insurance market is stabilizing because of this work, and that reduced litigation has contributed to our repeated opportunity to offer lower rates.”

Ron Hurtibise covers business and consumer issues for the South Florida Sun Sentinel. He can be reached by phone at 954-356-4071 or by email at [email protected].