Farm Bureau Car Insurance Review 2024 (2024)

Farm Bureau is a membership-based organization known for offering insurance products and additional perks to its members. Membership fees vary by state, but typically range from $25 to $50.

There are Farm Bureaus in every state, but not all sell auto insurance. Some sell car insurance directly to members. Others sell policies through affiliates. And some—like Hawaii Farm Bureau—don’t sell car insurance at all. Still, the Farm Bureau in most states sells car insurance, as well as homeowners, ranch and life insurance.

In states without a Farm Bureau insurance company, members can buy insurance from a Farm Bureau-affiliated insurance company. For instance, you can get Connecticut Farm Bureau car insurance through a partnership with Nationwide.

Farm Bureau offers the following types of car insurance that are standard for any auto insurance company:

Liability

Liability car insurance pays others if you cause damage to another person and their property in an accident. It also pays for your court fees, judgments and settlements if you’re sued because of an accident.

Collision

Collision insurance covers damage to your own vehicle if you hit another car or object, such as a guardrail or pole.

Comprehensive

Comprehensive insurance pays to repair or replace your car if it’s stolen or damaged by non-crash problems, such as animal strikes, hail, fire, falling objects, flooding and vandalism.

Personal Injury Protection

Personal injury protection (PIP) car insurance pays for you and your passengers’ medical bills and other expenses if you’re in an accident, regardless of whose fault it was. It’s required in some states, optional in others and not available in some states.

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage

Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage covers you and your passenger’s medical bills and related expenses if you’re involved in an accident with a driver who lacks car insurance or doesn’t have enough to pay for your full medical bills. It does not pay anything to the uninsured driver.

In some states, you can also buy “uninsured motorist property damage” coverage, which pays for your vehicle damage if you’re hit by an uninsured driver.

The average cost of car insurance annually for Farm Bureau car insurance is below or only slightly above average in most states we evaluated.

Nearly all car insurance companies offer benefits that go beyond the standard types of car insurance. Ask the Farm Bureau in your state for a list of the add-on car insurance coverages available to you. You can use this list to identify the types of special coverage that might be a good fit for you.

Accident forgiveness

Accident forgiveness insurance prevents your rates from increasing after you cause one accident. You can often qualify for accident forgiveness if you’ve had a clean driving record for a specified amount of time, such as three or five years.

Gap insurance

Gap insurance pays the difference between your car’s value and what you owe on your car loan if your car is totaled in an accident that’s covered by your policy.

Diminishing deductible

Diminishing deductible benefits decreases your insurance deductible every year as long as you maintain a clean driving record. So if you do make a claim on your collision or comprehensive insurance, your deductible may be very low or zero.

New car replacement

New car replacement insurance pays for a new vehicle of the same make and model if yours is totaled in an accident covered by your policy. Farm Bureau offers replacement cost coverage in some states for vehicles up to four or five years old.

Usage-based car insurance

Usage-based auto insurance programs typically track your speed, acceleration and hard braking, along with mileage and the time of day you drive. This is done by using a plug-in device or a mobile app. If you demonstrate very safe driving habits, you can earn a discounted car insurance rate. Farm Bureau has usage-based auto insurance available in some states under different names. For instance, it’s called Driveology in states served by Farm Bureau Financial Services and DriveRight Mobile in Kentucky.

SR-22 insurance

SR-22 insurance is for high-risk drivers, such as people who were caught driving without insurance or drivers who have caused multiple accidents.

An SR-22 is a document that certain drivers are ordered to file with their state that certifies they are carrying liability insurance that meets the state’s minimum coverage requirements. In Florida and Virginia, this form is called an FR-44, though it’s essentially the same document.

Be sure to ask what Farm Bureau discounts are available in your state. They may include:

• Anti-theft: If you have anti-theft devices installed in your car, you may earn a discount.
• Claim-free: For not filing an insurance claim for a specific number of years, you can get a price break.
• Defensive driving course: If you successfully complete an approved defensive driver course you can snag a discount.
• Farm Bureau Member’s Choice: Streamline your coverage by buying one policy that covers your car and home. If a problem covered by your policy, such as a storm, damages both your car and house, you pay just one deductible.
• Good student: For full-time students with a B average or higher.
• Low-mileage: For driving fewer than 12,000 miles annually.
• Loyalty: For renewing a Farm Bureau Member’s Choice policy.
• Multiple cars: For insuring multiple cars with Farm Bureau.
• Safe young driver: For drivers under age 25 who complete a young-driver safety program.
• Safety devices: Earn a discount if your car has safety features such as anti-lock brakes.

The North Carolina Farm Bureau is the only insurer out of more than 100 evaluated by the CRASH Network that has received A+ grades since 2020. In addition, all Farm Bureaus included in the 2023 report scored better than the nation’s largest car insurance companies.

The CRASH Network surveys collision repair professionals, who have insight into the claims repair processes of insurers.

Farm Bureaus generally have very low complaint levels, usually significantly below the industry average, based on complaints made to state insurance departments across the country.

The exceptions are the Colorado Farm Bureau and Mountain West Farm Bureau, which have complaint levels slightly above the industry average. Auto insurance complaints tend to be about claim denials, delays and unsatisfactory settlements.

Complaint ratios reflect a company’s number of complaints relative to its size of business, Numbers below the industry average of 1.00 are better.

Because each Farm Bureau company operates independently, each has different offerings. Many Farm Bureaus offer:

• Business insurance
• Condo insurance
• Classic car insurance
• Farm and ranch insurance
• Farm vehicle insurance
• Health insurance, disability insurance and long-term care insurance
• Home insurance
• Life insurance, including term, whole and universal life insurance
• Mobile home insurance
• Motorcycle insurance
• Recreational vehicle insurance
• Renters insurance
• Umbrella insurance