State Farm Documents Reveal a Company-Wide Plan to Underpay Storm Damage Claims

If your roof gets damaged in a storm, you expect your insurance company to pay for the repairs you're owed. But newly public court documents show that starting in 2020, State Farm ran a company-wide plan to pay Oklahoma homeowners less than they were owed for wind and hail roof damage, and it worked.

Here's what the documents show: a top State Farm executive set an internal goal of cutting roof replacement payouts in half. Company records show State Farm tracked its progress closely and that the plan saved the company $1.4 billion in payouts to customers in its very first year alone. Even State Farm's own agents, the people who sell policies and work directly with customers, wrote to company leadership warning that State Farm was breaking its promise to "pay what we owe" and hurting its reputation with the people it was supposed to serve.

State Farm says there was no secret scheme, only an effort to make claims handling more accurate and consistent, and that it has paid Oklahoma customers over $1 billion for storm damage in the past two years.

More than 1,000 Oklahoma homeowners now have lawsuits against State Farm. Oklahoma's Attorney General has also stepped in, accusing the company of running an illegal scheme to defraud policyholders.

Why this matters for Michigan families:

State Farm and other big insurance companies operate the same way here in Michigan. This story is a reminder that when you're paying for insurance, you're trusting the company to be fair when disaster hits, and that trust is not always deserved. Storm damage is common in Michigan too, and homeowners here often face the same kind of pushback when filing a claim.

What you can do:

• Take photos of storm damage right away, and keep track of the date of the damages.

• Get your own repair estimate from a contractor; don't only rely on the insurance company's adjuster.

• Know that you have the right to appeal if your claim is denied or paid too low.

• Click here to email your State Senator and ask them to support Senate Bill 245, which would hold insurance companies like State Farm accountable for paying less than what they owe.