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I took State Farm to small claims court. They paid to upgrade it to general division at the last possible moment, which significantly increases the logistics an

I took State Farm to small claims court. They paid to upgrade it to general division at the last possible moment, which significantly increases the logistics and complexity of the case. I think they did it as an intimidation tactic. Corporations are horrible.

koolba 7y ago
What was the result?
- cosmotic 7y ago
  They settled the morning of the hearing for exactly as much money as I asked for before I took them to court. They admitted that the attorney alone cost much more than the settlement. Not to mention the court fees they had to pay.
  - yrro 7y ago
    Did it increase your expenses or did the court order them to pay costs for wasting the time of both the plaintiff and the court?
- cosmotic 7y ago
  They also lost me as a customer, and I found a cheaper rate for better coverage with someone else.
300bps 7y ago
State Farm is a mutual company. That means that the policyholders (i.e. you) actually own it. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Farm https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Farm
- freepor 7y ago
  That’s like saying we choose the government. It’s true in theory, but in practice the top management uses the “owners” like Soylent Green.
  - someguyorother 7y ago
    It's a matter of feedback, really. It doesn't matter if a government is selected by the people if the government can control the people more effectively than the people can control the government. If the company holds very infrequent general meetings and the owners can't schedule extra ones, then the managers are going to rule, irrespective of who "formally" governs the company. It's like a people's democratic republic: even if the election is fair, the political bureau sets the rules 99% of the time and the congress of deputies only meets once a year - and soon enough the elections end up no longer being fair.
- parkovski 7y ago
  And accordingly, I could give orders to their lawyers and their likelihood of doing what I say is about the same as the percentage of the company that I own.
- cma 7y ago
  Why do the policyholders pay for so much TV advertising to get new policyholders? Increase in volume lowers overheads and spreads the risk pool, but surely not to the extent of the TV spending.
  - mooreds 7y ago
    The principal agent problem: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principal%E2%80%93agent_problem https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principal%E2%80%93agent_prob...

koolba 7y ago

What was the result?

cosmotic 7y ago
They settled the morning of the hearing for exactly as much money as I asked for before I took them to court. They admitted that the attorney alone cost much more than the settlement. Not to mention the court fees they had to pay.
- yrro 7y ago
  Did it increase your expenses or did the court order them to pay costs for wasting the time of both the plaintiff and the court?
cosmotic 7y ago
They also lost me as a customer, and I found a cheaper rate for better coverage with someone else.

300bps 7y ago

State Farm is a mutual company. That means that the policyholders (i.e. you) actually own it. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Farm https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Farm

freepor 7y ago
That’s like saying we choose the government. It’s true in theory, but in practice the top management uses the “owners” like Soylent Green.
- someguyorother 7y ago
  It's a matter of feedback, really. It doesn't matter if a government is selected by the people if the government can control the people more effectively than the people can control the government. If the company holds very infrequent general meetings and the owners can't schedule extra ones, then the managers are going to rule, irrespective of who "formally" governs the company. It's like a people's democratic republic: even if the election is fair, the political bureau sets the rules 99% of the time and the congress of deputies only meets once a year - and soon enough the elections end up no longer being fair.
parkovski 7y ago
And accordingly, I could give orders to their lawyers and their likelihood of doing what I say is about the same as the percentage of the company that I own.
cma 7y ago
Why do the policyholders pay for so much TV advertising to get new policyholders? Increase in volume lowers overheads and spreads the risk pool, but surely not to the extent of the TV spending.
- mooreds 7y ago
  The principal agent problem: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principal%E2%80%93agent_problem https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principal%E2%80%93agent_prob...