Insurance Premiums On The Rise
Have you talked to your insurance agent lately?  If you're like many Texans you may be paying more,  a lot more, for coverage.  Over the past several months insurance premiums have sky rocketed.  The governor's office has targeted the big three companies- Allstate, State Farm and Farmers. Governor Rick Perry says those three carriers write 66 percent of the polices in Texas and rates have increased up to 200 percent in some parts of the State.

"Allstate sent me my normal monthly bill and it was increased on the automobile 32% and on the house 35%"  Violette says he hasn't made a claim in 30 years, so he called his agent hoping to get some answers.

"He said insurance claims have been outrageous especially due to black mold claims in Houston.  Well, I dont live in Houston and he says that's just the way it is"

But, Allstate spokesperson Justin Schmitt says rising rates in Lubbock are not related to problems in other parts of the state.  "It's our obligation to policy holders to be financially strong enough to protect them when disasters happen and in Texas we know that disasters happen"

And while mold may not be an issue in Lubbock, severe weather certainly is. "Nobody in West Texas would disagree with the number of tornadoes, staight line winds and hail that we're vulnerable to and those types of storms are more frequent in Texas and that increases losses and expenses for insurance companies"

The Texas Department of insurance says insurance companies should expect to have good years and bad years and that having a bad year isn't reason enough to pass the financial burden onto consumers.
 
Violette agrees, "ost of living goes up and I understand that, but the people you work for are downsizing they say you have to take a pay cut, so it's very unbalanced"

In response to the large number of complaints they have received, Allstate says they are devising an additional policy that will have a lower premium while providing more than minimal coverage.