In October my dog bit my neighbor. The neighbor's family only wanted us to pay for her medical bills. I called my agent, as I thought they were honest and out to help me. I asked her if I needed to report this claim to them, and she advised me that I did. I specifically asked her whether this would jack up my rates. She said that I would only lose my 15% claim free discount. So I went ahead and filed the claim. I had not heard anything about the claim since I talked to the adjuster in October, so I thought it was over with, no big deal.
Now, five months later, I received a renewal notice. Not only did I get a 15% increase in my policy, but Allstate was kind enough to hit me with a $260.00 "surcharge" along with a general rate increase. My rate went up a total of $390.00 per year.
I went in to see the agent to find out what had happened, and now she tells me about this "surcharge." I feel this is a deceptive practice, and I feel I have been totally violated due to trusting my agent.
I called the corporate office and filed a complaint. Then the girl from my office called me and could not understand why I had filed a complaint against her. I told her nothing personal, but that is what she had told me, and I was stupid enough to believe her. Then she said she was really surprised Allstate did not just drop me.
I have tried to get new quotes from different insurance companies, and having this dog bite claim on my record is definitely worse than having a felony charge on your record. My next step is to report this to the Illinois Department of Insurance.
Always remember DTA: "Don't Trust Anybody."
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