Warren, Hawley Press Insurers Over Claims Closed Without Payment

(Bloomberg) — US Senators Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley are questioning six insurers, including State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. and Allstate Corp., over concerns about a growing number of claims that are closed without payment to policyholders.

Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, and Hawley, a Missouri Republican, wrote letters to State Farm, Allstate, USAA Capital Corp., Farmers Insurance Group, Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. and American Family Mutual Insurance Co. on Oct. 2, raising concerns about an increasing share of homeowner and auto insurance claims being closed without payment. The senators asked that the insurers provide figures on unsuccessful claims for homeowners and personal auto insurance, the factors affecting those claims, and any material change to claims-handling policies in the past decade.

“The growing share of both homeowners and auto insurance claims resulting in no payment raises serious questions about whether consumers can trust their insurance companies to hold up their end of the bargain when disasters or emergencies occur and affect their most basic essentials: their home and car,” Warren, ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, and Hawley wrote in the letters. 

Meanwhile, record profits of insurance companies lead to concerns about “whether increasingly aggressive claims-handling practices, including tactics to delay payments, are contributing to higher margins,” they added.

State Farm said in an emailed statement that each claim is evaluated by the firm based on the “facts and the coverage purchased, and when a loss is covered.” The firm added that claims can close without a payment for several reasons, including when the amount is below the customer’s deductible or if the customer withdraws the claim. 

The other companies didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

The rising cost of homeowners insurance, coupled with the lower likelihood of payouts, are causing some homeowners to opt out of insurance entirely, the senators said. Premiums climbed 70% from 2019 and 2025, according to a report by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. 

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