State Farm Business Insurance 2023 Review: Pros, Cons, Coverage Options

Item: State Farm business insurance
Rating: 3.5

State Farm offers a wide range of business insurance, but limited online capabilities for commercial customers.

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Updated Jan 3, 2023 · 2 min read

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State Farm business insurance

3.5

NerdWallet rating

State Farm offers a variety of business insurance policies, from standard coverage like commercial auto insurance to specialized coverage like nonprofit directors and officers insurance.

State Farm may be a good choice for your business if you prefer a human touch. State Farm insurance policies are sold by a nationwide network of State Farm insurance agents. You can’t purchase a policy, or even get a quote, without talking to someone.

If you want to manage your business insurance online, though, consider other providers. State Farm business insurance customers have limited online capabilities, including viewing a list of their policies, paying their bills and contacting their agent. You’ll have to call your agent and handle things like claims-tracking over the phone.

State Farm business insurance: Pros and cons

Pros	Cons
Offers many types of business insurance, including industry-specific packages with specialized coverage.	Business insurance policyholders have limited online capabilities.
Professional liability insurance can be added to a business owners policy.	Can’t get a quote online.
State Farm can also provide retirement savings vehicles for you and your employees.	More complaints than expected were filed with state regulators about State Farm's commercial property, commercial auto and workers' comp insurance policies between 2018 and 2021, according to a NerdWallet analysis.
Agents available in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

State Farm business insurance: Types of coverage

State Farm offers the following types of business insurance, among others:

Commercial auto insurance.
General liability insurance.
Workers’ compensation.
Professional liability and errors and omissions insurance.
Commercial liability umbrella coverage.
Employment practices liability insurance.
Inland marine and mobile property insurance.

State Farm’s business owner's policy includes general liability, commercial property, business interruption and equipment breakdown coverage. Professional liability coverage can be added.

The company also offers industry-specific packages that include the components of a business owner's policy along with additional specialized coverage.

For instance:

Commercial landlord insurance includes coverage that can defray the costs of bringing buildings up to code.
HVAC contractor insurance includes coverage for equipment that moves from one location to another, plus coverage for injuries or property damage that takes place after work is done.
Painters insurance includes installation floater coverage, which protects materials before and during installation.

Notably, State Farm sells an umbrella policy that offers extra liability coverage in increments of $1 million. This makes it easy to add protection as your business grows.

State Farm also offers group life insurance and retirement planning options for business owners and their employees.

State Farm commercial auto insurance

Commercial auto insurance provides protection for the vehicles you use while doing business. State Farm’s commercial auto policies include standard coverage, including liability, personal injury and medical payments, uninsured/underinsured motorist, comprehensive and collision coverage.

State Farm offers commercial auto insurance for cars, trucks, pickup trucks, vans and farm vehicles, among others.

State Farm professional liability insurance

Unlike most business insurance providers, State Farm offers professional liability insurance as an add-on to its business owner's policy. The insurer also sells standalone professional liability coverage and includes it in many of its packages for specific industries such as barbering and cosmetology.

How to get State Farm business insurance

State Farm does not offer commercial insurance quotes online. Instead, you can fill out a quote request form with some basic information, including your name, address and what type of policy you’re looking for. A business insurance agent near you will follow up with a phone call or email.

Alternatively, you can enter your ZIP code to see a list of agents in your area and contact one directly.

State Farm agents exclusively sell State Farm insurance products and are paid on commission, which is the case for most insurance agents. As independent contractors, agents run their own agencies and hire their own employees, making them business owners themselves.

» MORE: How to get business insurance in 4 steps

State Farm customer service and claims resolution

State Farm commercial insurance customers can’t file claims online. Instead, filing a claim starts with a phone call to State Farm or to your insurance agent.

If you have to file a workers’ comp claim, State Farm offers a state-specific “claims kit,” which includes the forms you’ll need to fill out to report the injury to State Farm and to your state government.

Phone support is available, but the company encourages policyholders to contact their agents with questions.

State Farm business insurance cost

The cost of commercial insurance can vary widely depending on your industry, location, claims history and what kind of coverage you need.

State Farm does not provide information about the average cost of its commercial insurance policies. To get a sense of how much coverage will cost, you’ll need to reach out to a State Farm agent.

» MORE: Business insurance companies: How to compare options

Should you choose State Farm for business insurance?

State Farm may be a good choice for your company if:

You don't want to manage your coverage online. You'll need to work with a State Farm agent to get a quote and buy a policy, and you can only file claims over the phone.
You value customer service. State Farm ranked first for customer satisfaction in J.D. Power's 2022 U.S. Small Commercial Insurance Study, beating out competitors like Chubb, Nationwide and Allstate.
You want to get all your coverage from the same provider. State Farm agents can only sell State Farm policies, so you won't be comparing quotes from multiple insurance companies.

NerdWallet recommends getting quotes from multiple business insurance companies to find the policy that best fits your needs.

Article sources

NerdWallet writers are subject matter authorities who use primary, trustworthy sources to inform their work, including peer-reviewed studies, government websites, academic research and interviews with industry experts. All content is fact-checked for accuracy, timeliness and relevance. You can learn more about NerdWallet's high standards for journalism by reading our editorial guidelines.

Methodology

Business insurance ratings methodology

NerdWallet’s business insurance ratings reward companies that offer small-business owners reliability and ease of use. Ratings are based on weighted averages of scores in several categories, including financial strength, customer complaint data, shopping experience and customer service. Learn more about how we rate small-business insurance companies.

These ratings are a guide, but insurance policy details and prices can vary widely from business to business and provider to provider. We encourage you to shop around and compare several insurance quotes.

NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.

Insurer complaints methodology

NerdWallet examined complaints received by state insurance regulators and reported to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in 2018-2021.

To assess how insurers compare to one another, the NAIC calculates a complaint index each year for each subsidiary, measuring its share of total complaints relative to its size, or share of total premiums in the industry. To evaluate a company’s complaint history, NerdWallet calculated a similar index for each insurer, weighted by market shares of each subsidiary, over the three-year period.

Our star ratings consider ratios for both general liability insurance and commercial property insurance. When an insurer sells policies that are underwritten by several different insurance companies, we consider the NAIC complaint ratios of all the underwriters.