The Hartford Financial Services Group
Reviews and Complaints

The Hartford Insurance company is apparently recommended through AARP. We have had insurance with them on our automobiles or over a year. I have had an issue during the past month with their billing policies and procedures, and have contacted customer service three times during the past 4 weeks. They have still not managed my complaint. I am cancelling this insurance. My best advise - Do not purchase insurance from this company.

Solicited by AARP for Hartford Insurance. After changing all my auto and home to Hartford the problems have just begin. They cancelled my home insurance after two months as "the roof on your dwelling is a flat roof and does not meet the eligibility requirements of the program. Also due to the presence of an unfenced swimming pool". Da - this is Arizona and the home was disclosed as a SW Adobe style with a flat roof (which all adobe style are and which is the common style in this part of the country). As for the pool - 100% incorrect as this is a newer home and as anyone in AZ will tell you - very strict building codes and you will never get final occupancy without fences, door knobs above a certain height etc. The price attracted me, now I am really irritated with all the hassle and time wasted obtaining new insurance. My advice is steer as far away from this company as possible.

In Jan I recieved bill for 2015 insurance ( I pay annually) The bill was for more than 2014's rate by at least $100. I called number on policy. Recieved reason as "increased company expenses", no review of policy to lower rate. I than did a web search for quotes from other companys and received one from HARTFORD! I called the number given and talked to a very nice gentleman who reviewed by policy, changed some items to my benefit and gave me a quote lower than 2014's amount. I asked why difference between direct call and web. He stated that give lower rates to individuals thta purchase policies on line. This is no fair to older and poorer individuals who have no access or cannot use a computer. I accepted my quote but feel very bad about all of those individuals who are being overchaged just because they do not order on line.

When choosing home insurance don't consider AARP From The Hartford for your insurance needs. Because, What they did to me they will do to you. That is after you purchase your home insurance as I did for $708.00 for 1YR Premium. Then they raised the 1YR Premium to $1, 040.00. They said the reason for the $332.00 increase was because the fire station was 6 miles from my home and they thought it was 3 miles there for a longer response time for the fire department in case of a fire. Then they turned around and put a increase for 1YR Premium for $1, 438.00 that is another large increase of $398.00. Can you believe that in a 2YR period that AARP From The Hartford increased my Premium by $730.00 and they thought I would continue buying home insurance from them. I went on line with Liberty Mutual Insurance and in a few minutes they gave me a quote for the same amount of coverage on my home for a total 12 month policy premium for $728.00 WOW! What a savings. You need to go with Liberty Mutual they will save you a lot of money for home insurance as they did with me. Two days later I got a complete home total package coverage from Liberty Mutual in the mail for the same amount of home coverage for a savings of $710.00. Thank You Liberty Mutual Insurance. Mark

After deciding to switch to Hartford ins. after being very happy with Geico ins. for 7 years, Hartford increased my premium more than 22% due to an accident to my car 55 months ago when my car was parked. The accident was completely paid by the other person’s insurance, since my car was parked.Hartford was not willing to check this out by raised me almost $400., actually more than my previous Geico policy.I find this to be a complete rip off and would like other people to be made aware of this underhanded practice.

As a former insurance agent I feel your products and pricing is too high. We are group that would off-set any long term expenditures. However, I feel you are just a money hungry organization; like the other insurance company's in America. As a senior, disabled veteran I feel you are just using AARP as a means to generate profits rather than to benefit this sector of society. Someone needs to evaluate your business practices.

My home insurance policy went from $1300 to $2000 because Hartford changed the fire protection provider from Germantown Hills FD to spring bay FD which is approx. 7-8 miles away! Called them up to make the correction and was told the underwriters have already decided spring bay FD was my fire protection dept. and they were not going to change it! Ignorance is blissfull at Hartford! I pay real estate taxes to Germantown Hills FD and I have their blue location sign out in front of my house.

The Hartford worked a Worker's Comp settlement for GES after I sustained an on the job work injury. My claim representative at Hartford basically withheld vital doctor's transcriptions of my prognosis and medical condition and essentially told me that he supported a fraudulent settlement with GES's attorney - but that "it was out of his hands" because although he was aware of the fraud, it was the attorney who made the settlement offer and it was not his responsibility. A very dishonest company.

When I called The Harford requesting a "quote" for auto insurance, at no time did the agent notify me that they would do a credit check. As a result of this, they listed four derogatory statements in the reply letter. The DIRECTOR, Susan L. Castaaneda, refused to answer my letter, instead a Melissa Giard called me and stated that they had done nothing wrong. Subsequently, I received a form letter for Ms Castaneda directing me to sign-up for auto insurance. I also filed a complaint with the BBB in CT, but to no avail. This is a case of deception by the sales agents of the Hartford.

I had complete automobile insurance through AARP's Hartford for several years. In fact, I paid more in insurance costs than my vehicles were actually worth. In 2006, a limb fell from a tree, damaging one of these cars. The Hartford covered the damage but cancelled the collision portion of my policy. All other coverage remained intact. In 2007, I was hit head-on by a careless and debilitated driver; my car was totaled. I was seriously injured. Even though I have been dealing with a lawyer since the day of the accident, The Hartford has done all in their power NOT to help me. Their first lawyer, a little rat, offered me $4000 last summer--three years after the wreck. My lawyer told him where r, to go. Now The Hartford has another lawyer. I am into the FOURTH YEAR of NOT HAVING ANY CAR. I am 60 years old. I have lost the use of my right hand from the 2007 wreck, and I was an educator, musician, and writer. Meanwhile, I repeat: The Hartford is doing all they can NOT to pay me anywhere near my policy limits. I even have a $25, 000 damage clause for underinsured drivers; THAT is being completely overlooked. I've tried to talk to AARP about the misrepresentation they have put forth regarding The Hartford's "service, " but NOBODY at AARP deals with The Hartford. You can only talk to a rep from The Hartford. As the kids say, WTF?! You know that Hartford logo of the big stag with the huge rack? They need to revise it to show that deer shoving his rack up our rumps. How can AARP back a company that deliberatly stalls and cloys to avoid helping us seniors? Again, I ask: WTF?

I sent this letter to The Hartford in response to their 'new lower rates' promo they sent me:
"The Hartford May 10, 2011

To Whom It May Concern:

I recently received the enclosed ‘Lower Rate Notice’ from you. The only ‘lower rate’ I am interested in was the one I had with you before you cancelled my policy. In January 2011, having almost no income, I did not have the full amount for the payment requested on the statement you sent me that was 3 times what I normally paid (under the guise of being an annual deposit) and I paid only my regular monthly amount. You promptly sent that back to me with a notification that you cancelled my policy. This happened after I had requested copies of all my many years of policy and payment history because your billing amounts are irregular and I could never get the amounts you wanted to balance with what I paid and what you said I owed. No matter what I thought I had paid in advance I was never paid in advance according to you and frequently accrued late fees because you said I still owed you money. After being a customer for many years I felt it was unnecessary for you to be charging me an annual deposit like any new client. That shows your loyalty is only to the almighty dollar and not your customers. After cancelling me and while I was searching for new insurance, you were then more than happy to provide me a quote with a ‘new rate’ that was almost $100 more per month.

You are rip off artists and I want to get the word out. I plan on doing that via the internet by explaining just what you did in order to inflate my premium and then cancel it. And in order to renew it I would be paying 1 ½ times what I had been. THAT is no discount.

I have moved on and gotten insurance elsewhere, you are thieves, do not contact me any further. I think AARP needs to know how you do business as well.
Sincerely..."

That about says it...don't trust them..it sounds good but they jerk you around and instanteously cancel your policy when you start asking questions...I have had car insurance for 41 years and have NEVER been cancelled until now.

I Lessie Steve Britton, and Carol Jean Britton, have two exisiting POLICIES, with HARTFORD INSURANCE Company, one Auto, and Homeowner( RENTERS). We have made all payments on time, if not before.Up until now HARTFORD INSURANCE, have the BEST insurance available . Because of their remittance, timely and fair.
As of July 1ft 2010, my wife was in a HIT and RUN accident, with the hit and run driver giving a bogus insurance card and number . So we have no recourse, and as it stand now our insurance, THE HARTFORD, are responsible to pay all claims AUTO, and PERSONAL INJURIES.We are AFRICAN AMERICANS, and it seem that my wife several days if BLINDNESS was pre-existed, and was not caused by the WHIPLASH, of her HEAD and BACK againsted THE HEADREST. If the BLINDNESS was chronic it would have showed up two or three or four times before the accident. But it didn't, and the headaches and stiffness with blurred vision still present in her LEFTEYE.
My policy clearly state $50k for INJURIES and $100k for DEATHS.
WHO WE COMPLAIN TO, or WHO WE WRITE?

My letter to AARP Hartford Auto Insurance Company:
Dear Sir/Madam,
Recently it came time to renew my auto insurance.
Your insurance bill arrived in the mail on or around Jan. 25th, 2011. The due date was indicated as Feb. 4th, 2011. I had received no other bills or announcements of payments due.
The amount due with no options for extension of payments over time was an outrageous $1397.00 whereas the year of 2010 was bad enough at $1166.
I doubt you’ll take the time to review this policy which I am happy to say will be cancelled effective tomorrow, but if you do, you will see that my needs/requirements for auto insurance are minimal. Nothing had changed in my driving life to elicit such an enormous increase in premium...actually at the least it should have remained static since my little finance-free car’s book value right now is about $7500 on a good day.
I do not commute to work and I am the sole driver with a “superior” rating.
The fact that AARP (who will be hearing from me as well) permits and even supports your company in offering auto insurance is almost grounds for me to be leaving that organization.
I sought help from an agency in the Tampa Bay area who located a policy with improved coverage, an A++ rating from JD Power and a business track record dating from 1916. The price for this policy from Southern Owners Insurance Company paid in full (always my election, though, unlike your company, they do offer incremental payments) is a mere $885.67.
The difference is unconscionable and you can be sure that all my friends will be advised to go nowhere near your company for current or future policies.
Call me potentially paranoid and very possibly judgmental, but is it possible you are banking on some perceived “fact” that your customer base is aged and addled and might just pay up without a fight?
You definitely guessed wrong in this case. And if I were you, I’d revisit this business plan altogether.

I have been insured by The Hartford through AARP for over nine years without a claim. They insure my home, condo and auto.
The claim amount was approximately $1800 for damage to the Left Rear of my 2002 Cadillac Escalade. My car was in excellent condition with low mileage.

The shop wanted to replace a New Left Side Molding and Left Rear
Tail Light Assembly. However, the adjuster said No, Repair it, and find a used Tail Light Assembly.
Well they couldn't find a used tail light and still said they couldn't repair the panel. All this time until the adjuster came back again, I was incurring rental charges and the estimate of repair was initially 5 days. The shop had to get a new tail light afterall and still had to Repair, Not Replace, the Panel.

Because of that, the Panel has buff marks that you can see under the clearcoat paint due to all that buffing and sanding. So my car was not given back to me in the same condition prior to the accident, due to the nickle and dime business practices, while the premiums keep going up. Keep in mind this was my first claim in Over Nine Years and no other driver was involved.

I was told the check was issued on November 5th and mailed
directly to me. Over a week went by and No check. I kept trying to find out what happened with the check from the claims in Indianapolis. I just kept hearing, it was issued and mailed from another department. No one knew anything. Not only that, not one single person I spoke with ever apologized, or said "sorry for the delay".

My car was ready and no check. I finally insisted, almost two weeks later, for them to Overnight another check. They were rude and told me they couldn't. It would take three days to reach me.

Now my patience was limited and I couldn't trust anything they told me. I didn't want my car to remain in the shop any longer. On the 15th of November I took the money out of my savings, a total of $1832.00, just to get my car back. I also incurred extra car rental
fees of $150.00.

The new check finally showed up November 18 after 5pm. I had to wait for the money an additional 13 days. This is horrendous.
Who ever heard of having to use your own money to get your car out of the body shop.
I can only imagine if I had a homeowners claim.

I want to know where and to whom at Hartford I can send my complaint to.

the hartford auto ins. continuely over charged my ins. account. i requested that they would give me only what the state requirments where. beleiving they where a reputable company beause aarp is their sponcere like a fool i assumed their charges where right, only to find out later that through another insurance provider that i was charged twice the amount from the hartford compared to my present insurance company, folks dont be mislead call around you save a bundle for the same coverage

Hello - I'm not an AARP member but writing on behalf of my Mother, who is. Her and my Dad (who has passed away) have been members for 20 - 25 years. They have their home owners insurance through you (Hartford) also and have been paying premiums for the duration without once collecting on anything. This leads to my complaint; there was a hard thunder/lightning storm that hit over my Mom's house last week and blew out her TV and console control on her treadmill. She called me about what to do and I ran through all the service manuals and suggested checking circuit breakers etc. The result was blown TV and treadmill. I suggested she call her Ins. company. She did and they said she'd get a call back by 4:00 the next day (after taking her claim). 5:00 came around and no call so she called back, leaving a message. She got a call within 3 minutes stating we were in meetings (come on). Anyway, she was told because the lightning did not hit her house, the TV and treadmill were a loss and even if the treadmill were fixed, there was a $250 deductible she'd have to cover. This was a used treadmill I got for my Mom not costing that. All she wanted was help getting it back to working and after paying premiums all these years, that seems like the LEAST you could do. I have All-State Ins. and a similar thing happened to me and I got a TV, computer, DVD player replaced and they even asked if I lost any groceries in the fridge when the power went out. Needless to say, I've suggested to my Mom to look elsewhere for her Ins. seeing how she isn't "covered" adequately, and I have no intentions of becoming a member, even though I'm turning 59 in a few days.

Sorry this is lengthly and I'd appreciate it if you'd pass this on to someone who might be able to do something about it if your not that person.

Thank you,

Bob Cayia

Heaven help you if you must contact The Hartford for help with your annuity. You cannot speak with a live person when you call. You reach an automated system with no option to speak to anyone unless you keep pushing random buttons on the phone like an idiot. And when you do reach someone, he/she inevitably tells you you've called the wrong 800 number. And no, they will not transfer you, you must hang up and go through the same automated system again. It is a nightmare! I have been on the phone 20 minutes and counting and still do not have the information I need. I will never do business with this company again!

We were shopping around for replacement car, home owners and umbrella insurance. We were sick to death of State Farm and their crap, so for what we were paying for insurance decided to seek out a new company. We have excellent credit and no chargeable accidents. We contacted AAARP and got a Hartford Insurance quote. They LIED about everything. We have the phone calls on tape and the emails to back up our complaint. Bascially, the representative on behalf of Hartford LIED about everything that he said and even committed in writing because when the invoice came in for the final bill EVERYTHING was DIFFERENT. We do not do business with FRAUDS! Since we charged the amount of the invoice on a credit card, we immediately placed the amount in dispute and obtained other insurance immediately with Amica. Be careful folks and do things to protect yourself. Get it in writing. Get it audio taped (if possible) and then charge it so if there is a problem you can dispute it under the Federal consumer laws (Chase was great in helping)! Meanwhile, I want nothing to do with State Farm, or Hartford Insurance until they learn to tell the truth and stand by their contracts.

I tried to open a retirement account with this company and was met with resistance and unresponsiveness to basic and general questions about how they do business. They also refused to give me the basic information I needed to adequately compare them to their competition. These problems occurred at all levels of supervisory position. It looks like their fees are much higher than the competition and their service has been poor to say the least. I went elsewhere.

Anyone out there have auto and home insurance with Hartford, the insurance for 55+ drivers, at a great rate and other conveniences? Well take heed, take notice and take the time to do some comparing of insurances, not only is health insurance and prescriptions cost after the 55+ group, so is Hartford. They take your money in premiums and if you have an accident or a problem in the home, your chances of getting any kind of service, especially in the state of Maryland, is null. Their premiums are so high and the service is soooooo bad. After paying for just 5 months shy of 3 years premiums of $225+ (increased by 10-20 every year) I was involved in an auto accident and I was fully charged with the accident. No grace, no forgiveness given me even with my good driving record and no accidents at all. Premiums were 30% greater than last year; I was treated bad, and I mean bad by the claims rep. So I canceled the policy a month before renewal and they sent acknowledgment letter and they still took the first month renewal premium and told me I would have to wait until next Tuesday to get the money back. Something really needs to be done about this company. Anyone else treated like or similar to this? Anyone have any suggestions. I've since changed my insurance company and I'm, at this time, very pleased.