State Farm® Insurance Agent Brian Downes

"We were with State Farm for almost 10 years and never ever missed a payment. At first, State Farm had good prices but after the pandemic, they became another corrupt company who are taking advantage during this inflation. We started with one agency in another borough and then we went with this agency Brian Downes almost 6 years ago. I gave it 2 stars only because during the 2019 storm in NYC, State Farm were on point and on time in every way. After the pandemic, we noticed every month; the price kept going up and never down no matter what. This agency is not attentive to their client's best interest. They are only about increasing and collecting their money. Every month, we were always told that all the insurance statewide are increased by 20%. In Jan 2024, we took and submitted the Defense Driving Certificate. They took long to adjust the total. I finally decided to call. Like always, "sorry, we haven't received the changes", yeah right. March 2024, we received the call with the new monthly total for 3 vehicles, we were satisfied. April 2024, we received a notice with another total amount saying it increased from $407 to $476 a month. We called and was told again about the 20% statewide increased on April 29th, 2024. We called State Farm 800#. Representative was surprised to hear about the so call statewide 20% increase. Also, with State Farm, clients need to deal directly with a private State Farm agency. We couldn't deal directly with the company. We decided to give up and go with another insurance company. GEICO gave us the same policy we had with State Farm paying $91 less a month. We were also told that they should go by the history (age, credit, driving, tickets, accidents, suspensions, DUI/DWI, etc). We contacted Consumers Affairs and was told that they have received lots of complaints against State Farm about over charging their clients. We were told that the increase goes to the agency, not the policy. We will be calling the Attorney General to file a complaint. Inflation is hurting us ALL. Everyone need to file complaints so we can stop these companies that are lying and stealing from us."

"Very helpful staff! One of the best agencies I have ever worked with. Erika helped me a great deal, working tirelessly on behalf to get my issues resolved. The entire agency has an amazing staff and go above and beyond to help their customers. Highly recommend this agency."

"Please disregard my previous review! I was trying to leave a 5 star review on my iPhone and flubbed it!!! So frustrating… My experience was in fact excellent, and alleviated my concern about the issue I raised. Aaron Anglin’s assistance was professional, courteous and efficient. Very happy to access easily a service-minded professional!"

"In March, I noticed that my policy amount increased by about $20, but didn't question it since everything has gone up. Then I noticed that the policy amount increased again in April by $50. I kept saying I was going to call but did not get a chance until I saw the third increase of $21 in June (totaling $90 in less than 6 months). I spoke to Darrah who could not clearly explain why my bill went up because the statement does not explain it. She stated that she would call the billing department and call me back in one hour and instead she emailed me a response that STILL DID NOT EXPLAIN THE INCREASES TWO HOURS LATER. I emailed her to call me and she NEVER did. I then called again and spoke to Aaron who was nice and trying to be helpful but again, stated that he would have to speak to someone in that department. He finally called me the next business day and could only explain one increase which was that the low-mileage discount that I normally received monthly (since I drive my car LESS THAN 5k A YEAR) was removed. I'm NOT sure who removed it, because it was NOT me, but he stated that it may have been when I order the beacon to enroll in the FREE "Drive Safe & Save" program with the hope of getting ANOTHER DISCOUNT. Somehow, this impacted my rates to increase, and he could NOT clearly explain why. I am currently waiting to hear from Lisa, the Office Manager, and hope that she will be able to explain what has happened along with returning my statements to the regular amount that I always paid IN ADDITION to a credit for the additional amounts that I unjustly paid AND an apology for all my time wasted and lack of professionalism on the agent Darrah. I have been with this company many years, have multiple policies and too old to deal with this nonsense. Going to report to BBB!"

"I called the general inquiry number in order to get in contact with Brian Downes office. I had the pleasure of speaking with Akeelah, who was both attentive and helpful. The wait time for the office was longer than expected however, she kept me informed and assured me she would wait on the line with me until I was connected. She made my whole experience very pleasant!"

"I work with Erika Vasquez. She makes my life that much easier. She is a pleasure to work with. Always is fast to call me back, someone I can rely on to get the job done. She is amazing. I can't thank her enough for how fast she handled my claim. It's so nice to work with someone you can trust. Sharon Roberts"

"I truly recommend State Farm Agent: Lisa DeSena She is knowledgeable, diligent and truly cares for her customers. Lisa DeSena is a perfect example of State Farm motto: "Like a good neighbor state farm is here" --- she represents this motto to the fullest, and goes the extra step to make sure no mistakes or misunderstandings are taking place. Thank you Lisa for your help!!"

"State Farm with the multi plan discount is LESS expensive than Geico and you get to speak to the agent of your choice and follow up with that agent. My agent Erika Vasquez is wonderful. Knowledgeable, professional, patient, explains things clearly and makes me feel like she is looking out for my families best interest. So happy that I did the switch to State Farm."