Farmers Insurance has received more complaints about its handling of homeowner claims than any other insurer in Texas, state records compiled by a watchdog group show.

Farmers, whose various Texas units combine to make it the state’s third-largest insurer, received 207 complaints from Oct. 1, 2010, to Sept. 30, 2011, according to Austin-based Texas Watch, which obtained complaint data from state regulators.

That compares with 198 against State Farm, which has the largest market share in Texas, and 159 against Allstate, the second-largest home insurance company in the state.

Jerry Davies, a spokesman for Farmers, said it was difficult to comment without knowing how many of the complaints were found to be legitimate.

“Everyone we deal with is dealt with as fairly, efficiently and as quickly as we can to resolve their issues, and we work very diligently to resolve each and every claim,” Davies said.

The number of complaints is small compared with the thousands of claims the company handles each year.

However, Texas Watch executive director Alex Winslow said the data are still an important measure of how companies stack up against each other.

“Farmers stands out as a company with more complaints than anyone else, and that’s a very telling distinction,” he said.

The data do not include complaints about coverage or premium issues, but those dealing with payment delays, underpayments, denials and other matters pertaining to how claims are handled.

The numbers don’t break out how many of the complaints are justified. But Winslow said that isn’t relevant because the Texas Department of Insurance can dismiss complaints without investigating if it feels they fall outside its jurisdiction.

“We weren’t interested in what TDI thought of the complaints. We were interested in how many people were registering dissatisfaction with their carrier,” Winslow said.

Insurance Department spokesman Jerry Hagins said the “vast majority” of complaints received do fall within the department’s jurisdiction.

“Things don’t always work out for the consumer; but when we do find the company has erred and the consumer is right, we work robustly for the consumer,” he said, noting that regulators forced insurers to return $25 million to consumers from Sept. 1, 2010, to Aug. 31, 2011.

Consumers can file complaints by calling 800-252-3439 or visiting www.tdi.texas.gov.