I think storm chaser roofers are partially to blame too. Oh, a little bit of hail struck my roof – new roof please. Maybe its warranted in some cases – but they flooded my neighborhood right before the 2 year deadline…
I beleive overall the insurance carriers are doing a great job keeping up with the changing times, and we have to remember insurance wouldn’t be available without profit making private insurance companies. Many horror stories about the “big bad insurance companies” come from greedy homeowners who are looking to take advantage of a situation for their own good.
Why do you start your article with a paragraph that makes it sound like the insurance company is not living up to the contractual policy coverage? This has nothing to do with the main theme of your article and is bad editing.
Your article is really about companies making legitimate underwriting business decisions which we all agree the industry has the right to do.
Contrary to popular belief, the insurance industry is not a non-profit business. There are stockholders who expect a small but reasonable return on the equity.
This is a poorly written article by someone who is obviously not familiar with common insurance industry definitions,terms and conditions. But as far as timely payment of claims, I think it is unfortunate to have the DOI step in just to have a satisfactory outcome of this relatively small claim as described. Perhaps there was more to this story than the reporter cared to report on. Not the article I would expect to read in INsurance Journal. Editors take note.
Consider the source for the article. Robert Huner was formerly the Commissioner of Insurance in Texas before he wore his welcome out. He was nothing but a consumer advocate and treated the industry poorly. There have been things going on with different carriers. As an example, Allstate in Texas is considering going to a straight ACV for roof damage. That might test their claims satisfaction guarantee, won’t it? I do think carriers are their own worst enemy sometimes when they load up their policy with all kinds of perks/coverages and then wonder why their loss ratio is bad having to pay losses on the extras. It looks good to the customers, but after a loss, there are renewal problems.
Costs shifting and subsidies for policyholders along the coast and near coasts are what is driving higher and higehr insurance premiums. They should be made to pay premium in their pools not be included in sharing premium with pools of non coastal proeprty owners. People choose to live on the coast. Let their premium reflect that 100%.
For customers not in these areas or in states like Florida that make the private market impossible to operate try the following. Florida is especially bad. Twenty years after Hurricane Andrew state govenrment has managed to make certain there is no market and there is an unfunded liability that might even wear out the Fed if ever triggered. Nice job govenrmnt just like your fraud PIP no fault auto program.
To solve the problem review and limit your coverage on homeowners. Insurers use replacement cost charts that are not real world. they may be accurate in what they measure but they are not accurate. Almost every homeowners coverage A dwelling limit was established at closing and then simply added onto each year through inflation adjustments.
Homes are not inceasing in value. The coverage A limit also includes the cost of land and the foundation but most polciies exclude both. Negotiate coverage A reductions. Yes you are surrendering coverage but face it come claim time the carrier is normally not paying you the limit unless you rebuild and they still will not pay for any foundation work even then.
I took my recent State Fram renewal and reduced coverage A by $35,000 to reflect actual market conditions. I asked them if theyw anted me t have the moral hazard of selling them the house of they insisted on overvaluation based on their cost estimator.I had to give up other structures coverage but since I have none who cares? I reduced premium by $400 or so.
Insurance companies often include 70% of coverage A for coverage C personal property. If you can reduce this to 50% then do so. Please spare me the hearts and flowers.If my house is blown way give me an acv settlement which will match or exceed my coverage A limit and I will move or build back as I see fit.
As to dedictible be sure and add earthquake coverage to your policy and go to an all peril deductible that matches the % of the earthquake deductible.
Understand a homeowners contract is not a nuisance or service contract. Limit coverage and avoid paying that part of the premium that reimburses the carrier for providing maintenance coverage.
I think storm chaser roofers are partially to blame too. Oh, a little bit of hail struck my roof – new roof please. Maybe its warranted in some cases – but they flooded my neighborhood right before the 2 year deadline…
I beleive overall the insurance carriers are doing a great job keeping up with the changing times, and we have to remember insurance wouldn’t be available without profit making private insurance companies. Many horror stories about the “big bad insurance companies” come from greedy homeowners who are looking to take advantage of a situation for their own good.
Why do you start your article with a paragraph that makes it sound like the insurance company is not living up to the contractual policy coverage? This has nothing to do with the main theme of your article and is bad editing.
Your article is really about companies making legitimate underwriting business decisions which we all agree the industry has the right to do.
Contrary to popular belief, the insurance industry is not a non-profit business. There are stockholders who expect a small but reasonable return on the equity.
this article should never be published in an insurance e-mail. This piece of crap belongs in an Obama commercial
Note the source — it’s a Reuters article.
This is a poorly written article by someone who is obviously not familiar with common insurance industry definitions,terms and conditions. But as far as timely payment of claims, I think it is unfortunate to have the DOI step in just to have a satisfactory outcome of this relatively small claim as described. Perhaps there was more to this story than the reporter cared to report on. Not the article I would expect to read in INsurance Journal. Editors take note.
Consider the source for the article. Robert Huner was formerly the Commissioner of Insurance in Texas before he wore his welcome out. He was nothing but a consumer advocate and treated the industry poorly. There have been things going on with different carriers. As an example, Allstate in Texas is considering going to a straight ACV for roof damage. That might test their claims satisfaction guarantee, won’t it? I do think carriers are their own worst enemy sometimes when they load up their policy with all kinds of perks/coverages and then wonder why their loss ratio is bad having to pay losses on the extras. It looks good to the customers, but after a loss, there are renewal problems.
Costs shifting and subsidies for policyholders along the coast and near coasts are what is driving higher and higehr insurance premiums. They should be made to pay premium in their pools not be included in sharing premium with pools of non coastal proeprty owners. People choose to live on the coast. Let their premium reflect that 100%.
For customers not in these areas or in states like Florida that make the private market impossible to operate try the following. Florida is especially bad. Twenty years after Hurricane Andrew state govenrment has managed to make certain there is no market and there is an unfunded liability that might even wear out the Fed if ever triggered. Nice job govenrmnt just like your fraud PIP no fault auto program.
To solve the problem review and limit your coverage on homeowners. Insurers use replacement cost charts that are not real world. they may be accurate in what they measure but they are not accurate. Almost every homeowners coverage A dwelling limit was established at closing and then simply added onto each year through inflation adjustments.
Homes are not inceasing in value. The coverage A limit also includes the cost of land and the foundation but most polciies exclude both. Negotiate coverage A reductions. Yes you are surrendering coverage but face it come claim time the carrier is normally not paying you the limit unless you rebuild and they still will not pay for any foundation work even then.
I took my recent State Fram renewal and reduced coverage A by $35,000 to reflect actual market conditions. I asked them if theyw anted me t have the moral hazard of selling them the house of they insisted on overvaluation based on their cost estimator.I had to give up other structures coverage but since I have none who cares? I reduced premium by $400 or so.
Insurance companies often include 70% of coverage A for coverage C personal property. If you can reduce this to 50% then do so. Please spare me the hearts and flowers.If my house is blown way give me an acv settlement which will match or exceed my coverage A limit and I will move or build back as I see fit.
As to dedictible be sure and add earthquake coverage to your policy and go to an all peril deductible that matches the % of the earthquake deductible.
Understand a homeowners contract is not a nuisance or service contract. Limit coverage and avoid paying that part of the premium that reimburses the carrier for providing maintenance coverage.