OneBeacon Offers ID Theft Coverage to Homeowners and Renters

To help its customers who become victims of theft of their personal information and face the hassle of restoring their identity, OneBeacon Insurance Group now offers identity theft resolution assistance and expense reimbursement coverage.

The Identity Theft Resolution portion of the program is provided automatically, at no additional charge, to OneBeacon’s homeowners, condominium or renters insurance policyholders. For an extra charge, customers can also add coverage for Identity Theft Expense Reimbursement to their policies.

Under the Identity Theft Resolution program, a policyholder can take advantage of services from Identity Theft 911, an organization that will guide them through the complex procedures for restoring credit. A personal advocate will work with the victim to notify agencies, businesses and institutions; prepare needed documents; obtain credit reports; monitor threat alerts; and provide a full year of follow-up with alerts, phone calls and status checks to avoid a recurrence.

A consumer education component delivers ongoing threat alerts, a monthly newsletter and a dedicated Web site with articles, interviews and white papers covering all aspects of this crime.

The Identity Theft Expense Reimbursement is an endorsement that reimburses up to $15,000 for expenses such as lost wages, telephone and mail charges, fees to reapply for loans that were denied as a result of identity theft, and more. It is currently available for all homeowners policyholders in Maine and Massachusetts, and OneChoice customers in New York. OneBeacon will offer the coverage soon to all other New York homeowners customers, and it will introduce the endorsement in its other states upon regulatory approval, which the company expects shortly.

“At OneBeacon we continuously search for new and innovative ways to serve our customers,” said Alex Archimedes, head of the company’s personal lines operation. “Adding identity theft protection to our offerings provides them with a safety net against this expanding threat.”

Headquartered in Boston, Mass., OneBeacon serves personal insurance customers and small to midsized businesses through a variety of highly segmented products. OneBeacon Insurance Group is wholly owned by White Mountains Insurance Group, Ltd. of Hamilton, Bermuda.

Topics Fraud Homeowners