Insurance company silliness

So I got a new quote on homeowners insurance. A better policy, a better company, a lower price. They came out to do their look-over and decided to exclude the detacted garage (the one in my avatar). Why, you may ask, are they excluding it, when it is the best building on the property? Because the soffit is not painted. Seriously.

I guess they didn't notice that the soffit on the house isn't painted either? Or the broken window? Or the missing siding on the back of the house? Or the romex hanging out of the garage wall?

The funny part is that the exclusion specifically states that they insure my personal possessions anywhere in the world ... except in that building. So, I could clear the stuff out, put it all in the yard, and all is well. Or ship it to Africa, yep covered there too. But not in my garage, 'cause the soffits are not painted. Oh, and I have liability coverage for the whole property, but ... you guessed it, not for anyone injured in that building with the dangerous unpainted soffits.

It is worth dealing with them, as this is the first company which will insure my place (without thermostat-controlled heat and a woodstove that is 30 years old) for a reasonable price.

So I am going to paint the soffits this weekend to (hopefully) lift the exclusion.

Greg

 

sounds like something State Farm would do.
they dropped mom's car insurance after dad had a stroke. because someone in the household "had their license revoked"
ummm...he didn't have the stroke while driving...and he recovered pretty well from it...

 

I'm guessing there was more to it that you don't know. is the out building heated? do you store gas in it? were they inside of it?
have a welder?

 

Not heated, no welder, no flammables other than less than 8 gal gasoline, they never got inside. There is a vintage airplane inside, but I doubt they saw it through the window, as I doubt they went up to it. The 5 photos they took of the place look as though they never got more than 5 feet from their car. (I have had airplane exclusions before, that is somewhat normal.)

Probably shouldn't name the company.

I had State Farm in SC tell me that I had to clean the moss off of our roof before they would insure. I did, then they said they would insure the house, except for the roof. At least that one made a little sense.

I would upload the exclusion document, it is pretty funny, but it has too much private info on it. I just gotta go to Lowes and buy some of that amazing paint that can solve the world's problems.

Greg

 

seems we could all write a book about insurance companies and their games. and "false" advertising (the fine print). and the way they jack the prices up every year. When I moved to a new agent after the old one retired, she thought she hit the jack pot. I pay way too much imo (too many toys)

 

In-suuuuuuure-ence........ snort....... spit...

 

What's your agent have to say about this? If he won't fight for you now don't expect him to be there when you need him.

 

He offered to come paint it for me.

I am not going to fight it, I will just paint it. There is so much more that they could have given me grief for, I got off easy. It is just a silly thing. This policy is $1000 / year less than my previous, for better coverage.

Greg

 

Oh yeah.
I got dinged for a small section of fascia that needed a fresh repaint. They also didn't seem to like that I had lawn chairs......on the lawn. Told me those needed to be put away.
I guess those mean old chairs could have attacked a visitor or something.
I ignored 'em and found another company. They.....lost a customer.
I still painted the fascia, and did some other minor cleanup (they should have seen all the crap I pulled off the property when we moved in).
Oh, and I have 3 small sheds plus the 30x40 pole barn I built....all covered.

 

I went with USAA. Consumer Reports had it rated #1. It was for military officers, but now is extended to enlisted and for their offspring. I've had them for years and never any issues. I also have my car finance with them. Best rates around. Only problem I ever had was they kept upping the insurance value of the home. I went around and around with them and explained that I only wanted it insured for the replacement cost. No more. Recently had the house appraised. They went by that this time. Shop around, stay away from the dumb dumbs.
USAA has this thing where you earn your way into the company. I've accumulated enough in their saving account where there is a dividend every year that gives me a check. I dump it back into the company and it pays for two months of my home and auto premiums.

 

Well, like I said, it is silly, but so far they are the only ones who are offering a reasonble cost. I can repaint for that. They also didn't like my firewood stacks, a "yard hazard," but they got over it.

I would try USAA, but I have no military background, and Dad is not interested in joining them so I could. That's OK.

Greg

 

I guess I should consider myself lucky as to home insurance. I've never seen anything like that from my company.

Plus I need another coat of paint on the fascia that I replaced on one corner.

 

I aint never seen my small town agent out here yet. they know I got a wood stove, called them when I put up a pole shed and added it to the claim, they don't check on nothing. They just want the check. When I need them, well, I bet they are gonna stiff me big time but then, it is a small community and I know where he lives.

 

Painted the eves last weekend, sent some photos to prove as much, and the exclusion was lifted. Go figure.

Painting cost about $250 (hired help and paint/supplies), saving me almost $1000 / year on the insurance compared to my previous. For better coverage, and a better company at that.

Greg

 

Can't beat an insurance company willing to give you back $750 the first year, and $1000 every year after, for painting a little trim work...

 

My neighbor was turned down for insurance because they used wood for primary heat source. When he explained that the wood burning appliance (outside furnace) was located 50 yards from the residence they still didn't want to cover him. Twit on the phone in the big city of TORONTO had not a clue of what the outside wood furnace was or how it worked.......................

 

I have a silly auto insurance story that happened a few months ago. A car crashed in front of our house one night about 3AM. The car was going about 100mph and hit the culvert at the end of our drainage ditch. After that, it seems the car just kept flipping and ended up in the neighbor's drainage ditch. Our rock culvert end exploded and was strewn all over the yard. Our mailbox was totally destroyed and the yard was a mess. The car traveled for about 150ft after it hit the culvert.

We contacted their insurance company and they told us to get an estimate. We couldn't find anyone and were going to do the work ourselves anyway, so we wrote up our own estimate which was $4ooo.
They told us that they needed an estimate from a repair business. We told them it would probably be a lot more and they said that's ok. We found a guy through a friend and told him we'd give him $50 if he'd just give us an estimate. His estimate was $8400 and the insurance co. paid it. Is that crazy or what?

 

Sad part is that is why everybody's rates are sky high.....................

 

My insurance Guy didn't give two chits when I told him I was putting in a wood stove.
I think during the initial evaluation it was recommended that I fence the pool in completely - extra 10' handrail(for my personal liability rider) when I explained anyone can jump the retaining wall they just crossed it out. safe to say any floating bodies in my pool will be relocated to an adjacent creek