Budget Homeowner's Insurance?

[Aurora D]

So my insurance company dropped me. They did a visual of our home and noted some repairs. They sent a letter telling us we had to make the repairs or be dropped. Needless to say, we did not have the extra money and now we are insuranceless. Does anyone have an insurance company they can recommend?

 

[ccgirl]

Chances are other insurers will find out why you were dropped and want the same repairs as well. How far are you from the ocean? That has been making getting insurance more difficult. I am within 1 mile and had the hardest time getting insured even though there were no repairs needed and I am nowhere need a flood. We have to have a pumping station pump water up to us we are so high. Anyway, my Insurance Agent was able to shop around to find someone to insure us so we didn't have to go on the state plan. Try your insurance agent and see if they can find anyone. Do you have a mortgage? I know as part of our mortgage we have to carry insurance or they could foreclose on our house. I would move quick. What kind of repairs did they drop you for?

 

[tlbwriter]

Do you have a mortgage? I know as part of our mortgage we have to carry insurance or they could foreclose on our house.

If our mortgage holder receives notice that we no longer have insurance, they will buy insurance for us and add it to our mortgage. Of course, it will be a ridiculously expensive plan!

 

[ccgirl]

If our mortgage holder receives notice that we no longer have insurance, they will buy insurance for us and add it to our mortgage. Of course, it will be a ridiculously expensive plan!

Our current mortgage does that. I think the plan they "bought" was $3200 a year when we only pay $1200 a year. We actually had insurance. It was just a mix up.

The "old" mortgage would send us a letter that they had the right to foreclose.

 

[LoveBWVVBR]

OP - Does your state have an insurer of last resort? We live in FL on a barrier island, and for a while we actually opted onto Citizens' Insurance, which is our state carrier. I actually found their rates to be better and their CS to be quite decent. Every 6 months or so they'd try to dump us off onto some random private insurance carrier, but I just needed to fax in paperwork stating that I wanted to stay with Citizens' (and keep a record of that, obviously!). It worked out quite nicely, honestly.

 

[SoonerSarah]

I would call around to every place in your area, asking for an email or printout of all prices and what is included.

When we bought our last house, we called State Farm first, we have had homeowners/car insurance with them for 10 years. Despite us getting a discount for home/auto, and an additional discount for loyalty, the rate they gave us was sky high. We called around to several places, and we found a local mom & pop place that has been open for years with a good track record and lots of positive comments. They were significantly less than SF, even when we no longer got the discount for auto. We also talked to them about auto, but they advised us that they don't do much auto, the rates would be expensive, and it was.

Good luck!

 

[daughtersrus]

What kind of repairs are they talking about?

 

[kellydizfan]

If our mortgage holder receives notice that we no longer have insurance, they will buy insurance for us and add it to our mortgage. Of course, it will be a ridiculously expensive plan!

It will cover their interest in your home only - no coverage for you or liability for your family.

 

[ccgirl]

It will cover their interest in your home only - no coverage for you or liability for your family.

Correct, and no insurance of your belongings either. Very good point!

 

[njmomtoone]

So my insurance company dropped me. They did a visual of our home and noted some repairs. They sent a letter telling us we had to make the repairs or be dropped. Needless to say, we did not have the extra money and now we are insuranceless. Does anyone have an insurance company they can recommend?

What company did you have that dropped you?

 

[SPBendersky]

It is unfortunate that our Gov't allows an industry to rape the public and then when it has losses to raise rates and canceal whom ever they wish because they now want to limit the potential for loss. I have it on good authority that due to the lack of Hurricane land fall in the NE the insurers are systematicly cancealing in masses which the gov't is allowing. The rates are all going to be $3-6,000 within the next few years for everybody in the coastal U.S. Find the best policy u can and secure it.

 

[ZachnElli]

It is unfortunate that our Gov't allows an industry to rape the public and then when it has losses to raise rates and canceal whom ever they wish because they now want to limit the potential for loss. I have it on good authority that due to the lack of Hurricane land fall in the NE the insurers are systematicly cancealing in masses which the gov't is allowing. The rates are all going to be $3-6,000 within the next few years for everybody in the coastal U.S. Find the best policy u can and secure it.

Insurance is the most regulated industry in our country. There are more laws on the books regulating insurance than any other industry. And they are in it to make a profit just like every other private industry in the country. Rates have to approved by each state before they can raise them. And just like any other industry, they can pick who they want to serve (insure). Insurance isn't a right. Government can't tell them who they have to insure, it's a private industry! Also, lack of hurricane landfall makes them money, no claims equals profits, your statement that they will be cancelling in masses because there haven't been hurricanes makes absolutly no sense!

 

[RangerPooh]

We have had decent experiences with Amica Insurance. We lived right on the ocean adn they provided coverage no problem.

 

[ccgirl]

It is unfortunate that our Gov't allows an industry to rape the public and then when it has losses to raise rates and canceal whom ever they wish because they now want to limit the potential for loss. I have it on good authority that due to the lack of Hurricane land fall in the NE the insurers are systematicly cancealing in masses which the gov't is allowing. The rates are all going to be $3-6,000 within the next few years for everybody in the coastal U.S. Find the best policy u can and secure it.

Insurance is the most regulated industry in our country. There are more laws on the books regulating insurance than any other industry. And they are in it to make a profit just like every other private industry in the country. Rates have to approved by each state before they can raise them. And just like any other industry, they can pick who they want to serve (insure). Insurance isn't a right. Government can't tell them who they have to insure, it's a private industry! Also, lack of hurricane landfall makes them money, no claims equals profits, your statement that they will be cancelling in masses because there haven't been hurricanes makes absolutly no sense!

I live in MA. Most insurers pulled out of the Cape already due to the "storm of the century" that may come. They started to pull out after Katrina. So, in MA they have already done it. A good majority of the people on Cape Cod are insured via the state plan as a private insurer will not underwrite them a policy. It is not that there hasn't been a hurricane, entirely. It is that there has not been a major hurricane so we are "due" for one....according to the insurance industry prediction. Insurers were waiting until your policy expired and just didn't renew them. The legislature could not stop them. Many people were writing to their congressman and senator. I have many friends in MA whose policy did not get renewed even if they made one claim. It's a shame because I have needed to file a claim this year (two actually) but haven't as my insurance agent has cautioned me the insurer probably wouldn't renew my policy if said claim was filed. Okay...so what am I paying insurance for if they are going to pay a claim then drop me. Seems kind of predatory to me. The insurers use the measurement of 1 mile (as the crow flies) from the ocean means you are "high risk".

 

[shortbun]

I don't think it's unfair for an insurance company to expect their insured to do what's necessary to protect the investment. Same goes for not paying a claim on a car accident for the people injured and not wearing a seat belt. If you are not doing everything necessary to keep yourself safe, why would a smart insurance company want you as a customer? I'd find a way to get the repairs done. Any other company could find out that the OP was dropped and refuse coverage as well.

 

[Pakey]

OP, have you talked directly with your agent?

This happened to us last year when we purchased a new rental property. About a month after we closed escrow, we got this letter saying we were being dropped unless we took care of this laundry list of items.

We got our agent to send us photos of the issues.

1. We needed to put in all new fencing. Yes, there was a bad section and we ended up replacing that one section only.

2. The house needed to be painted which I knew was wrong because the house had new paint. When I looked at the picture, the inspector had taken a photo with a large flower from the yard in front of the house and it looked in the photo as if a chunk of paint was missing.

3. Debris in the yard. No joke, it was one board. We tossed it in the trash.

4. Hole in yard. We took a shovel and filled it in with dirt.

Our agent, who we have known for years, came back out and did the re-inspection, taking the photos from the same angles as the original inspector. It cost us a total of $400 to get the insurance reactivated and that was all for the fencing materials. The other items were quick fixes.

They are not just looking at property but also at liability. Our agent told us that most insurance companies are doing this now; it started when foreclosure rates skyrocketed due to the number of homes that are now in disarray.

 

[Disnydad]

I'm an insurance agent here in New York. We recently purchased a second home in Florida. Last month our Florida agent called to say that Tower Hill Insurance was cancelling out Florida policy due to cracks in the walls that may indicate a sink hole. We instructed our Florida agent to find us another company to write the insurance. A couple of weeks later we visited our Florida home and could not find any cracks in our home. The Tower Hill inspector had the wrong house!