Homeowners Claims

[D_Rabbit]

Hard to Say MT. I know with The Hartford, where I worked for auto, I would go out of my way if I knew what we were offering was bogus. I.e. Had a woman with an old minivan. Our driver drilled her vehicle so The Hartford OWED for her claim. Her vehicle was a total loss. Total Loss claims SUCK!! Instead of making someone "whole" we owed for what the vehicle was worth. Not worth to replace but just worth. Which means we would give her $2500 for that vehicle but that doesn't include the mark up that a dealership would charge for that exact car. That may be where your difference came. Some adjusters were better at settling those than others. For me I would have requested dealership quotes for that same make, model and year. Usually that can bridge the gap between the two parties involved but that is all discretionary. Some people can just be pricks about it because they hate their life. Personally, I would have filed a DOI complaint. That always gets the boss' boss attention

Most of the time I would have been able to get things settled on repairing a vehicle but I knew we were screwing her but my hands were tied and her vehicle was so old I couldn't get dealership quotes on it. Think it was a 95-96 mini van. I couldn't get it past my supervisor. So I flat out told her to go through her insurance carrier because they would take care of what she was asking for and then we were tied to paying back her insurance carrier.

Now with Auto claims, being made whole (also known as indemnifying someone) they basically owed to get the vehicle back on the road. People would argue OEM parts or no aftermarket parts, which I can understand to an extenct. If your vehicle is 1-2 years old we would owe for OEM parts but anything older than that we could use after market parts. I think people have a huge misunderstand of what an aftermarket part really is. There are several varieties of aftermarket parts. There are refurbished OEM parts which are considered aftermarket parts, there are the cheap crappy aftermarket parts (which is what people think of) and there is the in between. The in between is typically really simple. Say Ford orders 10,000 bumpers for JOKERS INC. Well, JOKERS INC. doesn't typically make 10,000 parts and call it a day. Maybe they make 14,000 parts. Ford only buys and stamps there little logo on 10,000 of those parts and the other 4,000 parts are shipped to another company who sells them for cheaper because they don't have the ford logo on it. A lot of companies are going that route now. Or the after market companys buy the patent for the ford mould and use that mold to make the part.... same exact part at a fraction of the cost. And most of the time you aren't even going to see the part that was used. I know we used aftermarket parts on a ton of cars and I basically told the customer if you can tell the part is aftermarket when you get your vehicle back we will change it out. Typically never had any push back on that.

Hope my ramblings helped a little. Basically it comes down to discretion and hoping you got an adjuster that isn't a douche

[Chuck N]

Okay, a kind of related question here...

Lets say the air-lock on my fermenting bucket plugged and my fermenting bucket - which for some unknown reason I had moved to my living room - exploded throwing beer all over the walls and the furniture and the big-screen TV. Er-reversibly staining and ruining the entire living room and all it's contents.

Would my insurance company replace the beer I lost?

[Wings_Fan_In_KC]

The basic issue that most non-insurance industry people have with insurance is not understanding the difference between the valuation clauses of HO and PA forms or not reading their policies fully. Homeowners forms generally are written on replacement cost (RC) basis and pay to restore (repair or replace) your home based on its inherent value which, over time, tends to appreciate (recent exceptions in places like Las Vegas where values have tanked duly noted). Some HO policies are based on stated amount (or valued contracts) which is the value that you and the insurer agree upon at issuance.

Personal auto policies are written on an ACV basis (actual cash value) and restore you to your position before the loss but this also includes applicable depreciation of the auto. (ACV = RC - depreciation) Most autos that are 15 years old should not be insured for physical damage because they have basically outlived their depreciation curve and any settlement for a total loss will be extremely disappointing. The application of depreciation is done using software that's based on Internal Revenue Service depreciation rules and data from other reliable sources. The insurance industry has a depreciation rate for practically every item of property imaginable. You can usually get your insurer's depreciation schedules upon request if you are so inclined to ask. Some carriers offer options for new car replacement (Allstate) or better car replacement (Liberty Mutual) but you will pay more for those optional coverages.

I've been in the industry for 28 years and the one thing I have heard over and over and over is how the insurance company has "screwed" the person I'm talking to because of this or that. One example was a basement flood loss where flood was an excluded peril. The guy didn't buy the flood option but yet it was the carrier's fault for "screwing him." Another was a collapse that was caused by the developer of a subdivision not backfilling the area properly. Subsidence is an excluded cause of loss and the carrier "screwed" the homeowner who should have read their exclusions section and understood what was and wasn't covered. (On that one, the actual cause of action was against the developer but until they went that route and recovered, it was the "evil insurance company" that was in the wrong.)

Frankly, I'm tired of the crap we take as an industry. Do you realize that without the insurance industry, the US economy would NOT function? Who would protect Dunkin Donuts from the dumbass who drove his car through the side of their building? Who would protect McDonalds from the moron who put hot coffee between her legs while driving and then was shocked that she burned herself? Who would protect your small business if you were involved in a swoop/squat wreck and were sued for $250,000? Who would rebuild the homes burned up in the wildfires in CO and CA? Who would protect a product importer who had a shipment of back ordered goods lost at sea during a storm? Insurance serves a purpose and furthers the economy by easing the burden that suit happy leaches bring to the mix. If your insurance agent can't answer your questions about coverage and other items, get a new one who can. Being uninformed is no excuse for getting "screwed" by the big bad insurance wolf. If you (and I say this to no one in particular - just "you" in general sense) haven't ever read your HO policy's insuring agreement, definitions and exclusions.....shame on you.

Now you can disagree with me but I'm employed in an officer level position at the largest privately owned insurance brokerage firm in the world and I know what I'm talking about.

* off soap box *

[D_Rabbit]

I think we need to go get a beer Wings Fan and enjoy the great discussions we could go over, although young in my insurance carrier, it does not lack of good stories already.

Like you mentioned. Many people don't read their policies and understand the Replacement Cost Value vs Actual Cash Value settlement clauses and feel no matter what they purchase the insurance company will replace what was damaged because that is what they pay them for. In dealing with homeowners claims for a very brief period I have already denied many claims based upon flood/ground water entering the basements. Just know if you are in a flood risk area and purchase accordingly. But also know if you have a basement with a walk out door to your back yard and your drain by your door clogs and water comes in to your basement, it is not covered! We cover stupid but we don't cover negligence.

Chuck, I would say to that..... we cover stupid