Blog: Insurance

With weather forecasters calling for a worse-than-average 2010 Atlantic basin hurricane season, the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) is advising property owners on the most effective ways to protect their homes and businesses from hurricane damage. IBHS is also trying to dispel some common myths about hurricane preparedness. Forecasters predict 15 named storms…

I had my roof checked by two roofing companies because our home is 16 years old and I wanted to find out the condition of my roof, we had a store in May the roof leaked, I had state Farm out and they denied a roof problem, in otherwords they would not cover the roof.…

Some say insurance companies delay payments and slow investigations. But some homeowners don’t know they can reopen claims when damage reappears. Marta Ayala’s colorful artwork is showcased throughout her immaculate Parkland home. Every room also features vivid reminders of 2005’s Hurricane Wilma: cracking paint and yellow water drip marks, some as long as 10 feet.…

The controversy over the Los Angeles billboard telling the public “You Can’t Trust Mercury Insurance” could soon become a lawsuit. Attorneys for Consumer Watchdog, the group that put up the message, have sent a letter to CBS Outdoor, Inc., the billboard owner, threatening legal action to force them to restore the sign if the company…

Will your insurance company be there for you in the aftermath of a disaster, when you most need it? The answer might be no. When Consumer Reports National Research Center surveyed readers about their homeowners insurance claims in the last few years, half of those who had filed claims related to Hurricane Katrina reported problems.…

Myths, legends and lies are hard to dispel and correct, especially when doing so appears to financially harm the teller or believer. If the myth is true, the client (the teller/believer) does not need to purchase the coverage on which the lie is based; but if the information is false, the insured is forced to…

The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association wants a judge to give it immunity against paying attorneys’ fees, penalties, interests and other expenses beyond actual damages in litigation claiming it acted in bad faith or maliciously in dealings with policyholders. In Bakht Khattak vs. Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, the insurer is seeking sovereign immunity, which means it…

When people buy homeowner’s insurance, they usually intend for it to cover the home in which they live. That is also the insurance company’s expectation, and most of the time, that is the case. However, sometimes circumstances change and the home is left empty. For example, the family goes on a weeklong vacation, or one that lasts a month or more. One member of the couple may accept a temporary job transfer that will last for a few years, and they may decide not to sell the home. In other cases, the family may move into a new home but find themselves unable to sell the prior one. In all of these cases, the home is rendered either unoccupied or vacant. This change in status can affect the insurance coverage.

The standard homeowner’s policy provides coverage for losses caused by vandalism and malicious mischief. For example, the policy will pay for the repair and replacement of windows if the family comes home and finds all of the first floor windows broken. A reasonable person could conclude that vandals broke the windows. However, the policy will not pay if the home has been vacant for more than 60 days. Insurance companies design the policies and set the prices under the assumption that a home will be occupied. A vacant building is vulnerable to damage by vandals, so the companies have designed other policies to cover them.

As millions of U.S. households face financial hardship in the current U.S. recession, retaining existing customers has never been more important. For insurance carriers in terms of long-term profitability, customer retention is tops, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2009 Personal Insurance Retention Special Report. The report finds that in the past 12 months,…

Dear Florida Insurance Consumers, When your insurance rates go higher, the customer service gets worse, and your fair claim treatment is non existent.  Please remember your Florida legislatures that supported the insurance lobby over you. This chart outlines the status and descriptions of key property insurance legislation so far, including which bills would benefit insurers.…