Victim of lightning.

HzTweaker

Friday (7/5) we had two severe thunder storms roll through my area. During the second one lightning struck a very tall tree not far from the poll the cable line drop comes from. As a consequence this caused my modem, router and my PS5 to get fried! . The PS5 was wired to the router.

All my devices receiving the wifi single seem to be fine so my next PS5 shall be hooked up wirelessly as well. All my other electronics seem to be fine as well, including the stereo rig THANK GOODNESS!

I have renters incurrence (have had for 10 years now) and haven't had a single claim until now. I plan on filing one tomorrow morning (7/8). Any tips when dealing with the incurrence company?

Does anyone have any tips on how to prevent this from happening the the internet rig in the future?

treitz3

First, off, sorry this happened to you. I have been there twice, one time getting the system. I don't know if the renter's insurance would even be worth the trouble, deductible and/or possible price increase for a claim that small. All I can say is good luck with them. They may make you send the gear to a certified repair shop to verify that it was lightning....on your dime. And no, they don't care where you need to ship it too.

They do make a lightning surge protector (you want one with a ground) but I'm not so sure of the effectiveness of these. If it's a direct hit, lightning jumping over a 1.5" span is not that uncommon.

Tom

HzTweaker

treitz3 wrote: »

First, off, sorry this happened to you. I have been there twice, one time getting the system. I don't know if the renter's insurance would even be worth the trouble, deductible and/or possible price increase for a claim that small. All I can say is good luck with them. They may make you send the gear to a certified repair shop to verify that it was lightning....on your dime. And no, they don't care where you need to ship it too.

Thanks Tom, and what you posted sounds like a headache! But I figured its at least worth a phone call to the insurance co.? I'll update this thread when I do.

I wonder if surge protectors cover CAT cables? I shall do some googleing(?) when it gets slow around the office today.

treitz3

Some of them do.

Tom

Emlyn

That sucks. Not a good idea to file a claim in my opinion too. Even if you haven't filed a claim right after filing one the databases would view you as someone with increased risk and that could be applied for a few years to every other thing you want to insure. So whatever you may receive above your deductible you'd be paying out later anyway. Insurance companies don't like paying out relatively small claims. They like making money at the lowest risk possible and big data doesn't view anyone as an individual. Just a set of numbers predicting future risk.

Renters or homeowners insurance is really intended for major to catastrophic losses way above the deductible amount.

pearsall001

Be careful with making that phone call just to test the waters so to speak. They very well assume a future claim & they will hold that against you & don't be surprised if your rates go up even if you don't file a claim. Just a heads up, it happened to me years ago & I found that info out after the fact.

mrbigbluelight

RE: calling the insurance company and/or filing a claim: DON'T

You obviously have incurred damage, so you're not looking for a freebie.
BUT
the insurance company will look at it as
"Gee I thought we were friends ! We were willing to let you send us money every month but now YOU want US to send YOU money !! I guess we can, but...well, we can no longer be friends !"

And that's when they'll stick it in your derriere.
🥺

Kex

Once had a damaged windshield that needed replacement. Called ☎️ our insurance company at the time. They told us that the cost of replacement was less than our deductible, so we paid for the replacement ourselves.

About a year later we changed to a different insurance company. The new insurer told us there was a claim on our record for a windshield replacement. All we had done was call the insurance. We never filed a claim (obviously). 😳

Opinion: insurance is for losses that you cannot afford to cover yourself, such as personal liability if you run over a pedestrian or damage someone else’s property after crashing into it. Don’t use insurance for small claims. They are not a charity. They don’t give away money for nothing.

PSOVLSK

pearsall001 wrote: »

Be careful with making that phone call just to test the waters so to speak. They very well assume a future claim & they will hold that against you & don't be surprised if your rates go up even if you don't file a claim. Just a heads up, it happened to me years ago & I found that info out after the fact.

I had the same thing happen to me with a fence that was damaged during a storm. Did nothing but call to inquire about my options, but was told I had a claim.

This past year I filed a claim for a burst pipe at my business. Insurance paid almost $2500. Just got my renewal for next year and the policy went up $1600. So they’re almost making up their “loss” in a year. Filing that claim is going to cost me thousands of dollars.

On a note related to the lightning strike, I just had a whole house surge protector installed. Some crazy stuff going on with my electricity. Just had an A/C unit and pool pump taken out. Previously had 3 surge protectors sacrifice themselves along with my sprinkler system.

VR3

I'm with the no call insurance. I carry insurance with great coverages but refuse to use it.

It's all a scam. What may save you 500 dollars will cost 5 fold on the back end

Kex

Since there seems to be a consensus on “no calls, no claims” one way to make this work for you is to increase your deductible to the highest number that they will allow, which should reduce your premium.

SCompRacer

We had a lightning ground strike near the house, maybe 15 years or so ago. All cables are underground in the subdivision. It took out all nic card/chips in computers, modem/router, switches, some two channel gear, TV, AVR even the bathroom exhaust fan timers.

We had to have a separate form for each item. The insurance company required a licensed electrician to test, sign off on each item and have them notarized. Back then our insurance went up due to the claim, but we weren't cancelled. These days we'd probably get cancelled.

Now after using the two-channel system, I always unplug two power cords from the wall. The Richard Gray power conditioner and my amp.

pitdogg2

I also unplug my gear when not in use and during storms.
Lightning is wicked funny stuff, not ha ha funny. You can have two power cords to gear plugged into the outlet and it can take everything out on one side of the outlet and nothing on the other side.

HzTweaker

Thank you all for replying!

There's some great advice here. I think I'm going to go the "No call" route, bite the bullet and purchase all three components myself. Thank goodness for all the overtime I've picked up over the next several weeks.

I'm going to explore new surge protectors as well.

smartie_panta

pitdogg2 wrote: »

I also unplug my gear...during storms.

Me, too. Like during the hurricane about to hit us near Houston. But I digress...

I'm in the do NOT call the insurance company to test the waters. I work in the insurance industry... But I'm no expert in personal lines (I'm beholden to The Man just like you all re: homeowners, auto, health and life insurance, unfortunately).

VR3

Is the ps5 power supply external?

I had lightning take out my Xbox one many years ago but it was just the power supply

HzTweaker

The ps5's power supply is internal. I tried a different cord off a working console (my ps3) last night and no dice.

treitz3

Drat's. Do they offer an external?

Tom

HzTweaker

Not to my knowledge. The only PS console that had a external that I'm aware of was the PS3 slim?

VR3

Looking online it looks like the power supply is removable and is part of the base

treitz3

I am not a gamer but if that's the case? Schaaweet!

Is there a fuse or a reset anywhere within that unit?

Tom

VR3

https://youtu.be/Q_14pA7HoTc?si=E_cjJ6jSKpXJQxbu

Geoff4rfc

Yes sir, I'm on board with the unplug feature. One night while I was asleep, I woke up to day light....I looked at the clock and it was 3AM...I got up and looked outside. The lightning was nonstop and lit the sky like it was day time....I quickly unplugged everything. Lightning storms here in Texas are no joke.

HzTweaker

VR3 wrote: »

https://youtu.be/Q_14pA7HoTc?si=E_cjJ6jSKpXJQxbu

This is awesome! I'm going to try this for sure, seems easy enough. Great find, Thanks @VR3

treitz3

Geoff4rfc wrote: »

Lightning storms anywhere are no joke.

Fixed that for ya'...

Tom

HzTweaker

I just ordered the power supply for my PS5 from fasttech. I'll let everyone know how the swap goes.

GlennDog

Kex wrote: »

About a year later we changed to a different insurance company. The new insurer told us there was a claim on our record for a windshield replacement. All we had done was call the insurance. We never filed a claim (obviously). 😳

Opinion: insurance is for losses that you cannot afford to cover yourself, such as personal liability if you run over a pedestrian or damage someone else’s property after crashing into it. Don’t use insurance for small claims. They are not a charity. They don’t give away money for nothing.

Mandatory insurance is LEGAL THIEVERY . . . I also inquired about a "hypothetical" incident. No file claimed, just a phone call

ACCOUNT BLACK BALLED (is that the right term)

they did not renew my policy, regardless of my ZERO prior claims of 28 years

PSOVLSK

GlennDog wrote: »

Kex wrote: »

About a year later we changed to a different insurance company. The new insurer told us there was a claim on our record for a windshield replacement. All we had done was call the insurance. We never filed a claim (obviously). 😳

Opinion: insurance is for losses that you cannot afford to cover yourself, such as personal liability if you run over a pedestrian or damage someone else’s property after crashing into it. Don’t use insurance for small claims. They are not a charity. They don’t give away money for nothing.

Mandatory insurance is LEGAL THIEVERY . . . I also inquired about a "hypothetical" incident. No file claimed, just a phone call

ACCOUNT BLACK BALLED (is that the right term)

they did not renew my policy, regardless of my ZERO prior claims of 28 years

That should be illegal.

treitz3

I have had 3 windshield replacements and one ticket a decade and a half ago on a bundled insurance deal.

Zero increase in premiums. State Farm.

Their homeowners insurance on that same plan bites a donkey ***k.

That said, I have heard good things about a total loss on a stereo system from more than one who have been there, done that. Just make sure you take constant photos and keep them in one spot. Receipts are aven better.

Tom

OleBoot

I also have State Farm for our cars. A few years ago a semi driver in the left lane at a light (I was in the middle lane) decided to turn right instead. Driven by a Polish guy who spoke no English and who I later found out was illegal and did not have a license, but that's by the by. Goodbye wing mirror, front fender and front valence as the back of the trailer raked my car. Went to a body shop suggested by State Farm, who did a bang up job. A few weeks later State Farm sent me a check to cover the deductible which I had paid to the body shop. Guy called and said they got the money out of the trucking company's insurance as I had a police report and three witness statements. Premium never went up. I was flabbergasted.

HzTweaker

The power supply for the SP5 arrived yesterday. I will install it this weekend.