what happens when your home owners Insurance is canceled

GlennDog · November 2023

I've got a 1/2 typed raging rant in regard to a recent phone call from Farmers Insurance

insurance . . . that's an Effing joke .. LEGAL THIEVERY

Cancellation is due to a claim that was never paid out. I inquired about a situation, paid out-of-pocket and now they want to cancel me

I'm sure Blacklisting is a real possibility. Still have a mortgage

Can I expect rates to skyrocket? AND will my mortgage come due immediately without said insurance?

I hate legal issues ... not sure where to turn next

kinda beside myself

any advise is greatly appreciated

pitdogg2 · November 2023

Dude relax! It happens move along and get insurance somewhere else.

I had the same thing happen when a family down the streets kid told his mom and dad my dog bit him. Even the emergency room paperwork stated "does not appear to be dog bite". The kid went to school told everyone in his and my sons class that his mom and dad were getting a new car and he a new BMX bike. I told my insurance company (Allstate) the shenanigans that was going on. I told them to be very careful and investigate fully and talk to the emergency room physicians that treated the child. They did none of that they paid the family $50,000! The max of my homeowners policy.
Needless to say 30 days before my insurance was to be paid by my bank out of my escrow account they sent a letter to my bank and to me stating they were canceling my insurance. Talk about pucker factor! They then sent a letter to the state putting me in the high-risk category because of my dog. I went to another insurance company explained exactly what was going on they took me on I paid a high risk premium for one year and they told me I had better not have any claims that were not weather related or they would drop me like a hot rock. I'm still with that company now for 20 yrs, still no claims!
I canceled everything I had including a life insurance policy with Allstate. They called me several times to beg me to come back, I stated to them that if they were the last insurance company on this planet Earth I would not ever insure with them again and I will tell everybody my situation to whomever would listen.

Go to your bank be upfront and get to looking. Chances are they've reached out to your bank if you have an escrow and it's better your bank hears it from you than them. That's my philosophy and I'm sticking with it 😄
If you don't have escrow and pay out of your own pocket to the company still get some insurance and look for better rates and or a company you like better later.

The real story was the kid came into my yard started punching on my son and the dog tackled him. Several years later the truth was he got stepped on by football cleats at football practice and got some bad bruises from the cleats. Ironically all this happened the same day. He was on his way home from practice when it happened. Yes he got scratched by my dog so yes he had those but no bite. My son told the cops the same story time after time and the insurance adjuster, yet because he was 10 the insurance company said he was not "reliable" even though his story never changed through many interrogations.
The kids however changed several times, yet he was the same age and a "reliable" witness.

GlennDog · November 2023

I appreciate the anecdote. I hope it's just matter of shopping insurance

but this is 20 years later . . .
it's a totally different world, in most respects. Hopefully, it doesn't turn my shizzle upside down

pitdogg2 · November 2023

Well Glenndog you've got no choice but to get new insurance in the near time. That is the facts.
I can also state with certainty that many insurance companies are purging clients with claims and risks they do not want to take on. You fell into that silo, unfortunately. Many Ins. companies are paying out more than they are taking in. Some for every dollar they are taking in they are paying out $1.15 to $1.25 in claims or costs. It's a rough time right now in the industry.

treitz3 · November 2023

FWIW, State Farm is highly regarded. They have never pulled this kind of thing with us and if memory serves, after 20 years of insuring with them, they will insure you for life without the possibility of being cancelled. This may not be advertised, but I know of two people who have gotten the "letter". We don't have long to go to reach that threshold.

Tom

xschop · November 2023

I'm sorry you went through this. It's happens alot I have found discussing with other Farmers-insured folks.

I dumped Farmers last year, as they tried increasing premium almost 40% last year after the agency I was with for 10 years sold or transferred their ownership (I never once filed a claim). My new State Farm rep sent them my signed cancellation letter via email(cc'd to me). I also tried calling new Farmer's agency multiple times with no reply, just voicemail. They never cancelled and tried sending me to collections. I told collection guy the situation and asked if he wanted to see the email. He kindly closed the case.
Farmer's is a fraud and sanctioned racket IMO.

You can also try Shelter Insurance, I had them on a couple rentals before with good rates and no issues. Had to claim once in @ 10 year period from huge hail/ice storm. Didn't see much rate increase at that time little over 10 years ago.

Check your mortgage agreement for insurance lapse terms/conditions.

stangman67 · November 2023

We also had a negative experience with Farmer’s. My insurance doubled out of nowhere this year. No claims or anything, pretty clear they are actively looking for reasons to drop customers, they have pulled out of some high risk areas completely.

Switched to State Farm, saved a bunch of money and much more comfortable with the company

Think with the current state of things, using home insurance to pay for anything has got to be a last resort.

invalid · November 2023

State farm must be the worst company for auto nsurance, I have friends that own body shops and they both say state farm is the worst company. Maybe they are better with home owners insurance.

treitz3 · November 2023

I have no complaints about how State Farm handles their clients, at least from a consumer point of view. They have had some instances over the years where they had every right to raise the premium, yet they did not pounce on that opportunity to do so.

Also, claims were swiftly dealt with and they did all of the legal legwork.

How they treat and handle the body shops may be another story.

Tom

Emlyn · November 2023

Insurance companies have never been in business to lose money. A company may raise rates for an individual policy based on individual claims activities but a cancellation is likely caused by the withdrawal from markets and is driven by bigger factors they're looking at in terms of how much they collect and how much they predict they'll be paying out in future for similar properties. If those don't balance they bail from the market. California and Florida are big problems for them as well as any place that's got a higher potential for wildfires or flooding.

Talk to an insurance broker to ask what they're seeing in your area. Chances are you're not alone with the experience and they can help find alternatives.

GlennDog · November 2023

Thanks for the comments.
I was a bit wound up yesterday after their phone call blindsided me. They implied they were being proactive . . So I haven’t officially gotten “the letter”

I explained to the rep what happened (she had no clue) and will get back to me by the weekend

fwiw, the local reps hands are tied by corporate (managements only concern is which yacht they will be upgrading to next summer)

Regardless of Farmers actions, I’ll be shopping rates

pitdogg2 · November 2023

xschop wrote: »

I Had to claim once in @ 10 year period from huge hail/ice storm. Didn't see much rate increase at that time little over 10 years ago.

Weather related situations rarely will impact your individual rates, they do impact the overall picture of the rate structure of yours and others insurance companies in the overall rates they charge.
Even if you didn't have a claim during a weather related event your rates will be determined by the insurance compaines overall new future rate structure. In simple terms they spread that weather related impact to all clients.

tonyb · November 2023

Farmers, State Farm, allstate....same junk with a different name plate on the door. Most are anyway you slice it. Bottomline is you have to go shop for a different insurance company, especially if you have a morgage on the property then it's a must have .

If your not on the coasts, try Erie....very reasonable rates.

smglbrth · November 2023

invalid wrote: »

State farm must be the worst company for auto nsurance, I have friends that own body shops and they both say state farm is the worst company. Maybe they are better with home owners insurance.

They are worse with home owners insurance. A company digging between our neighbors yard and our own hit a power line and blew up half of the electronics in our house. They were getting reimbursed for everything from the other insurance company but still gave us a hard time repurchasing anything. It was so bad that when it was all said and done we dropped them like a rock. I'm guessing they made money on it. We sure didn't...

sucks2beme · November 2023

When I moved to Dallas, state farm raised my rates out of sight.
I was told by the agent they really wanted to reduce their exposure
In Texas. I went somewhere else. I currently have allstate.
I'd really like to switch. After my Mustang got rear ended, getting
my claim paid was a battle. It was a total. Other driver also had
All-State. Took 6 months to get all the money they agreed to pay.
I filed a complaint, and got a partial refund of my premium.
I think they all have nosedived in their service.

ZLTFUL · November 2023

I have several acquaintances that are freelance insurance adjusters.
Word around the proverbial water cooler is that a lot of insurance companies are either moving out of markets they deem higher risk due to <insert common natural disaster reason here>. Or they are trying to lower risk levels due to economic reasons. Or they are having a hard time matching the profitability of an area with the risk of claims.

It is one of the economic "hardships" you won't really hear all that much about outside of finance publications because it doesn't fit a "strong economy" narrative.

Allstate had paid out a considerable claim to us for hail damage to roofing and siding...but the big hit was having the solar uninstalled and reinstalled. After that, they didn't even bother being coy or raising our rates. They just dropped us.

We moved over to Farm Bureau with virtually zero fuss and at a considerably better rate.

As someone else above stated, insurance companies are in business to make a profit. If they have a number of claims in an area over a short amount of time, they are going to pull out of that area to minimize losses. I don't blame them. I wouldn't do my job if I couldn't pay my bills with my wages and still have money left over for fun (profit).

aprazer402 · November 2023

I agree with @ZLTFUL.

Talk with an independent insurance firm (broker, if you will) that works with many different insurance companies. They are typically much better informed and they want to keep you as a customer. They will usually review your current policy each year prior to renewal to see what changes may have been added. They will compare with other companies and possibly recommend a better policy. We need to shop around. My real estate brokerage company has a large independent insurance division and they are fantastic in keeping updated and their policyholders well-informed.

There are a lot of cancellations going on. Many HO policy's in the Midwest hail-belt are having new clauses added, that limit hail claims, increase deductible for wind/hail claims, allow for only damaged sections of siding be replaced, even if same product cannot be sourced, will not cover eaves and fascia...
Many insurance carriers are even pulling out of some states.

I've had two full roof replacements in the last three years due to hail. The last hail storm severely damaged my vinyl siding on two-sides. There is still an exact match available but it comes in 26' lengths and shipping alone from Des Moines to Omaha is over $2,000.00. There is no place locally. I'm still fighting with my insurance to re-side all my house siding with a locally available comparable siding so it all matches. The $2,000.00 in shipping would almost cover the extra material. The insurance co. will not pay for the shipping. My siding contractor has not been successful negotiating with them either. My insurance agent has advised me to change companies next renewal as there are better options for me at a lower cost too. I've never had a claim fully denied except this siding in almost 20 years with the same co.

I also think most insurance is sort of thievery. Health insurance is absolutely necessary.

EndersShadow · November 2023

Ha…. You think insurance is bad…. Let’s talk taxes and inflation…. JK we’d all get banned

GlennDog · November 2023

You tell those spineless a$$holes we'll self-insure if they don't write it. I can't believe you can fire half the management, nothing changes!

Gordon Gekko

GlennDog wrote: »

fwiw, the local reps hands are tied by corporate . . . . managements only concern is which yacht they will be upgrading to next summer

ZLTFUL wrote: »

As someone else above stated, insurance companies are in business to make a profit. If they have a number of claims in an area over a short amount of time, they are going to pull out of that area to minimize losses.

"being too big to fail" .... (or close enough for hand grenades and horseshoes) LET THEM ALL FALL

ok, rep called and said she'll look into a policy where the **** in question is excluded and quote a price

GlennDog · November 2023

*** = beeeotch

tonyb · November 2023

aprazer402 wrote: »

I agree with @ZLTFUL.

I also think most insurance is sort of thievery. Health insurance is absolutely necessary.

Both are thievery. Isn't home insurance really a mandated protection for the banks assets ? Your paying to protect their assets. Once that asset is yours completely when you pay off your morgage, insurance becomes optional.

Health insurance.....used to be a free benefit of full time employment. Though now, it's basically catastrophic health care which you need for hospital stays/proceedures/etc. Those costs have skyrocketed.

Insurance companies are always looking to make money, just like banks. Their coverage gets smaller and smaller as their costs to you grow larger and larger. They aren't in buisness to lose money, nobody is, right ? Then every 80 or so years the economy crashes, resets itself, and the game starts all over again. Guess what time it is ?

Jazzhead · November 2023

Our homeowner rates have risen significantly in recent years due to regional wildfire losses. I don't see this trend slowing, nor in hurricane prone coastal areas, flood zones, etc. This is just another factor making home ownership affordability more of a challenge.

https://apnews.com/article/paradise-camp-fire-california-home-insurance-178618d95de90f84f56748f85aa610df

GlennDog · November 2023

tonyb wrote: »

aprazer402 wrote: »

I agree with @ZLTFUL.

I also think most insurance is sort of thievery. Health insurance is absolutely necessary.

Both are thievery. Isn't home insurance really a mandated protection for the banks assets ? Your paying to protect their assets. Once that asset is yours completely when you pay off your morgage, insurance becomes optional.

Health insurance.....used to be a free benefit of full time employment. Though now, it's basically catastrophic health care which you need for hospital stays/proceedures/etc. Those costs have skyrocketed.

Insurance companies are always looking to make money, just like banks. Their coverage gets smaller and smaller as their costs to you grow larger and larger. They aren't in buisness to lose money, nobody is, right ? Then every 80 or so years the economy crashes, resets itself, and the game starts all over again. Guess what time it is ?

NAILED IT

as usual

Tony and Fam . . . hope y'all are doing well . . .

audioluvr · November 2023

Like candy bars

what happens when your home owners Insurance is canceled

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