Monthly Archives: December 2011

Your Home Office or Home Business, & Homeowners Insurance

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If you are self-employed, or work from home, or have any type of home business — either in your house, or elsewhere on your property — you can find yourself with a large, uninsured claim if you do not get the extra homeowners insurance coverage you need for your situation.

Paying for homeowners insurance, then not having the coverage you need, when you need it, leads people feel ripped off by their insurance company.  Understand what homeowners insurance coverage is available, what coverage you need, then shop with all the leading insurance companies to get the right coverage for you at the best price.

Even if you do not work from home, or think you do not have a home business, you may be unpleasantly surprised, if you have a claim, by the exclusion for business activities in the basic homeowners insurance. This exclusion is also found in renters insurance, condo insurance, & mobile home insurance.

Anything you do on a continuous basis earning revenue can be considered a business.

Do you or a family member cut hair for a small fee for one or two friends on a regular basis? Do you do child/adult daycare for money? Do you mow lawns for cash on the weekends? How about regularly selling items on E-bay? These circumstances would be considered business activities.

If your friend stopped by for coffee and a haircut, and slipped on your floor, or was accidentally injured while getting the haircut, you would not be covered for liability by your homeowners insurance, because your friend was at your house for a “business” purpose.

You would be on the hook for any liability, for which you are legally responsible, if your friend is injured, even if the injury had nothing to do with the business, because your friend was at your home to get and pay for a haircut.

What do you or your resident family members do which earns money on a regular basis? Do you have a monthly garage sale, or weekly bake sale? Do you fix computers on the side?

The occasional garage sale, or your child’s lemonade stand in the summer, are okay because they are not continuous sources of income.

However, you need to talk to your agent about getting the proper homeowners insurance coverage for any continuous activity you or your family members do for money.

You may not have anything you do from home to earn money, but if you work from home, or telecommute, even if you are not self-employed, you could still find yourself without proper insurance coverage.

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What if your dog bites the UPS guy? What if a tech support person stops by to fix your computer network, and the person trips on a loose rug and gets injured?

Contact your agent about your work at home or business activity. As long as the insurance company does not think the situation poses too much risk for them — breeding attack dogs would definitely be a problem — you can purchase liability coverage for your business pursuits, which costs very little to add to your homeowners insurance.

In addition to the basic homeowners insurance policy excluding liability arising from any business pursuits, there is very limited coverage for business property kept at your home, and even less for business property away from your home.

Are you a contractor, and think your personal tools you use in your profession are covered by your homeowners insurance? Contact your agent, because you most likely have little coverage for your tools.

Almost all homeowners insurance companies can insure incidental businesses and a home office in your house. But if you have a lot of customers visiting your home, or other substantial business activities at your residence, such as employees, advertising, inventory, etc. some insurance companies will not insure your home.

WARNING: Any business activity or business property in a detached structure on your property, such as a detached garage or workshop, can exclude coverage for the ENTIRE building.

So, if you regularly sell your woodwork you make in your detached workshop, and your workshop burns down, and the fire may have had nothing to do with the business, there is NO COVERAGE for damage to the building or contents.

Even if you are self-employed, with a business away from your home, if you are storing any business property in your detached building, you can find yourself without coverage for the building.

Contact your agent to find out how exclusions for business activities and business property limitations affect you, so you can do what you need to be properly insured, without any surprises when you have a claim.

Do you have questions about insuring a home business, or an opinion about this blog post? Tell me about it. Please leave a comment on my facebook page. Follow me on Twitter for important insurance consumer news and new blog entries at CarInsWatch.

Earthquake Insurance, & Earth Movement / Volcanic Eruption Homeowners Insurance Exclusions

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Earthquake, volcanic eruption, earth movement, mudslide, sink holes, erosion, subsistence, & landslide are excluded from coverage in your homeowners insurance policy, so there is no insurance for your home and contents if any of these events occur and damage your property.

You need to determine what risk these events pose to your home, and decide if you need to purchase extra coverage, considering the cost versus the risk.

Unfortunately, you have very few, if any options, for protecting your home from some types of earth movement, like sink holes, mudslides, erosion, subsistence, & landslides.

The best thing you can do is to own a home having no risk, or almost no risk, of these types of events damaging your house and contents. Buying a home on a flat lot, and not on or near a hill or body of water, goes a long way to reducing these risks.

It is hard to avoid the risk of earthquake in some states, like Washington, Oregon, & California. Even in states not known for earthquakes, there are many unknown faults, and there is the possibility of a new fault being discovered close to your home. In the last year, a fault inactive for over 100 years shook the Washington DC / Virginia area.

To limit the possibility of damage to your home from earthquake, buy a newer, frame-built home built to the current earthquake building codes, if they apply in your city.

Unreinforced masonry, brick veneer, and older homes are at risk of greater damage from an earthquake, and earthquake insurance on these types of homes can cost a lot more.

If you have an older home, you may need to retrofit the house for earthquake (bolt the frame to the foundation, strap down your water heater, etc.) to qualify for earthquake coverage, or get a lower rate.

Some insurance companies have less restrictive rules, and older homes may get earthquake coverage with no retrofitting requirement. Shop with all the leading insurance companies for the homeowners insurance company willing to offer you the insurance coverage you need at the best price.

Insurance coverage for earthquake and volcanic eruption can be added to your homeowners insurance, for an additional premium, if your insurance company offers it, or it can be purchased as a separate policy.

Damage to your home from a tsunami is covered by flood insurance, not by earthquake insurance, or your basic homeowners insurance.

Earthquake insurance is designed to cover you only for the substantial destruction of your home, and due to their large deductibles, you will not be covered for cracked foundations and minor damage. Even earthquake damage in the tens of thousands of dollars will most likely be under your deductible.

Most insurance companies offering earthquake coverage have a minimum deductible of 10%, though a few companies will go as low as 5%.
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If you are insured for $200,000 on your house, and have a 10% earthquake deductible, there would need to be more than $20,000 of damage to your home before the insurance will pay anything. You may have a separate deductible applying to damage to your contents.

You may want to see if you can supplement your coverage by seeking an additional earthquake insurance policy which will cover the cost of your earthquake deductible.

How damaging can an earthquake be to your house? This depends on how close you are to a fault, your soil quality — land fill, or soil with lots of moisture (if you are near water) is more susceptible to earthquake damage, the size and duration of the earthquake.

You can find out more information about your earth movement risks by reviewing the US Geological Survey website. This website has tools to determine the potential earthquake risk in your area. However, the website has a clear disclaimer it provides only general information, and should not be used to determine the risk of damage to a particular building.

After doing some basic research, you may want to hire a geologist to determine the earth movement risks to your property.

Your mortgage company will not require you to purchase earthquake insurance coverage, but if your home is destroyed by earthquake, you are still responsible for repaying the loan.

Without earthquake insurance coverage, you may have to file bankruptcy, lose all the money you invested in your home, experience foreclosure, and ruin your credit.

The government will not bail you out. The best you can hope for from the government is low cost loans to rebuild, and possibly some tax relief.

The risk of earthquake damage to your home in many areas of the USA is not remote, and although the risk in your area may be low, you have too much to lose by not having coverage.

Some major insurance companies no longer offer coverage for earthquake, because they are concerned with how much it can cost them if there is a large quake damaging many homes they insure.

If some insurance companies are concerned with how much they can lose by insuring earthquakes, don’t you think you should be concerned by what you have to lose by not having earthquake coverage?

Are you concerned with the risk of damage to your home by an earthquake? Tell me about it. Please leave a comment on my facebook page. Follow me on Twitter for important insurance consumer news and new blog entries at CarInsWatch.

iMingle: A New Car Insurance Company Enters the Market

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A new car insurance company that sells direct to the public, called iMingle, is now available in 16 states (Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin. ). iMingle uses social networking to offer the iMingle Network Discount: a 10% discount if you refer a friend through e-mail/instant messaging/Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn, and you both purchase car insurance through iMingle, and take the iMingle safety pledge.

iMingle offers home, condo, and renters insurance in addition to car insurance.

In December of 2010, I went to their Web site, www.imingle.com, and received a great price for an annual policy. The main page of the Web site was unresponsive, but I had no problem once I accessed the Web site from another link. You can call 1-800-330-6463 if you have problems.

iMingle is owned by Unitrin, Inc., and has been in operation only since November 2010, so they do not have enough history to assess their claims handling. However, iMingle auto insurance is underwritten by the Unitrin Direct insurance companies. The Unitrin Auto Insurance Complaint Ratings can be viewed by clicking the link in this sentence.

The car insurance quote I received from iMingle is a very good price, so I will check back with them when my car insurance comes up for renewal.

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Coverage F: Medical Payments to Others

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Medical Payments to Others coverage, as a part of homeowners  insurance, condo insurance, mobile home insurance, & renters insurance, pays for the necessary medical expenses of people, other than you and your household members, if they are injured on your property, regardless of whether you are legally responsible for the injury.

For example, a friend helping you prepare dinner in your kitchen accidentally cuts their hand while slicing vegetables, or your dog bites the neighbor.

Homeowners insurance companies vary with how much they offer for Medical Payment to Others coverage, but you may be allowed as little as $500 per person, or up to $25,000 per person or more, for this coverage. Shop for the homeowners insurance policy with the best coverage for you.

I am most concerned with my legal liability if someone is injured, which is covered by Coverage E: Personal Liability coverage, so I don’t take more than the basic Medical Payments to Others coverage.

If you or your children entertain a lot, you may want more than the basic coverage.

If someone visiting you is injured on your property, Medical Payments to Others coverage is a great way to get their medical bills for the injury paid, because you do not have to be at-fault for the injury, for your homeowners insurance to cover it.

Everyone knows how expensive medical treatment can be. An insurance company offering up to $25,000 per person, or more, for this coverage may be the best insurance company for you.

Like with all insurance coverage, exclusions apply.

For example, if someone is over your home in relation to a business pursuit, like a business client meets you at your home for a business dinner, or a co-worker dropping off paperwork at your home, or a vendor fixing your home computer you use for work, Medical Payments to Others coverage does not apply if any of these people are unintentionally injured while on your property.

Contact your insurance agent or insurance company to review all your insurance policy limitations and exclusions with you. Knowing what is not covered by your insurance policy is as important as knowing what is covered.

Do you need Medical Payments to Others coverage? Although this coverage can be beneficial to you — and the insurance company, since paying claims under this coverage tend to reduce lawsuits for bodily injury — it is not necessary, in keeping with the idea the purpose of buying insurance is to protect you from catastrophic financial losses.

If you are legally liable for an injury to a non-resident guest, you are protected by your Personal Liability coverage. If you did not have Medical Payments to Others coverage, you would not have any financial obligation to pay for the first aid & medical bills of a guest whom cuts themselves while chopping onions in your kitchen, unless you were somehow negligent, or they file a lawsuit.

However, Medical Payments to Others coverage is automatically included in homeowners insurance, renters insurance, condo insurance, & mobile home insurance, and I am not aware of any insurance companies allowing you to remove it to save money.

If you are like me — rarely have guests in your home, and don’t own a pet — you may wish to take the minimum amount, usually $500 or $1,000, to save money on your insurance premium.

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Coverage E: Personal Liability

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The Personal Liability coverage of your homeowners insurance policy protects you, and the family members in your household, if you are legally responsible for the bodily injury or property damage to other people occurring on your property, or through your personal activities.

For example, your child’s friend gets accidentally injured by your child, or you hit a golf ball while golfing, and hit another player by accident, or your dog bites your neighbor.

Think about what activities you and your family do, and I am sure you can imagine a situation where you could be legally liable for the bodily injury of another person.

I think people should consider adding additional coverage to broaden your liability protection, called Personal Injury coverage. This coverage is essential for landlords, people who volunteer, or serve on any boards without pay, such as an Homeowners Association, Charity Board, or PTA.

Personal Injury coverage expands your liability to cover libel, slander, invasion of privacy, & false imprisonment. You can usually add this coverage for under $15 more a year.

You may not be a landlord, or active in your community, have you or a family member ever expressed your opinion of an individual or a business on the Internet?

Warning: lawsuits arising from any business pursuit are not covered by homeowners insurance liability coverage.

For example, if you have the additional Personal Injury coverage, and your insurance company includes coverage for what you say on the Internet, you are still not covered if you unintentionally defame someone on your blog, if you get ANY income (NOT profit) from your blogging activity, such as advertising.

Likewise, if you engage in any business activities out of your home, you are not covered for these activities, as well as any business pursuits outside your home.

You may be able to purchase liability coverage for your business pursuits from some insurance companies, depending on the nature of your work. Which business activities are acceptable will vary from insurance company to insurance company. Shop for the coverage you need and choose the best insurance company for you.

Personal Injury coverage can be different among insurance companies, so be sure to compare what is covered by each insurance company carefully.

You could be sued, and maybe the lawsuit may not have merit, but by having Personal Injury coverage, your insurance company will pay for the cost of your defense, where if you did not have Personal Injury coverage, you would have to pay your own cost of defense.

Not all insurance companies offer Personal Injury as additional coverage on their homeowners insurance, but Personal Injury is usually covered as part of a Liability Umbrella Insurance policy, if you choose to buy one.

I always encourage people to take as much liability as they can afford. Liability coverage on homeowners insurance is very inexpensive. Most homeowners insurance companies offer up to $500,000 per occurrence.

If you choose higher liability limits for auto and homeowners insurance, ask your agent about a Liability Umbrella Insurance policy, which will provide 1 million dollars (or more) of liability protection above your auto and homeowners insurance coverage. Umbrella policies are inexpensive, and are a must for people with good incomes or assets they need to protect.

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Coverage D: Loss of Use / Additional Living Expense

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Loss of Use, or sometimes called  Additional Living Expense, is an important coverage included in your homeowners insurance policy, but it is also part of mobile home insurance, condo insurance, & renters insurance.

Imagine you come home from work to find your home uninhabitable due to a house fire. Or maybe it was the house or apartment nearby having a fire, and civil authorities prohibit you from living in your home for the next several days until it is safe for you to live there.

Where do you stay for the night? You can’t use the food in your refrigerator to prepare the meal you intended to eat, so now you have to pay for another meal? Do you have the cash or credit on you to keep from going hungry and homeless for the night?

It could take months before your home is habitable again. The costs of moving, storing your personal property, and paying for a new place to live, while you wait for the repairs to your damaged home to be completed, can be substantial.

Loss of Use coverage pays for your additional living expenses you incur due to a covered claim, so you can maintain your normal standard of living.

This coverage is another reason for tenants, whom think they don’t own enough valuable property to need renters insurance, to buy it.

If you live paycheck to paycheck, the additional costs to pay for a place in the short term, and the additional expenses to find a new place to live, is money some people don’t have. Don’t rely on charity if this happens to you, since renters insurance usually can be purchased for less than $10 a month.

If you have auto insurance, the discounts for buying renters insurance and auto insurance together can be the same as the cost of your auto insurance alone, without renters insurance.

Suddenly having nowhere to stay for the night, because you did not have renters insurance when you needed it, and later finding out you could have had it, at little to no additional expense, makes people feel ripped off by their insurance company’s failure to help them buy the insurance policies they need.

Loss of Use / Additional Living Expense coverage is automatically included in most property policies, like homeowners, condo, mobile home, & renters insurance, as well as dwelling policies for rental units, where it may cover the loss of the rental’s fair rental value.

However, the dollar amount of coverage and time limit, as well as what is covered, vary from insurance company to insurance company, without any options for the customer to purchase additional Loss of Use coverage. If you need better Loss of Use coverage, you will need to change insurance companies.

You want to consider how an insurance company’s Loss of Use coverage works, in addition to its other coverage, price, customer service, and complaint record, when selecting an insurance company.

Some homeowner insurance companies offer as little as a separate 20% of the amount for which your house is insured, and some companies offer as much as a separate 100% of the amount for which your home is insured, or no dollar limit at all. Time limits can vary, too. Additional living expenses may no longer be paid after a year or two years.

More coverage is always better, but I would only consider it when the homeowners insurance company has a competitive price, or outstanding customer service.

However, look for an homeowners insurance policy covering these three things:

1. Additional Living Expense: temporary housing, moving,  storage, & other necessary expenses to maintain your normal standard of living.

2. Prohibited Use: If a civil authority does not allow you to occupy your home, due to damage to a neighboring home, from a cause which would be covered to your home.

Prohibited Use usually does not cover the additional living expenses due to an order to evacuate.

For example, you are told to leave your home due to an approaching wildfire. But if the wildfire damages your neighborhood after the evacuation, and civil authorities will not allow you to return to your home due to this damage, it should be covered under prohibited use.

3. Fair Rental Value: This is very important if you rent out part of your home, or if you are insuring a property you rent to others.

You get the fair rental value of the rent you were receiving, but any expenses not continuing due to the property damage, such as utility costs, are subtracted from the fair rental value.

For example, you rent a room in your home to someone for $400 a month. Your boarder’s share of the utilities, included in the rent, is $50 a month. If you have a fire, and your boarder cannot live in your home, you would get $350 a month for fair rental value.

You are not reimbursed for the loss or breaking of a lease or rental agreement.

For example, your home is repaired, but your old boarder moved elsewhere. It takes you 3 months after your home is habitable to find another boarder. You are not paid for the 3 months it took you to find a new boarder. If you did not have a boarder at the time of a loss, even though you were looking for one, there would be nothing paid for Fair Rental Value.

For there to be coverage under Loss of Use, your house must be uninhabitable due to a covered claim.

For example, flood and earthquake are not covered by your homeowners insurance. If your house is uninhabitable due to a flood, no Loss of Use coverage applies. There would be no coverage for an earthquake loss, either, unless you purchased additional earthquake coverage.

Let me walk you through an example of a valid claim:

You have a major house fire and it is determined by the insurance company or civil authority you can’t live in your home. Keep in mind, if you have minor damage, but your home is safe to live in, it is not up to you to decide you need to live elsewhere and get paid additional living expense. You don’t get to stay in a hotel, on the insurance company’s dime, for a few days because your house has a funny smell. But if the smell has an ill affect on you or your family, you may be able to get the claim covered.

If your home is uninhabitable due to the fire, any additional expense to maintain your standard of living, while your home is being repaired, until it is habitable again, subject to any dollar or time limit, is covered.

Additional expenses during the time of any delay of the repair created by you, extending the normal time repairs to your home could be completed, will not be paid.

So, if fire damaged your modest 1,500 sq ft, 2 bed room home, you would receive the cost of the additional expense to rent a comparable home. If you choose to rent a 4,000 square foot luxury home, you will have to pay for the portion of rent beyond the appropriate rent of a home comparable to your damaged home.

It takes 6 months before you can move back into your home. You paid 1,000 a month to rent a comparable home for 6 months. You had additional moving & storage expenses of $5,000.

Your homeowners insurance policy provides a separate 20% of the amount of coverage on your house — $150,000 — so you have a limit of $30,000 for Loss of Use coverage. The time limit covers additional living expenses for up to one year from the date of the loss.

Since $30,000 is more than your $11,000 Loss of Use claim, and all the expenses were incurred before the 1 year time limit was up, the entire claim will be paid.

As always, the information I provide you is to educate you and help you shop smart for insurance. I don’t work for your insurance company or know about your insurance policy,, so I can’t telll you how your insurance works. Check with your agent or insurance company to find out what expenses are covered, what limits apply to your policy, and learn how your Loss of Use coverage works. Be smart and comparison shop with other insurance companies to get the best coverage for you.

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Coverage C: Your Home’s Personal Property/Contents

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This coverage insures your personal belongings and furnishings (personal property) kept in your home, subject to your deductible.

Personal property is usually insured for causes of damage on a “named peril” basis, meaning for you to be covered, the cause of damage, such as fire, must be specified in writing in your policy contract.

A few homeowners insurance companies will offer broader coverage for your personal property on an “open peril” basis, meaning damage to your property is covered, subject to your deductible and any limitation written in the policy, unless it is specifically excluded.

For example,  you drop and break your big screen television while trying to move it in your home. If the damage is more than the deductible, and it is not excluded from your homeowners policy, it may be covered if you have “open peril” coverage, but it is not covered if you have “named peril” coverage.

“Named peril” coverage is fine for most people, because you pay more for “open peril” coverage for your personal property, and the broader coverage encourages smaller claims that your agent will most likely recommend you do not file.

However, if you have a lot of expensive, high-quality personal property you may want “open peril” coverage for your personal property.

“Open peril” coverage for your personal property is offered by a few homeowners insurance companies, usually through independent insurance agents that sell to high net-worth customers.

Don’t take the chance you will feel ripped off after you have had a claim, by shopping for the coverage you need at the best price with a reputable insurance company.

Like Coverage B: Detached Structures, the amount of Personal Property coverage is based on a percentage (50%-75%, depending on the homeowners insurance company) of the amount for which the house is insured — which may, or may not reflect your actual needs to replace your Personal Property.

People usually under-estimate the amount of Personal Property coverage they need. This website, knowyourstuff.org, can help you determine how much you need. In addition, you create a home inventory. If you lose everything in a fire, you will have a record of what you own, so you will not forget any of your personal property items.

I also recommend using a camcorder to make a visual record of all your property, and keep the video off the premises, somewhere safe.

Insurance shopping tip: If you are sure you need less personal property (and keeping in mind it is easy to forget to update your insurance when you buy new things), a few homeowners insurance companies will lower your premium for less Personal Property coverage. However, many homeowners insurance companies offer only the basic percentage or more.

Warning: Personal property kept away from your home, at another house, dorm, apartment, etc. or in storage can be limited to 10% of the the amount of insurance you have for contents.

For example, if you have $50,000 for your contents coverage, all property you keep away from your home is limited to $5,000.

If you own another property, rent a storage unit, have a child living away from home, or any other situations where you may have a significant amount of your belongings away from home, inform your agent to secure proper insurance coverage.

Avoid this homeowners insurance mistake: Many people find out about the limitations and exclusions on their personal property after they have had a claim. Items such as jewelry, watches, furs, tools, silverware, goldware, cash, coins, cameras, computer hardware & software etc. have limits on coverage.

For example, you may have $75,000 for your Personal Property coverage, but there is a limit of $1,000 for all jewelry,watches, and furs that are stolen. If you have $15,000 in jewelry and the jewelry is stolen, the most your policy will pay is $1000.

Other types of personal property can be limited, too. Be sure to have your agent review all the personal property limitations and exclusions to you, and adjust your coverage as needed.

Please see my blog post regarding scheduled personal property / personal property limitations & deciding when you need more coverage.

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Personal Property Limitations / Scheduled Personal Property

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How do you insure your engagement ring, wedding ring, other jewelry, tools, computer equipment, artwork, stamp & coin collections, guns, musical instruments, silverware,  and other valuables?

As mentioned in my blog post regarding Homeowner insurance contents coverage, certain types of personal property are limited for coverage under the basic homeowners insurance policy.

The reason for the insurance company limiting the coverage is because some of these items are popular targets for theft, and not everyone has these items. Not everyone has $10,000 worth of jewelry, and if not for the policy limitations, people without jewelry would pay higher rates for those claims involving theft of expensive jewelry.

Other items you may own are excluded or limited for coverage under your homeowners insurance policy, because they are meant to be insured by separate insurance, such as cars, motorcycles, boats, ATVs, trailers, aircraft, watercraft, snowmobiles, dirt bikes, etc. If you own any of these items, or anything with a motor, consult your agent to see if you need a separate policy for them.

Review with your insurance agent all the coverage limitations and exclusions, and have your agent adjust your coverage to meet your needs.

Broader coverage can be purchased for jewelry, watches, furs, guns, tools, musical instruments, silverware, pewterware, goldware (including trophies), artwork, coins, stamps, cameras, computer equipment & other items.

A popular choice for many people with jewelry, such as an engagement ring, is to buy broader coverage, and insure each item for a specific amount. Items insured this way on a homeowners insurance policy are called Scheduled Personal Property.

If a ring is scheduled as personal property on your homeowners insurance, it normally has no deductible, and you are covered for events like “mysterious disappearance” — where you no longer have the ring, you don’t know where it went, and there is no evidence of theft. You are also covered if the stone falls out of the setting and goes down a drain pipe.

It’s great to have the broader coverage, but it encourages filing smaller & frequent claims. Filing one claim raises your rates. Filing 2 claims in 5 years can get your homeowners insurance canceled.

Here is what I recommend:

1. Know what property is limited by your homeowners insurance, and the dollar limitation per item, as a category, and under what circumstances (Jewelry, for example, is limited for coverage only for theft).

2. If you own any of the property subject to limited coverage, know the value of each item, and the total value for the items in that category.

3. Compare the limits to what you have, and figure out how much you have to lose if you have a claim.

4. If the potential loss would not cause you financial hardship, or you could live with the loss of the property, you may decide you are okay with the limits of the basic homeowners policy.

5. Look to non-insurance ways to protect your property. If you have jewelry, keep it in a vault (you can usually get a discounted insurance rate to schedule jewelry normally kept in a vault). If you have guns, keep them in a gun safe. Get a monitored alarm for your home. Relying on your homeowners insurance to pay theft claims, instead of doing everything you can to prevent theft, is a recipe for getting your homeowners insurance canceled for claims.

6. If you decide you want or need better insurance coverage for your high value items, consult your agent to let you know your options.

7. Consider buying a separate policy to insure your high value items. Many companies no longer offer a separate policy to schedule high value personal property, but an independent agent should be able to find one & get a quote for you.

There are two advantages for having a separate policy for your high value items:

a. If you have a claim, it won’t increase the rate of your homeowners insurance, or put it at risk of cancellation.

However, if you shop your homeowners insurance within 5 years of filing a claim on this separate policy, the quotes you receive will be higher, or you may be ineligible for coverage, due to treating this claim as a property claim as if it was paid by your homeowners insurance.

b. If your mortgage company pays your homeowners insurance, your monthly escrow will be lower than if you had a higher homeowners insurance premium due to scheduling high value items.

Here are a few examples to show you what you need to consider:

Your homeowners policy has a $1,000 per item limit, $2,500 per category (for all your jewelry items) if your jewelry is stolen.

Customer #1 has $6,000 of jewelry, with the most expensive item being $2,000. The customer understands how the limits above apply to their jewelry — if the $2,000 jewelry item is the only thing stolen, the most the policy will pay is $1,000, and if all jewelry is stolen, the most the policy pays is $2,500.

The customer decides they will pay the cost themselves if their jewelry is stolen, and use their homeowners insurance only for very large claims they cannot afford to pay out of pocket.

Customer #2 has only one jewelry item — an engagement ring worth $10,000. Customer #2 would want the ring replaced if something happened to it. Customer #2 decides to pay extra to schedule the ring for $10,000 on their homeowners insurance.

Customer #3 has $75,000 worth of jewelry and a $100,000 art collection. Customer #3 decides to insure the high value items under a separate policy.

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Serving Alcohol to House Guests & Homeowners Insurance Liability Coverage

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Can hosts be responsible for the acts of their guests? If you have a party, and one of your guests drinks and drives, and causes a car accident, can you be sued? Yes, you can be legally responsible for injuries or property damage to others, caused by your drunken guests. Continue reading →

California Auto Insurance Company Reviews: Best & Worst Complaint Records

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Here are the 12 auto insurance companies with the best California complaint records in 2010, and the 12 auto insurance companies with the worst California complaint records in 2010.

I’m always blogging to help you get the best policies and prices for auto, home, & life insurance, so bookmark or place my website in your favorites!

The car insurance companies with the best records all have a complaint index in California (number of complaints, adjusted for market share) of less than half the complaint index of the average car insurance company.

The auto insurance companies with the worst records have a complaint index in California twice as much or more than the average company.

All of these companies are among the 50 largest (by number of customers) auto insurance companies in California.

If you are insured with any of the auto insurance companies with the worst records, you should shop your auto insurance with all the leading insurance companies. You will most likely be able to get better service AND a much better price!

The California Department of Insurance website is the source of my information about complaint records. This website has a lot of useful information for California residents, so I encourage you to check it out. The site includes price comparisons between auto insurance companies, but you really can’t know which auto insurance company can save you a lot of money on car insurance unless you shop for price quotes yourself.

Here are my lists. I will start with the worst list, and then show you the best list.

Insurance companies frequently have several subsidiary auto insurance companies. Make sure you know the correct name of the insurance subsidiary quoting or insuring you, to check the proper complaint grade.

California Auto Insurance Companies with the Worst 2010 California Complaint Records

QBE Insurance Corporation

Victoria Fire & Casualty Company

Permanent General Assurance Corporation

Financial Indemnity Company

Nationwide Insurance company of America

Hartford Underwriters Insurance Company

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Commerce West Insurance Company

21st Century Premier Insurance Company

Loya Casualty Insurance Company

Viking Insurance Company of Wisconsin

Explorer Insurance Company

Alliance United Insurance Company

California Auto Insurance Companies with the Best 2010 California Complaint Records

Allied Property & Casualty Insurance Company (Nationwide Insurance Group)

California Automobile Insurance Company

Wawanesa General Insurance Company

Auto Club (Interinsurance Exchange of the Automobile Club)

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company

Mercury Casualty Company

Mercury Insurance Company

Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Company

Geico General Insurance Company

Standard Fire Insurance Company

Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company

Government Employees Insurance Company (Geico)

Now you know the auto insurance companies with the best & worst 2010 California complaint records, go and shop your car insurance. You can get better rates AND better service!

Do you have any questions about the California auto insurance companies with the best & worst complaint records? Tell me about it. Please leave a comment on my facebook page. Or, you can e-mail me at help@smartshopyourcarinsurance.com if you have questions and would like my help. Follow me on Twitter for important insurance consumer news and new blog entries at CarInsWatch.

Drinking, Driving, Punitive Damages, & Auto Insurance

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Everyone should know by now drinking and driving is a huge mistake. Yet it is a mistake some people continue to make, potentially ruining lives. We all know the possible consequences of drunk driving. But this blog post is not just for people running the risk of a DUI, DUII, DWI, or whatever the acronym may be in your state.

Did you know having any alcohol in your blood stream, while driving, can create problems with your car insurance? Responsible drinkers may be unaware of the risk they take when they drive. This blog post will explain a few things you may not have considered regarding drinking, driving, and your auto insurance, and if you are involved in an incident, even if the effect of alcohol is negligible, how you should handle your car insurance and keep your rates as low as possible.

You may ask, “What is wrong with having a beer or glass of wine every two hours and driving home? I know when I feel I’m okay to drive.”

You don’t want to take a chance. Any accident where alcohol might have been a factor, will get your auto insurance canceled at your next renewal date, although the alcohol in your blood stream may be below the legal limit. Your insurance company will not want to take the risk your next alcohol related claim will be severe.

Now, some people are very good drivers, drive defensively, and may have never been in an accident. Although driving defensively helps you avoid accidents, you can still be at the wrong place at the wrong time.

What if someone rear ends you? You’re not at fault for the accident, but having any alcohol in your blood stream can get auto insurance canceled, unless prohibited by law. Many states will allow auto insurance companies to cancel your auto insurance at renewal at their discretion. You may have done nothing wrong, received no ticket, and the other drive can be 100% at fault, but your car insurance company will want to avoid the risk of anyone drinking (drugs, too, prescription or otherwise) any amount of alcohol and driving.

You may have been a loyal customer for 20 years without a claim, but alcohol related claims are so expensive to insurance companies, they are willing to lose good customers, and all your business, which makes you feel your insurance company ripped you off. However, some insurance companies are more flexible, depending on the circumstances, than others.

This should be an even greater concern for drivers who push the envelope when drinking. You may feel okay to drive (Remember, when you drink, the first thing affected is your judgment), but you may be legally drunk. If someone rear ends your car while you are stopped at a stop light, you can be found at fault for the accident, because you should not be driving. You may not be considered at fault for the accident, but at the very least, you will get a DUI, regardless of the fact you were not so drunk where you caused an accident.

What if someone does something stupid? Like teens, out beyond their curfew, crossing the street against the light. Suddenly, they are in front of your car. The one drink you had may have slowed your reaction time, and you hit the teens, gravely injuring them. Maybe the one drink wasn’t really a factor, but it will bother you the rest of your life, wondering what would have happened if you had not had that drink.

I have heard people refer to themselves as being excellent drunk drivers. Let’s accept the absurdity of this notion. Given the situation above, you’re legally drunk, hitting teens darting in front of your car, and one of the teens is profoundly injured or killed. You may think, “Yes, I was buzzed, but I was okay to drive & I was driving the speed limit. The kid jumped in front of my car. No one could have stopped in time. But thank God I have a lot of auto insurance!”

Not so fast. You may not have the insurance protection you think you have. I’ve never seen an auto insurance policy excluding coverage for alcohol or drug related claims — but they could be out there, check with your insurance company to know what is excluded — but most auto insurance policies do have an exclusion for punitive damages.

Punitive damages are awarded by the court system for acts considered greatly irresponsible or egregious. They are not uncommon in litigation against corporations.

For example, a car manufacturer decides to not fix a known safety hazard involving their cars, because the car manufacturer has determined the cost to pay off the likely number of people injured by their product is less expensive than fixing the problem with their cars.

Knowingly allowing people to get injured by their unsafe product, rather than fixing it, is irresponsible, hazardous to the general public, and an egregious act. A class-action lawsuit of people injured by the defective product may get 10 million dollars for compensation for their injuries, but the court may decide to award punitive damages for an additional 100 million dollars, to punish the car manufacturer for putting profits over public safety. The cost of this judgment is enough to make sure this company  doesn’t again  put profits over being a good corporate citizen, and becomes a cautionary tale to other businesses.

Punitive damages can be awarded in drunk driving cases, and many car insurance policies exclude coverage for punitive damages. The idea behind punitive damages is to punish the person for a grossly negligent act, and the person is not punished if their insurance pays the punitive damages. You may have $500,000 liability coverage, but if $250,000 of a $500,000 claim is for punitive damages, $250,000 is coming out of your pocket — from your assets and paycheck garnishment, until your debt is paid. Filing bankruptcy may not be able to clear this type of debt.

Some insurance agents confuse pain & suffering damages for punitive damages. Pain & suffering settlements are compensation for injuries, NOT punitive damages, and an exclusion for punitive damages in your auto insurance policy does not mean your insurance will not pay for the pain & suffering you cause other people by injuring someone in a car accident.

Normally, I advise choosing a policy without such an exclusion, but I would not count on any car insurance policy to cover punitive damages. The solution is simple: Don’t drink and drive.

Okay, so you made a mistake, and you are facing a DUI conviction, or you had an accident where alcohol was involved. How does this impact your car insurance, and what should you do to minimize the impact?

First, wait for your car insurance company to act by mailing notice to you in writing, or until you need something from them. Getting a ticket for an alcohol or drug related driving offense is not the same as being convicted of it. It won’t appear on your driving record until you are convicted. If your auto insurance policy is going to be canceled by your company, you will be notified in writing at what date in the future it will be canceled.

Unless, your license has been suspended, your auto insurance company needs to become aware of the situation, with enough time to notify you it is non-renewing (canceling) your insurance at its renewal date.

If your insurance company has proof your license is suspended, they may cancel you before the renewal date, but with advanced notice.

However, if you need to file an SR 22 — notification to the state you have an active auto insurance policy — to avoid having your drivers license suspended, your insurance company will most likely decline to file it for your current insurance policy, unless you already have nonstandard (high risk, and expensive) car insurance.

Your agent or insurance company will most likely offer you a new nonstandard auto insurance policy, if they have one, at a much higher rate than you pay now, to file the SR 22.

Needing an SR-22 often forces you to get a new, more expensive auto insurance policy. You have less options when you have an alcohol or drug related driving offense on your record, but there are plenty of insurance companies offering nonstandard auto insurance, which you can find by clicking the link in this sentence.

Your auto insurance is going to be expensive no matter what you do, but you may find some insurance companies will charge you a lot less, or have lower down payments, or more affordable payment plans, than other companies. It always pays to shop for better rates, but it is even more important when your car insurance is expensive.

If you must get a new car insurance policy due to needing an SR 22 filing, the state will give you a date to present them with the filing before they will suspend your license. Don’t wait until the last minute, but try to make the start date of the new, more expensive auto insurance policy the day before the suspension date, so you pay the lower rates of your old car insurance policy as long as you can.

I hope you never need the advice I just gave you. Please drink responsibly. Please drive responsibly. But always remember, you cannot drink AND drive responsibly. Cheers to having a safe holiday season!

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California Home Insurance Company Reviews: Worst Complaint Ratings

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Here are homeowners insurance companies, among the biggest 50 home insurance companies in California, which have a higher than average annual number of homeowners insurance complaints in 2008, 2009, & 2010, based on their market share, than the other top 50 homeowners insurance companies. Continue reading →

Ordinance and Law Insurance Coverage

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When you have damage to your house from a cause covered by your homeowners insurance, such as fire, most insurance policies pay the replacement cost for the damaged portion of the home, with the same kind & quality of materials before the fire occurred. Continue reading →

California Home Insurance Reviews: Complaint Ratings for 25 Top Companies in California

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Does your homeowners insurance company have a lot of complaints? Will you have difficulty placing a claim, or have a valid claim delayed or denied? Is your company good or bad? Most consumers fail to check the complaint records of their insurance companies. Here I provide complaint information for the 25 largest (by number of policies/homes insured in California) homeowners insurance companies, and rate them based on their 2010 California complaint record.( Accurate 2011 complaint data not available yet). Find out the best & worst companies. Continue reading →

Negotiating a Total Loss with Your Auto Insurance Company

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In the 2011 JD Power Auto Claims Satisfaction Study, JD Power reported car insurance customer’s satisfaction with their auto insurance claim was 42 points lower when their car was a total loss, compared to car insurance customers having their cars repaired. JD Power states 50% of customers with totaled car insurance claims surveyed expressed dissatisfaction with the settlement amount, claiming the money was not enough to buy a comparable car as a replacement.

For the 2011 JD Power study, the industry average score for auto claims satisfaction for customers with totaled car claims is 811 points on a 1,000 point scale. Customers with auto claims where their car was repaired, instead of totaled, rated their claims experience as 853 out of 1,000 points. Customers with totaled cars are less satisfied with how their claim was handled. This blog post will give you the information you need to help you avoid feeling ripped off by your car insurance company, and settling for less money than your car is worth, if your car is totaled by an auto insurance company. About 1 in 5 auto physical damage claims result in the car being totaled.

When will your car be considered totaled?

Generally, your car is considered totaled when the cost of repair is more than the value of the car. Your insurance company’s claims policy and state law will determine repair cost at what percentage of the value of your car will result in a total loss settlement.

For example, your car’s market value is $5,000, and it will cost $4,000 to repair your car. Since your state requires any car be totaled when the cost of repair is 80% or more of the market value of the car, your car will be considered a total loss.

Some states may require cars, with damage as little as 50% of the market value of the car, be totaled. Some states will require the cost of repair to be as much as 100% of the car’s market value.

However, if state law requires cars to be a total loss, if the cost of repair is 80% or more of the market value of the car, your auto insurance company is not prohibited from totaling your car at a lesser percentage, say anything over 50%.

My insurance company wants to total my car. What should I do?

Refer to your state’s department of insurance website to learn your rights, and what expenses are covered. Some states may have more information, better consumer protection laws, and enforcement than others. The website, at the least, should have a contact phone number to call for assistance with your questions. You can find the website for your state on my website here: US state department of insurance websites

Some states require insurance companies to cover the cost of sales tax, based on the market value of your totaled vehicle, and title and registration fees, in addition to paying you the actual cash value (ACV — basically the market value) of your totaled car. Insurance companies may cover these additional expenses, even if they are not required by law. But whether the law requires them to be paid or not, you need to ask for them to be paid, and you must do so promptly, usually before 30 days from the purchase of your replacement car has passed.

Your state department of insurance can inform you of other state laws & regulations, too.

For example, here in Oregon, your appraisal costs up to $1,000 must be paid by the insurance company, if the insurance company agreed to a higher appraisal amount than before you hired the appraiser.

Should you ask to keep your car if the insurance company decides it is a total loss?

Your auto insurance may allow you to keep your totaled car, if you let them know you want to keep it promptly.

If you don’t want to keep it, the insurance company sells it at auction and keeps the proceeds. The proceeds are the salvage value.

If you wish to keep the car, the auto insurance company deducts your car’s estimated salvage value from your claims settlement check. Here is how it would work:

$10,000 market value or ACV – $500 deductible = $9,500 claims settlement, and the insurance company sells your totaled car for salvage and keeps the proceeds.

$9,500 – $1,500 Salvage value = $8,000 claims settlement and you keep your totaled car.

Your auto insurance company may decline to let you keep the car if you have a late model, popular car with valuable parts, and a high salvage value.

Keeping your car might be a good choice if the damage is cosmetic. For example, if your car was totaled because of parts stripped from it in a theft, and you know you can buy replacement parts, and get them installed, for less than your claims settlement check, after the salvage value has been deducted.

However, if there is substantial damage to your vehicle, amounting to close to 50% of the value of the vehicle, you may want to consider requesting it to be totaled, even if the insurance company has not said it is totaled. Explain to your adjuster there is likely to be hidden damage, or structural damage, possibly to the frame, which cannot be properly repaired.

Keeping your car, once it has been totaled, after receiving major damage in an accident has its hassles — getting the repairs completed on your own, the vehicle inspected, re-titling it as a salvage title, suffering the diminished market value if you were to sell it, is usually not worth it.

Also, you may find an insurance company willing to insure it for liability, but most insurance companies will not insure it against physical damage (Comprehensive & Collision coverage, or in slang terms, “Full” coverage), once it has a salvage title.

Settling a total loss with your car insurance company

Claims representatives use computer software, to compare recent sales in your area of similar vehicles to your totaled vehicle, to determine your settlement. Claims representatives don’t intentionally low ball you. They want to give you a fair settlement. But they are busy settling a lot of claims, and have no incentive to spend a lot of time to give you the best settlement possible.

YOU need to make sure you are really getting what your car is worth. Consider doing the following:
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Ask to see the evaluation report showing the comparable sales.

Is your car worth more than these cars from the comparable sales? Does you car have less mileage? Does it have after market equipment, or a unique trim? Make sure you know the true value of your car and how you can prove that value. The more documentation you have, like receipts for rims & stereo equipment, or pictures of the car’s interior and exterior prior to the damage, will help you establish the value of your car before it was damaged. Make sure your claims representative compares cars which are truly close in kind and quality to your car.

Are any of the comparable sales outside your local market?

What a similar car may sell for in a depressed car sales market 75 miles away from your home, may not reflect your local sales market.

Do your own research.

Call local dealerships and ask about recent sales for a car similar to yours. Use the online car valuation tools at Edmunds.com or NADAguides.com. You can also use classified ads, but remember, the claims representative will not base the value of a car on the price people would like to get for their car.

A guy asking $10,000 for his 2005 Saturn, when no one would pay more than $5,000 for it, will not help you get $10,000 for your 2005 Saturn.

One negotiating tactic you can use is to ask the claims representative to drop the lowest comparable sales from the average.

For example, If the claims representative gets an $8,000 average price for the market value of your car by comparing 5 recent sales, ask the claims representative if they can drop the two lowest sales comparisons. This will bring up the average:

Car 1 sold for $10,000
Car 2 sold for $9,000
Car 3 sold for $8,000
Car 4 sold for $7,000
Car 5 sold for $6,000

Average = $8,000

But, if you use only the top 3 sales:

Car 1 sold for $10,000
Car 2 sold for $9,000
Car 3 sold for $8,000

Average = $9,000

You would get $1,000 more for your car.

If you can’t come to an agreement over the value of the car with your insurance company, contact your state department of insurance (as listed above) to find out your rights to appeal, hire an independent appraiser, and file complaint, if needed.

It’s not unusual for people to think their car is worth a lot more than it’s really worth. But you need to question the insurance company’s estimate of its worth to make sure it really is fair. If your car is worth more than the insurance companies offer, you need to be able to explain why.

Have you had a car insurance total loss? How did it go for you? Tell me about it. Please leave a comment on my facebook page. Follow me on Twitter for important insurance consumer news and new blog entries at CarInsWatch.

Coverage A: Your House (Building)

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This is the coverage that insures your house, and structures attached to your house, such as a garage or porch, from certain causes of damage, such as fire, subject to your policy deductible.

When you contact an insurance company for an homeowners insurance quote, the insurance company representative will ask you questions, like the size and features of your home, to determine how much coverage you need to rebuild your home.

Even though the insurance company has sophisticated software to calculate building costs in your area, determining the cost to rebuild your home is not easy to do by having a conversation with you.

If, for example, you tell the insurance company your 1st floor is 1000 Sq. ft., but the actual square footage is 1100 Sq. Ft., the  insurance company’s estimate of the cost to rebuild your home will be less than the cost to actually rebuild it. Missing features  like custom cabinets, a half bathroom, or a built-in hot tub, can leave you under-insured.

For higher-value, custom-designed, or historic homes, it is more difficult for the insurance company to calculate an accurate cost to rebuild it.

Many insurance companies conduct a drive-by inspection of your property, once you are a customer, to make sure you have enough insurance to rebuild your house, and they will increase your coverage — and your premium — if you need more coverage.

To avoid a surprise price increase due to needing more coverage, make sure you discuss your home thoroughly when you get homeowners insurance quotes. Each insurance company quoting you should determine you need about the same dollar amount of insurance to rebuild your home.  The dollar amount of coverage on your home has the biggest impact on the price of your homeowners insurance.

If one insurance company quotes you a price of $350 per year for $150,000 coverage on your house, and another insurance company quotes you $400 per year for $250,000 coverage on your house, the first company is not a better deal, and is probably more expensive if they quoted you the same amount of coverage as the second company.

If you have a high value home with custom features and made with expensive building materials, you may want to choose an insurance company willing to do a thorough interior inspection for you, to make sure you are adequately insured.

After severe storms & fires, many homes are determined to not have enough coverage when they try to rebuild after a claim, so you want to do everything you can to make sure you have the proper amount of insurance. You can figure your own cost to rebuild your home at  building-cost.net and compare it with your agent’s estimate.

Remember, the cost to rebuild your home is not the market value of your home. You can buy a house for $400,000 in a fashionable suburb, but if you were to move the exact same house across town to a neighborhood in decline, with high crime and a poor school system, the same house could cost $150,000 to purchase, but the cost to build the house — say $250,000 — would not be changed.

Sometimes, the market value, or your mortgage amount, will be a lot more than the cost to rebuild your home. Lenders often want your homeowners insurance to cover the loan amount — but a bank cannot make you insure your house for more than the cost to rebuild it. Don’t over-insure your home due to pressure from your bank.

If you are buying or refinancing a home, when your house is appraised by a real estate appraiser, the appraiser also determines the cost to rebuild, and lists it on the appraisal. You can use this estimate of the cost to rebuild to make sure you have enough coverage, too.       

If it has been several years since you have had your insurance company re-evaluate how much insurance you need to rebuild your home, or if you have done any remodeling or additions, you need to contact your insurance company to check your home’s reconstruction cost, and make sure you have enough insurance.

Shopping tips:

1. Many insurance companies provide additional coverage, usually called Extended Replacement Cost — often 20% or more of the amount for which your home is insured — in case it is needed to rebuild your home.

This additional coverage varies depending on the insurance company, so you want to consider the most generous additional coverage, as well as the cost of the policy.

To have this additional coverage, the coverage on your house will increase each year at renewal to keep pace with the inflation rate for labor and building materials in your area.

Also, you will need to notify your insurance company before you do any remodeling or additions to your home, so your insurance company can adjust your coverage.

2. In addition to having enough coverage to rebuild, please see my blog post of a frequently overlooked coverage, called Ordinance & Law Coverage, which can keep you from paying tens of thousands of dollars out of your own pocket if you have a claim.

3. Compare quotes with the same deductible, and take the highest
deductible you can afford to save money. Make sure you get all the
discounts for which you qualify.

4. When the insurance company does the drive-by inspection to verify the cost to rebuild your home, the insurance company is also checking to make sure your home, other structures on the premises, and property meet the insurance company’s eligibility standards. The insurance company makes sure your home is occupied, there are no vicious animals on the premises, and no conditions which will increase the chance of a claim, such as substantial moss on your roof, major remodeling/renovation, porches without railings, peeling paint, etc.

Once you start your homeowners insurance policy, the insurance company has 60 days to notify you, if the insurance company is going to cancel your policy, because your home does not meet their required standards.

Make sure you maintain your home properly. Even a small amount of moss can greatly shorten the life of your roof, and roof leaks due to seepage are not covered by homeowners insurance — which can cost you $1000s.

Review the application for homeowners insurance for accuracy before you sign it and pay for it. If you have a Pit Bull, and notice the application says you have no dogs, tell your agent. Point out anything inaccurate on the application and ask questions if you do not understand something on the application.

If you receive a cancel notice because of inspection results, make sure
the reason is accurate, and work with the insurance company to resolve
the issues. The cancel date will be at a future date, and you should be
able to get the issues resolved and your policy reinstated in time to
avoid a lapse in coverage.

Most problems are easily fixed, and other insurance companies are going to have the same concerns if you wish to change insurance companies. It is important to maintain your home in a timely fashion to avoid costly expenses and problems with your homeowners insurance.

Even if you have homeowners insurance now, many insurance companies periodically conduct a drive-by inspection of the homes they insure, and if your home is not properly maintained, your insurance company may cancel your homeowners insurance at your policy renewal date.

What causes of damage are covered?

Most homeowners insurance policies cover your house on an “open peril” basis, which means damage to your home is covered, unless it is specifically excluded in your homeowners insurance policy.

Common exclusions are for  earthquake and flood. However, some
homeowners insurance policies are “named peril” and less causes of loss
are covered. Please contact your agent to find out what causes of loss
are covered or excluded, and what limitations apply, or read your policy.

I know insurance policies are not fascinating reading, but you need to review your homeowners insurance contract and pay special attention to what is covered, what exclusions apply, and any limitations on coverage.

You can call your agent if you do not have a copy of your policy contract and all endorsements (endorsements modify the wording in the insurance contract–for example, your homeowners insurance contract excludes earthquake damage, but your insurance company may offer an endorsement to cover earthquake for additional premium), have your insurance company or agent mail it to you, and keep it with your important documents.

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California Auto Insurance Reviews: 15 Companies with Bad Complaint Ratings

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Does your auto insurance company have a lot of complaints? Will you have difficulty placing a claim, or have a valid claim delayed or denied? Do you know if your company is very good or very bad? Most consumers fail to check the complaint records of their insurance companies. This blog post is a companion piece to my previous blog post listing the complaint ratings for the 25 largest auto insurance companies in California.

Here I provide the complaint ratings for 15 major auto insurance companies with higher than average complaints, not on my first list. If you are not insured with one of the 25 largest auto insurance companies in California, you can see if your auto insurance company makes this list (Hopefully not!). It pays to shop your auto insurance, but you want to make sure your auto insurance company provides good service, too. Continue reading →

Nationwide Insurance JD Power 2011 Ratings Review

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Here is my analysis and closer look at the results of the 2011 JD Power studies ranking Nationwide Insurance, to help you judge if Nationwide Insurance is best for you.

JD Power 2011 National Auto Insurance Study Results for Nationwide Insurance

JD Power downgraded Nationwide from 3 power circles (about average) to 2 power circles (the rest) for its 2011 National Auto Insurance Customer Satisfaction Survey.

Although the Overall Satisfaction was below average, the individual categories making up the overall satisfaction, such as Policy Offerings, Billing & Payment, & Contacting The Insurer, remained at 3 power circles (about average), with Pricing being the only individual category at 2 power circles (the rest).

Nationwide insurance scored 767 on the 1,000 point scale. The Industry average score for this study was 790 on the 1,000 point scale.

By comparison, California State Auto Association scored 769 on the 1,000 point scale, only 2 points more than Nationwide, and received a 3 power circle rating (about average). Nationwide insurance had the highest point score for all the insurance companies rated at 2 power circles.

My conclusion: If Nationwide insurance has a low auto insurance rate for you, the 2 power circle rating for the Pricing category should not be a concern for you, and Nationwide Insurance should be considered more of an average performer.

JD Power’s 2011 Auto Claims Satisfaction Study rates Nationwide customers Overall Satisfaction as 3 power circles (about average) and Nationwide achieves 3 power circles for all individual categories, such as First Notice of Loss, Service Interaction, Appraisal, Repair Process, Rental Experience, & Settlement. Nationwide maintained the same 3 power circle rating for all categories as it did for the 2010 study.

Nationwide Insurance scored 764 on the 1,000 point scale. The industry average score for this study is 769 on the 1,000 point scale.

My conclusion: The results from this study for Nationwide insurance supports my assessment of the previous auto insurance study. If Nationwide has a good price for you, you can expect average claims service.

JD Power 2011 US Auto Insurance Shopping Study Results for Nationwide Insurance

JD Power had a fairly new survey (in its 5th year) measuring the auto insurance purchasing experience.

Nationwide’s Overall Satisfaction was rated 3 power circles (about average), with 3 power circles for Policy Offerings, Call center Representative, & Local Agent categories. Once again, for Pricing, Nationwide received 2 power circles (the rest). One bright spot is the individual category of Company Website, which received 5 power circles (among the best).
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Nationwide scored 832 on the 1,000 point scale. The industry average score is 839 on the 1,000 point scale.

My conclusion: Unless you want to insure with an auto insurance company with an outstanding customer service reputation, regardless of price, get an auto insurance quote from Nationwide insurance online (their website is rated 5 power circles (among the best), to see if they have a good price for you.

JD Power 2011 National Homeowners Insurance Study Results for Nationwide Insurance

JD Power’s 2011 National Homeowners Insurance Study rates Nationwide at 3 power circles (about average) in Overall Satisfaction & all the individual categories. Nationwide maintained the same 3 power circle ratings in all categories as the 2010 study.

Nationwide Insurance scored 764 on the 1,000 point scale. The industry average score for this study is 769 on the 1,000 point scale.

My overall assessment: Nationwide Insurance claims & customer service is average, like many insurance companies.

Many claims are handled well, creating loyal customers, but Nationwide is also capable of poor customer service, and sometimes the claims experience can be a nightmare.

A capable agent can greatly improve your customer service experience, even with a mediocre insurance company, so if you decide to buy Nationwide insurance, choose a local agent wisely.

The main problem for Nationwide with the JD Power ratings was in the auto insurance Pricing category. Surveys about auto insurance pricing are meaningless to you. If you get a price quote from Nationwide, and it is the lowest price compared to other companies, it does not matter if other people are unhappy with the rates. There are many factors affecting price. Nationwide may be the most expensive insurance company if you live in Salem, Oregon or Lincoln, Nebraska, but it may have the best rates for you if you reside in Lake Oswego, Oregon. If you are like me, the best insurance company has the lowest price for you.

Follow me on my Twitter account, CarInsWatch, or my Facebook account, to see when I review insurance companies important to you.

What do you think about Nationwide insurance? Use Twitter or Facebook to ask me questions. I have 20 years experience in the auto & home insurance business, but no longer sell insurance, and I would love to help you find the best rates & insurance coverage for you. I look forward to your feedback.

California Auto Insurance Reviews: Complaint Ratings for 25 Big Companies

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Does your auto insurance company have a lot of complaints? Will you have difficulty placing a claim, or have a valid claim delayed or denied? Is your company good or bad? Most consumers fail to check the complaint records of their insurance companies. Here I provide complaint information for the 25 largest (by number of policies/cars insured in California) auto insurance companies, and rate them based on their complaint record. See the best & worst companies. Continue reading →

Buying Insurance Direct from the Company

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Progressive, Geico, Esurance, 21st Century, The General, Amica, USAA, Unitrin Direct, GMAC Online, all sell insurance directly to the public without the personal service of an agent. Are these insurance companies cheaper because they don’t pay commissions? Is the price low because they cut back on service, and low ball you or refuse to pay claims?

This blog post will tell you what you need to know about insurance companies selling auto insurance & home insurance direct to the public, and decide whether insuring with an insurance company without a local agent is a smart decision for you.

As I said in yesterday’s blog post, the personal service provided by local insurance agents is usually not worth paying more for your insurance. You are not anymore likely to have the coverage you need, good claims service, and the best price the company can offer you, if you buy from an agent or buy direct from the insurance company.

Wise insurance consumers educate themselves about the coverage available, and shop with all the leading insurance companies, to get the best combination of price and service for the coverage they need. Don’t get ripped off by paying too much, or not having the coverage you need when you have a claim.

The good news about buying insurance direct is you don’t get worse service than having an agent. In fact, USAA and Amica insurance don’t have agents, and they are usually at the top of the annual JD Power auto insurance & homeowners insurance customer satisfaction studies, out-scoring many insurance companies using agents.

The bad news is buying direct, without paying an agent commission, does not mean lower rates.

The commission insurance companies pay agents is only one of many marketing expenses costing insurance companies money. Agent commissions are not excessive for auto or home insurance, often being only 10% of the premium. Common sense may tell you an insurance company not paying a 10% commission to an agent should be 10% lower than insurance sold through agents.

But insurance companies without agents have other expenses. They pay salaried salespeople, and pay for their employee benefits, like health insurance, to staff their call centers. Insurance companies selling direct have to advertise a lot more to get their call center phones to ring, where insurance companies using agents have their agents get customers and market for them. Companies using agents sometimes have less marketing expenses, even though they pay commissions, than insurance companies selling direct to the public.

It is very possible the insurance company with the best price for you has a local agent. Buying direct does not mean low rates. The last time I shopped my auto insurance, the lowest prices I received were from Progressive (sells direct), Esurance (sells direct), and Metlife (sells through agents).

Now, the insurance companies having a good or poor rate for me does not mean they have a good or poor rate for you, but Amica (sells direct), Allstate (sells through agents) and Pemco (sells direct) had very high rates for me, compared to the lower quotes I received. State Farm (sells through agents), Safeco (sells through agents), Travelers (sells through agents) & Geico were in the middle.

Which insurance company has the best rates for you depends on where you live and your situation. Progressive has a great auto insurance rate for me, and Allstate does not have a good rate for me. But I have sold auto insurance for Allstate, and for some customers, I could easily beat Progressive’s auto insurance rates.

No one can tell you which insurance company will have the lowest rate for you. This is why I recommend shopping with all the leading insurance companies to find the company with the best rates for you.

However, some insurance companies selling auto insurance direct to the public, try to gain more customers by competing on price, since they can’t offer personal service. Many drivers may find Geico, Progressive, iMingle, or Esurance have the best rate for them.

Progressive and Geico are among the fastest growing auto insurance companies over the last 10 to 15 years. They have done this by extensive advertising and low pricing.

So, shop with all the leading insurance companies to find the lowest priced insurance companies for you. If you get a low price with a local agent, from an insurance company with a good reputation for customer service, it will be your best option.

But it’s not unlikely an insurance company selling direct to the public will have the best price for you.

Here are some things to consider to decide if buying insurance direct is a good choice for you:

1. Use the information on my website to make sure you are likely to receive good customer service.

A good agent can help you get good service from a mediocre insurance company. Buying direct from an insurance company with so-so service can be a nightmare to deal with on your own.

2. If you need to pay for your insurance in cash, you need a local agent to accept payment and give you a receipt.

3. Do you need personal service?

Even though I don’t think its worth paying more for your insurance, some people don’t mind paying more to meet with someone face-to face to discuss their insurance needs. Insurance is complicated, and having an agent can make it easier for you.

But remember, agents can’t make your insurance decisions for you. You need to understand your coverage and options. Getting opinions from other agents and insurance companies can help you avoid paying too much and having the proper coverage when you need it.

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Do I Need an Insurance Agent?

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Buying auto insurance or homeowners insurance direct from the insurance company is easier than ever. Modern technology enables you to contact your insurance company when it is convenient for you. In the 21st century, is there any need for a local agent, working 9 am to 5 pm weekdays, in an office close to you? What’s the benefit to you? What do insurance agents do for you?

In my opinion, most agents are not worth paying more for your insurance.

The argument made by insurance agents is the personal service they provide is worth it. Buying home or car insurance is not like buying groceries at the supermarket. Applying for insurance is like applying for a loan: insurance companies have rules and you need to qualify for the insurance. How insurance works, and the coverage options available, can be confusing for the average consumer to understand.

Having a good insurance agent working for you can help you understand and buy the coverage you need, get all the discounts you deserve, prevent problems, and fix any problems when they do occur. The trouble is there are very few agents doing these things for their customers.

It’s not because there are few agents competent and caring about their customers. It’s because insurance agents don’t work for you, they work for themselves and the insurance company. Although many agents want to provide you with the best service, they have to put their needs ahead of yours in order to stay in business, or be successful.

Having a personal agent is rarely a bad thing, but its not worth paying a lot more for your insurance.

Fortunately, insurance companies paying commissions to agents are not necessarily more expensive than insurance companies selling direct to the public online. Get price quotes from all the leading insurance companies to find the best price for you. You can save $100s. Some insurance companies charge twice as much as others, for the same coverage, so its worth it to search for the best rates.

When shopping for auto or home insurance, first consider the insurance companies with the best price. Use the information on my website (see the link below) to evaluate the customer service of the insurance companies with the lowest prices. You may choose the best priced insurance company with a local agent. But some insurance companies with great reputations for customer service, like Amica & USAA, don’t have local agents.

Here is why I think it’s not worth it to pay more for having a local, personal insurance agent:

Insurance agents often fail to get you the insurance coverage you need at the best price.

The worst offending agents are the agents who don’t review your coverage options when you buy an auto insurance policy or homeowners insurance policy, or when you make a policy change, like adding a car.

An agent once quoted a price for my auto insurance without discussing the coverage I wanted. I had to ask about the coverage, and the agent quoted me a $1,000 deductible for Collision coverage on my car, when I had a $500 deductible. Had I bought his insurance, thinking I was saving money, when I was really getting less coverage, I would have been very upset when I had a claim.

However, there are many agents doing a good job of reviewing your coverage options. Yet there is still a problem. Many insurance agents represent one insurance company, and can’t offer you the coverage you need because their insurance company does not offer it.

Here’s one example:

If you buy a new car, owe more on the loan than the value of the car, which is not unusual due to the great amount of depreciation on new cars once you drive them off the lot, you should buy gap coverage, which covers the difference between the loan amount and the value of the car, if it is totaled.

Yet some insurance companies do not offer gap coverage, or may not offer it for leased cars, when other insurance companies will offer it on leased cars.

Agents don’t discuss your need for coverage they can’t sell you, if that means they will lose your business. You may need a coverage your agent’s company does not offer, but you will never find out about it.

This matters even more with homeowners insurance, where an insurance company not offering a coverage, available from another insurance company,  can cost you tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars, by not covering a claim.

Independent insurance agents have an advantage regarding coverage, because they represent several insurance companies, and they can choose the insurance company with the most appropriate coverage for you.

But even if your insurance company offers a coverage you need, it is very likely your agent will not mention it.

When I reviewed a customer’s insurance policy, or when I was selling an insurance policy, I tried to be very thorough in explaining the coverage available and what is not covered. But no agent, or customer, has the time to review all the options available.

When you contact an agent for a home or auto insurance quote, the agent has to collect the information needed to qualify you, quote you the correct price, and discuss your coverage. Although the agent will include and discuss all the “important” coverage, agents rarely invest the extra time to get the information from you to determine your insurance needs.

For example, you may be buying a house in your name alone, where you and your longterm boyfriend or girlfriend will live. Much of the furnishings are jointly owned, or owned by your significant other. Your unmarried (unless you are in civil union) significant other’s property is not covered unless your agent includes them as an “insured,” if the insurance company allows it. Many agents may never discuss this with you.  You may find out the hard way much of your personal property is not covered when you have a claim.

Your home could be subject to an expensive clean up, if your sewer or drains back up into your home, which you may have to pay for yourself, since your agent did not think to tell you about buyng the additional water back up coverage.

Most agents want you to be happy with your coverage when the unexpected happens. But your agent has no legal responsibility to make sure you bought the coverage you need.

The personal service offered by insurance agents does not even mean you will get the best price your insurance company can offer you.

If your agent is concerned they are going to lose your business, because they know you shop your rates once a year, or their insurance company recently had a large rate increase, they will most likely look at your policy to make sure they are getting the best price for you.

But if your agent knows you are a loyal customer, or does not think you will shop for better rates, your agent is not going to spend their time reviewing all their customers policies to make sure they are not missing any discounts.

Agents are paid a commission which is a percentage of the insurance premium. The more expensive your premium, the more money your agent makes. If your agent does not think they will lose your business, they are not going to spend a lot of their time looking for ways to reduce their income. Your agent usually isn’t deliberately charging you a higher premium, but they have no incentive to find ways to lower your premium.

Customers can depend only on themselves to make sure they ask the questions, and spend the time needed, to make sure they get the proper insurance coverage, and not over pay for it.

Using my website, and reading my blog, can give you the information to help you work with insurance companies and agents to get the coverage you need. Shopping your auto & home insurance once a year can make sure you don’t pay too much for it.

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Evaluating your auto or home insurance company’s claims service

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Insurance companies know nothing wins customer loyalty, and keeps customers from shopping for lower insurance rates, better than the fast and fair settlement of a claim.

Customers often think twice before switching to a less expensive insurance company, when they were happy with how their insurance company handled their last claim, afraid the new insurance company with the lower price may be difficult if they have a claim. People are concerned you get what you pay for, and a lower price must mean less service.

When it comes to auto insurance and homeowners insurance, paying more for your insurance does not mean better service.

The truth is most insurance company’s claims service is acceptable, and the majority of claims are handled to the customer’s satisfaction. However, there are plenty of accounts on the Internet and elsewhere, of poor claims service from every insurance company.

How should you decide to choose an auto or home insurance company? Go with the best rates, or go with the best claims service? How do you determine if an insurance company really provides good claim service, when you are insured with company X and had a good claims experience, but your co-worker is having a terrible claims experience with company X? How do you avoid getting ripped off?

First, get insurance price quotes from all the leading car insurance &/or homeowners insurance companies, to find the lowest priced insurers for you.

Then, visit my website, to make sure you received price quotes from all the leading insurance companies in your state, and compare their customer service ratings & complaint records, by clicking the link to my site below. Choose an insurance company with a good price and good service.

www.smartshopyourcarinsurance.com

Most major insurance companies settle simple claims quickly and easily. Did someone vandalize your car? Did you hit a deer? Did an unknown vehicle hit your car? If you have the proper coverage, many insurance companies will get a check to you, or get your car repaired right away.

However, will you be happy if you have a large claim, and you disagree with your insurance company when it decides you are not covered?

Will you be happy when your insurance company decides you are at fault for a car accident, and pays a claim to another driver, whom you think was responsible for the accident, and your auto insurance rates go up because of it?

Will you be happy, if your landlords insurance policy, which says it does not exclude damage caused by tenants, denies your large claim, when a tenant deliberately causes extensive damage to your rental property, because the insurance company says the damage is the result of normal wear & tear?

Just because your last claim went like a dream, does not mean your next claim won’t be a nightmare. There are many insurance company reviews on the Internet mentioning how great their insurance company used to be, but now it is terrible. The real truth may be the insurance company was never as good as they thought it was.

Unfortunately, there are no “superhero” insurance companies, sticking up for their customers no matter what the cost or risk to them. If you have been a loyal customer for 40 years, and the insurance company decides you are a higher risk, due to your recent claims history, or other factors, they will cancel your policy.

Insurance companies are not “super villains” either. They aren’t looking to cheat their customers out of valid claims. But insurance companies are not going to pay any claims they are not contractually obligated to pay. The larger the claim, the more it is in the insurance company’s financial interest to make sure it is a claim they HAVE to pay.

If you wake up one morning to find your car windshield smashed by an unknown vandal, the claim will usually be paid with few questions asked.

If your house has a major fire caused by an unknown arsonist, the insurance company is going to find out if it was caused by your emotionally troubled adult child living with you, and deny coverage. You may have to consult a lawyer to contest the denied claim, and sue your insurance company to have a court determine if the claim should be paid.

Despite many people’s opinions, insurance companies are not crooks, but you would be naive to think they are always compliant with the law, and don’t consider their own financial interests.

Insurance companies won’t pay even a small claim if it is not covered, or deny a large claim if it is clearly covered, but there are many claims situations open to interpretation, and you can’t expect the insurance company to act in your best interest.

So, you can’t choose an insurance company where you are guaranteed satisfaction. What should you do to reduce your chances of having a poor claim experience?

1. Rather than insuring with an insurance company based solely on your own claims experience, or stories you have heard from other people, look at the insurance company’s national complaint ratio on my website.

The national complaint ratio is based usually on valid complaints made against an insurer to each state’s regulatory governmental body in which it operates.

For example, say my car insurance company denied a valid claim, and I had to complain to the Oregon Insurance Division to get my insurance company to pay. This would be an example of a valid complaint.

The national complaint ratios are good for everyone in the USA to use, but the most important complaint ratios are the ones for the state in which you live.

Company X may provide great service in Arkansas, but it may provide lousy service in California or New Jersey.

Not all states provide this information, but if they do, it is usually available at each state’s department of insurance websites. You can find your state’s website by clicking the link. I am also blogging about each state’s complaint information, and best & worst insurance companies, so check my blog for that category, and see if I have reviewed your state yet.

2. Shop your auto & home insurance once a year, and check the most recent year’s national & state complaint ratios, and JD Power rating, if available for your insurance company.

Insurance companies are always reorganizing, closing & opening offices, changing procedures, & computer systems. These changes can make the customer service better or much worse, in the short term or long term.

Claims service can be cyclical. Sometimes insurance companies hire more claims representatives and push for great claims service. Other times, probably most of the time, there is too much work for the claims representatives, not enough staff, and pressure to contains claims costs. An insurance company providing great service 3 years ago may be terrible now.

Keep up on how your insurance company is performing when you shop for better rates each year.

3. Shop for better rates each year. You can great service AND great rates. Shop with all the leading insurance companies and use my website site to get the best combination of price and service.

Insuring with the same insurance company for 20 years won’t get a claim covered which should be denied. It’s illegal for insurance companies to show favoritism in the claims process.

The best thing you can do is to shop your car & home insurance each year,  choose a reputable insurance company with a great price, and do what you can to protect yourself and your property from needing to file an insurance claim.

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Firearms, Homeowners Insurance, & Self Defense

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If you are sued for the injury you cause when you use your gun to defend yourself, your family, or your property, are you covered by your homeowners insurance? The answer to this question may depend on which insurance company you chose to insure your home.

If you are a gun owner, or someone willing to use reasonable force to protect themselves, it is important for you to shop your homeowners insurance with all the leading insurance companies, to find the insurance company with the broadest coverage in this situation.

Homeowners insurance policies exclude liability for intentional acts, even if the resulting injury was not intended.

For example, if you get in an argument with another shopper over a sales item, the other shopper moves to try to take the sales item out of your hand, you shove the other shopper away from you, and the other shopper falls and injures their head.

Although you did not intend the other shopper to fall and injure their head, you intentionally shoved them, so your homeowners insurance will no cover you if the other shopper sues you for their head injury.

Note this is different from an act where the contact with the other person is accidental.

For example, if you are playing golf, and accidentally hit another person on the golf course with your golf ball, your homeowners insurance policy covers you if you are sued for the injury, because the intentional act was hitting your golf ball in playing a game of golf.

However, you would not be covered by your homeowners insurance if you intentionally hit your golf ball at a person, whether you were aiming to hit the person or not.

The reason for the exclusion of intentional acts should be obvious. Insurance companies, and society in general, does not want to encourage anti-social behavior and physical violence by covering the cost of these lawsuits. Our society has enough problems with violence, without making it worse by insuring away the financial impact of civil lawsuits in these situations.

Wouldn’t you be more willing to punch your soon-to-be-ex spouse’s new significant other in the face, for ruining your relationship, if you knew your homeowners insurance would pick up the bill, for the cost of legal defense and settlement, if they sue you for hitting them? Hopefully not, but you may be surprised how many people would.

All homeowners insurance policies exclude liability for intentional acts, but some insurance companies have an exception for intentional acts using reasonable force in the defense of your home or person.

If you own a firearm, or have a family member who is a self-defense enthusiast, it is a must for you to find a homeowners insurance or renters insurance company with this exception, and a good complaint record.

Insurance companies pay claims, but they don’t pay any claims they don’t have to pay.

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If your use of force was excessive, no insurance company would cover the claim. But situations in the real world are not always clear cut, and you may have to sue your own insurance company to get a claim covered.

Insuring with an insurance company covering home & self defense, and  having a good complaint record, reduces the chance you will have a problem with a claim. Go to my website to get the information you need.

Insurance agents for some insurance companies may be unaware of this issue, or tell you not to worry about it, because of the laws of your state and court cases ruling in favor of home defense as not being an intentional act.

Some states, like Texas, supposedly prohibit someone breaking into your home from suing you in civil court if you injure them (I’m not a lawyer, so verify this with a lawyer licensed in Texas).

You can’t depend on the law to keep you from being sued, since the situation may mean the law will not apply, and the law can be reinterpreted or found unconstitutional — maybe on the basis of your lawsuit!

No one loves a burglar, but what if an innocent party is injured? Maybe someone walking their dog by your home is hit by a stray shot while you are defending your home?

The huge cost of having to pay for your own legal defense, and any settlement, for something like a wrongful death lawsuit, is too expensive for you to take a chance, by not choosing the homeowners insurance company with the broadest coverage and fewest complaints. You are most likely to never need the coverage, but not having it, if you do need it, can bankrupt you.

You can use my website to find out complaint information about insurance companies, but where can you find insurance companies specifically covering home defense in their homeowners insurance policies?

First off, ask the insurance company insuring your home now about liability for the use of your gun. If they say you are covered, have them show you where it is written in the policy and provide you with a copy. You may want to have a lawyer review it.

If your homeowners insurance policy does not have a self/home defense exception to the intentional acts exclusion, shop for one that does. Independent agents, representing several insurance companies, are usually most knowledgeable about the difference in each insurance company’s homeowners insurance policy.

You don’t get a copy of the homeowners insurance policy until after you buy it, so get the advice of a few agents, and work with agents willing to prove to you in writing what their homeowners insurance covers. Don’t take any agent’s word alone on this issue, because what an agent told you will not be able to be proved, if your claim is denied.

Do you own firearms? How do you insure them? Tell me about it. Please leave a comment on my facebook page. Follow me on Twitter for important insurance consumer news and new blog entries at CarInsWatch.