Posts tagged "Neighbor"

Common myths about insuring a house

There is a set of myths that surrounds different types of insurance. Some of these myths can be harmless yet others can lead to serious misunderstandings and lack of coverage, which will force you to pay for the damage out own pocket. So if you don’t want to rely on myths and need hard facts, here are some of the most common misunderstandings about insuring one’s house and the truth behind each of them.

Myth: Flood damage is covered by standard policies.

Fact: You will never have flood damage covered by a standard homeowners insurance policy no matter what provider you’re buying from. It always requires a separate insurance policy or a weaver to be purchased in order to be covered against floods.

Myth: The medical payment provided by the homeowners insurance policy will cover me and my family in case of injury.

Fact: The medical payment portion of the policy has a whole different purpose. It’s included with standard policies in order to pay for the medical costs to third parties subjected to injuries within your property. Say a visitor or a neighbor gets injured while being in your house. The medical payment will settle the costs and eliminate the risk of being sued by the third party. In case you or any of your family members are injured on your property it’s the health insurance policy that will settle the medical costs.

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Myth: The insurance company will pay for everything I tell them in case my house is completely destroyed.

Fact: If your house gets destroyed and it’s impossible to indicate the items that were lost the insurance company will require you to provide a list of all the items with exact purchase date, price and serial number. And it’s evident that if you will start making up things you risk getting denied coverage because of fraud. That’s why you should always keep a detailed inventory of your house contents when you have home insurance.

Myth: If any valuables (such as jewelry) will be stolen the policy will cover their entire value.

Fact: All policies have a limit on how much coverage can be provided on lost jewelry. These limits usually vary from ,5000 to ,000 depending on the company. If you feel like that’s not enough to reimburse the price of valuable were they stolen or destroyed you will need to purchase an additional coverage for each item with exact value of coverage to make sure that everything is insured adequately.

Myth: The policy will cover damage caused by poor maintenance.

Fact: Home insurance policies of any types do not provide coverage on damage caused by poor maintenance. So you will have to make sure that your house gets all the minor fixes on time. Because, otherwise the insurance company may deny your claim if they find out that a plumbing leak or fire were caused by simple wear and tear you didn’t address.

Myth: The amount of coverage should be equal to the price I’ve purchased my home with.

Fact: The purchasing price of your home is a wrong way to go when determining the exact amount of coverage you should get with your home insurance policy because construction prices fluctuate significantly. Instead you should take your overall square and multiply it by current local construction prices per square foot. This way you will get a figure that will reflect the cost of rebuilding your house from scratch were it destroyed the next day.

What can I do after ” State Farm ” is Not a Good Neighbor ??!!!!?

Question by blue knight: What can I do after ” State Farm ” is Not a Good Neighbor ??!!!!?
I opened my mail today from State Farm only to find out that they were dropping my home owners insuance !
They say that they are dropping me because I have filed 3 claims. 2 were due to high winds and the 3rd was do to a pipe breaking on the 2nd. floor. So the first 2 were due to ” Mother Nature “.
The 1st one was damaged the roof.
The 2nd was due to a pipe breaking on
the 2nd flooor and not finding out till it
was to late. My tenent did not tell me
till it was too late.
The insurance was always paid on time !!!!
I feel lke the only way to have home ins. is to NOT FILE ANY CLAIMS against State Farm
What can I do ??? Thanks .

Best answer:

Answer by jacob s
insurance companies are a bunch of bull s h i t,,,,,

Add your own answer in the comments!

How do I dispute a partial denial of a homeowners insurance claim?

There was a hail storm in our area and may (most) homes had roof damage, including mine. 95% of the homes in my subdivision have gotten new roofs from homeowners insurance claims. However, my adjuster said my roof was not damaged "enough" to warrant a new roof, only repair/patching to the back side of the roof. I have Allstate and so do several neighbors. Their claims were paid, in full, with now questions asked. The difference between my claim and theirs is the adjuster. They all had a different one than me. I have called and written the main office locally and the corporate office in Illinois, to no avail. They tell me my only recourse is to take them to court.

Each claim is paid according to it’s merit. Each claim is different and has a different set of conditions. It is unfair to compare your damage to the damage of your neighbors because the damage is NEVER identical, and sometimes, the policy is different, and THAT is what determines what and how your claim gets paid.

Whether it’s Allstate, Farmers, State Farm, Joe Blow down the street–the 1st method of repair is just that, repair. If your roof can be fixed by repairing the damaged portion, that is what they pay for. If the only way to "repair" the roof is to pay for an entire new roof then they will pay for a new roof. Your roof would need to be so far beyond repair as a result of the harmful event that it would be cheaper to replace it with new than to repair it.

Look at it like this…..your child is playing soccer with his friends and your kid kicks the ball and it hits your neighbors car denting the bumper. You tell your neighbor you will pay to repair the bumper. Your neighbor wants you to pay for a new bumper. What do you do? Which would you pay for? Most likely you’ll pay for the repair because 1) it’s repairable and 2) it’s less expensive to repair a bumper than replace it with a brand new one.

Insurance is to cover items that are damaged as a result of a covered loss. Insurance is NOT a means of maintaining your home. By no means am I suggesting you haven’t properly maintained your home, but what I am suggesting is for you to put this in the proper perspective.

Knowing Allstate as well as I know them, I’m seriously surprised your letters to Northbrook have fallen on deaf ears. You could take them to court, but you would need to PROVE your roof was beyond repair AS A RESULT OF THE HAIL STORM and nothing else.

You can file a complaint with the Department of Insurance in your state, but they won’t get Allstate to pay for a new roof. What they will do is investigate how YOUR claim, and YOUR CLAIM ONLY, was handled and if they find your claim was mishandled then Allstate could suffer some serious fines. But it still won’t get you a new roof.

From what you write, your claim was paid. You just didn’t get what you thought you were supposed to. I strongly suggest you read your homeowners policy. Look and see if you have a "Right to Appraisal" clause. If you have one, use it.

Is it possible to find out a neighbor’s homeowners insurance company without asking them?

We have a neighbor with a hazardous, threatening tree that they refuse to deal with or let us deal with. We’ve been told that if we alert their insurance company they will probably force the homeowners to remove it. But how can I find that info out?

Due to the privacy act there is no way that I am aware of that you could possibly find this information. However in the meantime if you believe that this tree is a hazard and have tried to resolve this verbally it is now time to take it to the next level. As diplomatically as possible write a letter to your neighbor stating that it is your belief that the tree poses a danger to you and your property. In the letter you should offer to help pay a portion of the cost(s) for an inspection of the tree by an arborist and/or the cost of trimming or removal of the tree. Give a deadline for action on this matter. If the situation is not resolved by that date write a 2nd letter and again in a diplomatic fashion outline the same information but include a statement to the effect that if the matter is not taken care of and you subsequently suffer any damages you will have no option to but to sue them for their negligence–again give a date for compliance. Both of these letters should be sent via certified mail return receipt request and you should list on the bottom of the letter that you are sending a cc to your attorney and list his or her name. If both deadlines pass without any action, please consult your attorney. In a similar case that happened to one of my clients, the attorney wrote a letter and the matter was then resolved. However, if they do not respond to the attorney it is my understanding that they can be sued for having a public nuisance (I am not an attorney and this is my recollection of the terminalogy used in this area for this type of hazard). At the same time you are doing this you can also be calling your local housing compliance authority or if you are in a homeowners association call them and bring this matter to their attention so that they can also investigate and bring pressure to bear on your neighbor. Please make sure that you do everything possible to be diplomatic and do not take matters into your own hands–remember that this family will more than likely be your neighbors for a few years. Also make sure that they actually are the owners of the property, i.e. if it is a rental you will need to contact the actual owner not the occupant. You can find this information out on the internet by looking under the website for your local property tax authority–this information is public record and it will list the owners name, address, etc.

I wish you luck and harmony!

Who’s homeowners insurance is responsible to pay if my neighbors tree fell in my yard?

The tree collapsed into my yard causing my grill and table umbrella to break, also broke the fence. He had the tree removed and repaired the fence but who pays for my broken stuff. The neighbor is saying that my homeowners insurance pays but shouldnt’s it be his???

Call your insurance ASAP.

If the neighbor’s tree fell due to their own negligence (the tree was dead and rotted out but they failed to remove it, etc) then it is their responsibility. If the tree fell because of a storm or other act of God than your insurance should pay.

Either way, this is for the insurance companies to work out. So call your agent, explain the situation, and let them work it out.

How do I find out my neighbors homeowners insurance company?

My daughter was bitten by my neighbors dog. He refuses to pay. I want to file a claim on his homeowners insurance, but he won’t tell me.

i am in the insurance business. you can contact YOUR insurance co. and let them know what happened. this will get the ball rolling. they will interview you about what happened, so make sure you have all medical bills on record. they can reimburse you for any expenses that you have incurred. what they will do is subrogate those damages against your neighbor which basically means they will make him pay your insurance co back. he will either have to decide to go to court and pay it out of his own pocket which means that he will also need to higher an attorney, or, go ahead and file it is a claim and let the insurance companies handle it. they will probably go ahead and let the insurance companies handle it since this will save him money. if you are really needing your money back go ahead and call your insurance co and file a claim. the only downside is that it may take awhile for them to get this handled if they do not have a contact number for your neighbor. they will have to notify them via mail.

you can always get an attourney but that could get costly and time consuming as well. i think going the insurance route is the better choice. every state has a department of insurance that you can contact as well. you can also call them and see what they recommend. good luck to you.

by the way, filing this claim on your insurance co. should not count against you or affect your future premiums in a negative way.

How can I find out if my neighbor has homeowners insurance and what company it is with?

I am trying to file a dog bite claim against my neighbors insurance, but I do not think he is responding truthfully about his insurance policy. He denies having insurance that has personal liability. He sent a copy of his mortgage protection coverage to our lawyer and claims that is the only coverage he has. He still has a mortgage, so he must have homeowners. How can we force it out of him? He has not provided proof of insurance or lack of from the time of the injury. If he truly does not have insurance, we are going to have to sue him because the medical bills are already into the tens of thousands. Please help.

You’re probably going to have to sue him. Then he has a choice–defend the suit himself or report your claim to his insurance company. I don’t believe his mortgage company would allow him to carry a mortgage without a liability policy, but he evidently thinks that if he stonewalls, you’ll just go away. That’s what litigation is for, and he will learn that this was a situation where he should have made the report up front.

Does home insurance cover when you rent out the house and the tenant causes a house fire?

Does home insurance cover when I rent out the house and the tenant causes a house fire (assuming the house completely burnt down)? If not, do I need to buy landlord’s insurance or ask the tenant to buy renter’s insurance? Where can i compare home insures? Thanks

Try this site

http://best-home-insurance-comparator-usa.blogspot.com/

"homeowners insurance" covers the owners dwelling [house/garage] and contents [owners personal property on the premises]. "Owner" [landlord if he is the owner] takes out this policy and is responsible for the premiums. If building is leased or rented out, it does NOT cover tenants personal property, such as furniture, electronics, etc, or even tools borrowed from a neighbor.

"Renters insurance" covers the tenants personal property only. They take out this policy and pay the premiums.

Home owners policies cover every circumstance EXCEPT what is listed in writing, or "exemptions". These are normally: floods [obtain this through FEMA], home businesses losses [such as a fire in a residential garage being used as auto repair business], or anything else that is listed in writing. If your house up in Alaska gets stampeded by purple elephants, and it is NOT listed as an exclusion, it WILL be covered.

Can my homeowners insurance co pay a claim and then try to recoup their money via another lawsuit?

When my son was living with us he was involved in an altercation with a neighbor. That neighbor is now suing us via our homeowners policy for injuries he sustained as my son was defending himself. No arrests were made, but the police were called. If the insurance company decides to pay the claim, now that my son has his own home, will my insurance company try to recoup their money by suing my son?

This is not legal advice, and you should reasonably ask the carrier their intentions. That said, it is highly unlikely that they will pursue your son. A family member living with you generally fits the definition of an insured under the policy. An insured is entitled to coverage for defense (of claims and/or suits) and/or indemnity (payment of viable claims). If the carrier is defending you and your son (without reservation of rights) it would seem that they have accepted coverage. The attorney hired by the carrier to represent the insured (defendant) owes allegiance to that party. I would clarify which attorney represents you, and/or your son (sometimes separate counsel is needed and supplied by a carrier due to conflict of interest and sometimes the parties agree [stipulate] to a waiver of such conflict.)

In short, you can verify intentions and status with the carrier and the defense attorney, but the carrier seeking recovery against your son is unlikely. If they had intended to pursue him (and if he is not an insured for one reason or another) they likely would have either (1) filed a non-party defense or (2) filed a direct action (added him as a defendant through a process called a contribution and/or common law indemnity action).

Since a paid claim would go on your record it is also worthwhile to find out status, merits of allegations, and extent of claimed damages (usually part of the public record in litigation) so you can see what the liklihood of a settlement is. If the claim is frivilous, perhaps a motion for summary judgement and/or offer of judgment should be considered. Good questions for your defense attorney (provided by the carrier). Again, they work for YOU, not the carrier (though not every carrier representative really gets that).

Good luck.

my neighbors daughter is on the city counsel and complains about everything and authorities take his side?

One morning my kids were going on a group outing and my dog got out. When I awoke I Heard a ruckas in the front yard I opened my door to my neighbor and the police trying to get a dog(not knowing it was my dog). when I realized it was my dog I pleaded with the officer to please let me come out and get the dog for him he would not let me.,and sprayed a whole can of pepper spray in my dogs face. The sergant on duty came to talk to me and said my dog had bit the neighbor and he was going to be put on quarentine for 10 Days . I told him that my dog at 7 years old doesnt have a mean bone in his body and I want to see the bite. He then said that a animal control officer will be getting in touch with me. Well that Monday morning they came to my house to inform me that they were going to deem my dog as visous and I probably would never get him back and if I tried I would have to get a10,000 dollars insuranse policy just to keep the dog and the counsel would decide if it should go to a hea

Was there really a bite? If not, get a lawyer immediately who will fight for your rights. This is terrible. If I had the chance, I would also move to be away from such a menace neighbor!