ROGER4314
Been Called "Flash" Since I Was A Kid!
TEXAS HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE HAS GONE STRAIGHT TO HELL!
Last week, a lightning storm smoked my 52" Toshiba LCD TV and my computer modem. Both were protected by several layers of surge and UPS protection but the bolt hit the pole in front of the house, blew a transformer then smoked a transformer on the next street. When lightning hits that close, surge protectors are a joke.
My options were:
1) Eat the TV and just go on.
2) Turn it over to my insurance (Farmers) and let them depreciate the TV for 1 1/2 years that I owned it then apply a $500 deductible to the loss. Then I would lose over $400 in "no claim" discounts over the next 5 years! Wow, what a deal!
Finally, the agent called me to say the loss was NOT COVERED AT ALL because the zap came in over the power lines. I wondered how else the jolt could have gotten the TV then realized that wasn't the point. The exclusion is their way of NOT covering the TV!
Then I wondered how many other people have purchased those expensive TV's, computers and stereos not knowing the equipment was covered only for fire and theft by their homeowners insurance. The major threat to electronic equipment is voltage surge and they don't insure it! They get themselves off the hook by having an "exclusion!"
Guys, you need to get with your agent and find out what kind of crap they are selling under the guise of homeowners insurance. The prices ran wild, the coverage went to Hell and we hold policies that are virtually worthless. They put exclusions in the policy to cheat you at every turn.
Hound the agent until he/she tells you the truth about your coverage. The policy will show you what is covered. The real story is in the list of exclusions.
The wind storm insurance is another prime example. The coverage is crap and when IKE tore up my place, it took FIVE months to pay off my claim! Meanwhile, my place was a wreck. Remember, after the claim is settled, you are at point ZERO where you can begin to rebuild. Your home is still a wreck and you've been staying with friends or relatives.
Here's how they get you:
Brick is porous and when driven by hurricane force winds, the brick wall will pass water and ruin your carpet. Carpet stinks like Hell after water soaks it and there is no electricity to help dry it. They only cover carpet loss "if there was a hole in the structure where the water enters." If the water comes through the weep holes or through the brick, it is NOT covered! Their own adjuster wrote that the roof shingles picked up, water entered the house and ruined the carpet. For 5 months, they debated how that water got in my house and withheld payment. The carpet smelled so bad, I had to leave the house. To get some relief, I pulled up a lot of the carpet and tossed it outside. The furniture was moved and stacked and that was my life for months.
The companies delay your payment to spread their loss through several business quarters. That's good for them and terrible for you. One way they do that is by using "Tag Team Adjusters." You work with an adjuster and just about the time you get an agreement, they switch adjusters. Of course, you start from "square one" and all bets are off. The new guy wants a different approach or wants repair prices or receipts and you sit for another month with your claim unresolved. That happened to me FIVE TIMES! Next time, I lawyer up!
Like one company says, Insurance companies have you in good hands. That hand is tightly wrapped around your "nads.
Flash
Last week, a lightning storm smoked my 52" Toshiba LCD TV and my computer modem. Both were protected by several layers of surge and UPS protection but the bolt hit the pole in front of the house, blew a transformer then smoked a transformer on the next street. When lightning hits that close, surge protectors are a joke.
My options were:
1) Eat the TV and just go on.
2) Turn it over to my insurance (Farmers) and let them depreciate the TV for 1 1/2 years that I owned it then apply a $500 deductible to the loss. Then I would lose over $400 in "no claim" discounts over the next 5 years! Wow, what a deal!
Finally, the agent called me to say the loss was NOT COVERED AT ALL because the zap came in over the power lines. I wondered how else the jolt could have gotten the TV then realized that wasn't the point. The exclusion is their way of NOT covering the TV!
Then I wondered how many other people have purchased those expensive TV's, computers and stereos not knowing the equipment was covered only for fire and theft by their homeowners insurance. The major threat to electronic equipment is voltage surge and they don't insure it! They get themselves off the hook by having an "exclusion!"
Guys, you need to get with your agent and find out what kind of crap they are selling under the guise of homeowners insurance. The prices ran wild, the coverage went to Hell and we hold policies that are virtually worthless. They put exclusions in the policy to cheat you at every turn.
Hound the agent until he/she tells you the truth about your coverage. The policy will show you what is covered. The real story is in the list of exclusions.
The wind storm insurance is another prime example. The coverage is crap and when IKE tore up my place, it took FIVE months to pay off my claim! Meanwhile, my place was a wreck. Remember, after the claim is settled, you are at point ZERO where you can begin to rebuild. Your home is still a wreck and you've been staying with friends or relatives.
Here's how they get you:
Brick is porous and when driven by hurricane force winds, the brick wall will pass water and ruin your carpet. Carpet stinks like Hell after water soaks it and there is no electricity to help dry it. They only cover carpet loss "if there was a hole in the structure where the water enters." If the water comes through the weep holes or through the brick, it is NOT covered! Their own adjuster wrote that the roof shingles picked up, water entered the house and ruined the carpet. For 5 months, they debated how that water got in my house and withheld payment. The carpet smelled so bad, I had to leave the house. To get some relief, I pulled up a lot of the carpet and tossed it outside. The furniture was moved and stacked and that was my life for months.
The companies delay your payment to spread their loss through several business quarters. That's good for them and terrible for you. One way they do that is by using "Tag Team Adjusters." You work with an adjuster and just about the time you get an agreement, they switch adjusters. Of course, you start from "square one" and all bets are off. The new guy wants a different approach or wants repair prices or receipts and you sit for another month with your claim unresolved. That happened to me FIVE TIMES! Next time, I lawyer up!
Like one company says, Insurance companies have you in good hands. That hand is tightly wrapped around your "nads.
Flash
