Insurance Companies

Money Magazine’s Amanda Gengler speaks with Erica Hill about how we should file an unexpected claim on home insurance, and also what you should never say.

Duration : 0:3:4

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Follow these guidelines to get the best coverage at the best price — and not get dropped by your insurer.

Duration : 0:3:14

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Learn the basics about homeowners insurance in a flash. Hear from a one of the nation’s top insurance advisors who will explain why homeowners insurance is so important, help demystify the homeowners insurance process and quickly provide you with a good understanding of important insurance terms and concepts.
http://www.lifehappens.org/insurance-101-videos/homeowners

Duration : 0:10:15

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We are buying our first house, and would like to know if anybody has any recommendations on the best homeowners insurance for our money. Thank you!

There is no way around needing Homeowners insurance if you are about to embark on the journey of purchasing a home. Depending on the size of the home, Homeowners insurance can cost as little as $400 a year to as much as $2000 a year, if not more in some parts of the country. The amount of Homeowners insurance you receive will also be determined by the value of the interior property, including the upkeep of remodeling on the home, as well as whether your policy will include valuable electronics and jewelry.

Once you have determined what type of policy you would like to implement, you can begin discussing yearly and monthly costs with insurance agents. One thing to keep in mind while you are searching for Homeowners insurance is that the rates won’t vary that much between each company, but there are small ways to save a few dollars to a few hundred dollars, simply by finding some Homeowners insurance discounts that are available.

One of the easiest ways to receive a discount on Homeowners insurance is to install a home security system, and not the type that barks and growls. Many insurance companies are actually paired up with security companies like ADT or Brink’s and will give you a discount for using that insurance company and that security company as well.

Even if you get Homeowners insurance and decide to go back later and install a security system, don’t forget to go back and call your Homeowners insurance company once the system is installed so that you can receive a discount on your insurance. Further discounts may be given for motion sensors or even for video surveillance cameras installed on the home.

Another great way to receive a small discount on your Homeowners insurance is through fire and carbon monoxide detectors and fire resistant doors, brick and even walls. Remember that not all companies will offer the same discount for fire resistance and fire protection, so it is best to do research on how much of a discount can be received before diving in to remodeling the entire house for fire resistance.

Keeping up with newer appliances is another excellent way to help receive a Homeowners insurance discount. Older appliances are more likely to develop bad electrical connections, which can make the home susceptible to fire.

The first place to begin updating appliances is in the kitchen because kitchens are on the top of the list for places where fires begin. Many other insurance companies will offer a discount for new plumbing and electrical systems, or simply for a home that is less than ten years old altogether.

While some homeowners aren’t willing to consider a higher insurance deductible, or the price they will pay before the insurance will begin paying for loss or damages, asking for price quotes with higher deductibles is an excellent way to receive a discount on your insurance.

Most Homeowners insurance companies start out with a minimum deductible of $250 to $500 dollars, but try raising the deductible by $250 and see how much this will save you a year. Often times, this can make a difference of nearly $100-$150 a year on the total insurance bill.

Remember, though, that if you choose this route, you may end up paying more than that $150 savings a year if something happens to your home and you have to pay the higher deductible. Simply weight the negatives and positives and decide if a higher deductible is right for you.

The final sure fire way to receive a Homeowners insurance benefit is to belong to a club or certain group. This could simply mean being in the "65 and older" club and receiving a senior citizens discount, or it could also mean already being a member of the bank where you are looking to purchase Homeowners insurance. Some insurance companies also give a discount if you plan on having both your car insurance and Homeowners insurance with that company.

Before settling for the first set of numbers thrown at you by the insurance company, be sure to ask about these discounts and make your assets work for you when shopping for Homeowners insurance.

I have been very happy with SAIF.

A home health agency employee was taking care of my mother in her home and started a kitchen fire. Can she recover damages from the home health agency and also file a claim with her homeowners insurance? We don’t know if the home health agency will go through their insurance company or just pay her outright for damages. If they just pay her for damages, can she still file and collect from her homeowner’s insurance?
Pleas clarify this point:
If the home health insurance pays my mother for damages without filing a claim thru their insurance company, can she file a claim with her insurance company also?

And what is sew?

There is a clause on your homeowners policy, called a "waiver of rights of subrogation" clause. That means, if your mother files a claim with her homeowners policy, she automatically gives her right to sue the at-fault party, to her insurance company.

So, she CAN file and collect with two different insurance companies, but then she’ll have to pay back her insurance company.

In reality, though, the other insurance company is going to seriously drag it’s feet about paying her. Her homeowners policy will pay as soon as she has all the paperwork in to them. So they’ll notify the other insurance company about the subrogation rights, and once they tell her homeowners company she ALSO filed a claim with THEM, then 1. her homeowners carrier will get all huffy (with reason!) and 2. the liabiltiy carrier for the other party will note the file, and possibly not pay anyone.

I’ve seen claims like this, but I’ve never seen a liabiltiy carrier pay out for an accidental fire. So my advice is, only file under the homeowners, and don’t expect to get anything from the other party.

My landlord tried to fix the water heater less than a week before the house burnt down because of the faulty water heater.i will like to file a 3rd party claim against his homeowner’s insurance company but i dont know who he insured with. His name is James Phifer addy is 812 9th st, ne washington dc 20002

Then ask him.

We don’t know.

i got burned by a heating pad that my Fiancee’s had under his shoulder but it slid up-under me during our sleep. it was an accident and neither one of us were aware of the situation. can someone give us a little bit of advice on what to do????

Do you live there?

Did you need emergency treatment?

Were you drunk?

I’m just trying to figure out how you can get a really serious burn sleeping on a heating pad – I always wake up when it starts getting uncomfortable.

Anyway. If it’s not serious, get over it. If you were hospitalized with serious burns, you’re likely not going to be able to sue ANYONE, as the instructions on heating pads say don’t sleep with them. I don’t think your fiance was any more negligent than YOU were, and if you live there, you can’t collect under his policy anyway.

My advice is, don’t sleep with heating pads. And don’t blow dry your hair in the bathtub, either.

Your health insurance is going to cover the doctor visit.

I dont know, that doesnt sound right…especially if you are an existing customer! They can stop writing new policies that are located on the Eastern Seaboard, or even drop you after filing in a claim, but just drop you for for that reason on an existing account? There is something utterly wrong with that! Maybe you should check with your state’s Office of Insurance Regulation!

Is it legal for our homeowners insurance to drop our policy after a fire? The fires cause is listed as unknown but was NOT arson. This is the only claim made to our insurance. Anyone know any insurance companies who might sell us insurance if it is legal for our company to drop us?

Believe it or not, but a fire is considered a loss that you could have taken steps to avoid. Theft is another common loss for cancellation. This is not a fair assumption but it is practiced by a lot of companies.
I don’t know what company you were with, but if this is your only claim in the last 3 years, try appealing through your agent. Sometimes an agent can help with a cancellation. But if that doesn’t work, call around to the major companies and then to the lessor known ones. There should be someone that will take your business. You should expect a higher deductible and/or higher premium for a couple of years. And when you find a company and the premium is not out of sight, stay with them! The longer you are with a company, the less likely they are to cancel you with one loss. I am certain your fire loss was a big claim, but anytime there is a small loss(one that is barely over your deductible) check with your agent before turning it in. Companies consider multiple claims worst than one big claim.
One other option is to complain to your state insurance commissioner,(most people won’t complain because it takes time, but I have seen insurance companies reverse a decision because of a complaint) sometimes the insurance commissioner will reverse a company’s cancellation and sometimes a company will reverse their cancellation because they want the complaint to go away. Many states keep records of how many complaints a company receives each year and the more a company gets, the worse it looks for them.