October 30, 2019 Tips for shopping for home insurance in a challenging market It is not uncommon for people to break down in tears after getting a notice that their home insurer is dropping them as a customer. In some cases, it’s tears of frustration that they paid all that money for insurance they never used, or tears…
October 23, 2019 Gov. Newsom signs law requiring home insurers give policyholders more time before cancellations Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday signed legislation into law that makes insurers give homeowners longer advance notice before canceling their policies. The law increases the minimum time notification for homeowner policy nonrenewals from 45 days to 75 days. However, the change does not go into…
October 13, 2019 First Steps After a Wildfire If you, or someone you know has been affected by the recent fires, please read our First Steps After a Wildfire below. We encourage you to visit our website throughout the recovery process. This checklist will help keep you on track during this stressful time.…
October 1, 2019 Spooky Language Hiding in Your Insurance? Getting a notice from a home insurer that they’re dropping you is scary, and UP works hard to help people in that situation. Read our latest tips on shopping for affordable home insurance when your options are limited. Just as scary is hearing your insurer…
September 19, 2019 Deadlines and Decisions: Two-Year Anniversary Bulletin for 2017 North Bay Fire impacted households Home insurance policies typically limit the amount of time you have to collect all available replacement cost and loss of use/ALE benefits and to file a lawsuit. Your insurance company is legally required to provide you with written notice 60 days before any deadline or benefit expiration they want…
September 18, 2019 Roadmap to Recovery Survey Our surveys are one of the ways we keep our fingers on the pulse of the recovery. The data collected helps us serve your community and informs our advocacy work in the courts, legislatures, media and public policy forums. Make sure your voice is heard!…
September 17, 2019 WRAP UP: The Wildfire Risk Reduction and Asset Protection Project Above, R to L: After his insurer threatened to drop him, a Moraga, CA homeowner contacted his local Fire Dept. for help. UP’s Amy Bach rode along with local fire officials as they inspected and prescribed steps to reduce risk and retain his coverage. If…
August 28, 2019 THE PROTECTION GAP: Monitoring and addressing the extent to which US homes are under/uninsured: A national imperative In early August, 2019 at a national meeting of insurance regulators and stakeholders from across the country, United Policyholders helped set the stage for the important conversation that needs to be happening about the increasingly large gap between disaster recovery costs and the amount of…
August 28, 2019 UP offers solutions to California’s home insurance crisis The problem: Generally speaking, insurance companies want to sell insurance. But they also want to be profitable. Sometimes they will stop selling insurance in a region or to a group of customers they deem too risky. They do this as a business strategy to improve profitability. …
July 17, 2019 Bach Talk: Your Money or Your Life (Insurance) As with all types of insurance, you have choices to make when shopping for life insurance. If you’re in the market for life insurance, rates are the lowest they’ve been in 20 years. That is probably because fewer and fewer employers offer it as an employee…
July 1, 2019 Dropped by your home insurer? What to do… In some parts of the country, home insurance is not as available and affordable as in the past, so UP is working hard to help consumers shop for asset protection. Avoid wasting energy being angry or scared when your insurer “breaks up” with you… Don’t…
June 14, 2019 Check UP: Volunteer Project – Helping homeowners review their insurance policies On June 14, 2019, in Napa, United Policyholders hosted a community event called Check UP to help homeowners get prepared for wildfire season. At Check UP, homeowners could bring a copy of their insurance policy and have an expert volunteer review the policy with them. …
June 5, 2019 A powerful disaster recovery model: Insurance Support Groups Helping wildfire survivors form support groups by insurance company has been part of the United Policyholders’ menu of services since our beginning. We’ve seen time and again how communicating with others who are navigating similar policy language, company rules, and adjuster personalities helps people overcome…
June 1, 2019 Advocacy and Action Update, Spring 2019 UP is continuing to advocate for policyholders and disaster survivors in the media, legislature, and other public policy forums. UP Executive Director Amy Bach had an impactful Spring: Providing expert testimony to the newly created California Governor’s Commission on Catastrophic Wildfire Recovery; fighting against illegal…
May 23, 2019 Car insurance roulette: You could pay more because you’re a woman regardless of driving record Download the PDF
May 20, 2019 Full and fair insurance payouts foster safe and sound construction As anyone who has been involved in a major construction project will tell you, construction supervision is critical. Contractor overhead and profit is what pays for that supervision, and it is a necessary expense of any project that involves multiple trades that have to be…
May 1, 2019 Shaking Your Assets? If you own property in an area that’s prone to earthquakes, chances are your insurance excludes coverage for repairs and rebuilding due to quake damage. Insurance companies carved out coverage for this risk decades ago, and you have to shop and pay to add it…
April 4, 2019 Nip coverage gutting in the bud, UP tells CA Gov’s Commission on Catastrophic Wildfire Recovery Insurance remains a critically important source of disaster recovery financing for individuals, businesses, and government, but insurers must do a better job at insuring homes to value and paying benefits in a timely manner, UP Co-Founder and Executive Director Amy Bach told a high-level California…