April 30, 2018 Call Kurtis Investigates: Couple Calls Out Pricey Dental Work After Crowns Fall Out ROSEVILLE CBS13) — Retired and on a fixed income, Victor Reyes needed work done on his teeth. Victor had dental insurance, but it didn’t cover the crowns he needed, so when the dental office gave him the option to pay cash up front for a…
March 25, 2018 Wildfire Mitigation & Insurance Project If you take action to make your home less likely to be seriously damaged or destroyed in a wildfire, your insurance company should reward you with a discount on your premium … or at the very least keep you as a customer and not drop…
March 25, 2018 Mandatory arbitration, common foe of car buyers, bank customers and porn stars, under attack Mandatory arbitration, common foe of car buyers, bank customers and porn stars, under attack By L.M. Sixel March 22, 2018 0 Photo: SCOTT MCINTYRE, STR / NYT IMAGE 1 OF 5 Some auto dealers are opting out of mandatory arbitration, finding that the courts offer…
February 26, 2018 Homeowners insurance customers in Oklahoma still paying high rates Residents of the state are still seeing costs that are among the highest in the United States. Property owners in Oklahoma are already paying some of the highest homeowners insurance rates in the country due to the state’s high risk of severe weather such as…
February 14, 2018 Oakland Hills homeowners finding it harder to get fire insurance OAKLAND, Calif. KGO) — Homeowners in the Oakland Hills have joined those in the Wine Country in expressing fears about the increasing difficulties they’ve faced getting fire coverage. It’s part of 7 On Your Side’s continuing investigation into the non-renewal of home insurance policies. As…
January 30, 2018 Guest Blog: Annuity Basics There are good reasons why you might want or need to buy an annuity: You might want the tax-deferred growth they can offer. They can also provide a guaranteed income in retirement. In some cases, they can be used as an estate-planning tool. Over the…
January 30, 2018 Insurers should be on the hook for Montecito mudslide damage, commissioner says Montecito residents who are hoping that insurance will cover damage to their homes from recent mudslides received a word of support from an important ally on Monday. California insurance commissioner Dave Jones issued a notice to insurers outlining his office’s position that they should be…
January 29, 2018 Post wildfire flooding and insurance? Forecast muddy A wildfire destroys the trees, plants, bushes, and roots that hold soil in place and soak up rainwater, which in turn can lead to the kind of damage that occurred in Montecito in the aftermath of the Thomas Fire. The “Fire-Flood Sequence” is a well-known phenomenon,…
January 17, 2018 Roadmap to Recovery Workshop for Partial Loss Survivors – Santa Rosa: Wednesday, 1/17/18 Workshop for Partial Loss Survivors United Policyholders is hosting its next Roadmap to Recovery workshop in Santa Rosa for North Bay partial loss wildfire survivors on Wednesday, January 17th. The workshop will start at 6PM at 547 Mendocino Ave. at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Santa Rosa.…
January 17, 2018 California lawmakers propose bills to beef up disaster insurance coverage State legislators have introduced a package of bills that would beef up or extend insurance coverage to policyholders following declared disasters, but only one would be retroactive and apply to victims of the recent wildfires. Critics say the bills could drive up insurance premiums and…
January 8, 2018 Now that’s coverage — Insurers sent private fire crews to homes threatened by the Thomas Fire Debra Salem-Drake was packing to evacuate as a wildfire moved within a half-mile of her Ventura home when she got a surprising call. Her insurance company was offering to come spray her home with fire-blocking gel…for free. It was Dec. 5, the second day of…
January 8, 2018 FEMA Expands Flood Reinsurance Program with Private Reinsurers for 2018 The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has completed a reinsurance placement with 28 private reinsurers to help the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) recover losses it may have to pay in 2018. Expanding on its first private reinsurance placement last year of $1.042 billion, the…
January 7, 2018 Insurance Companies Require Written Inventory From Fire Victims’ Burned Homes When the overnight firestorm raged through Santa Rosa in October, nothing in the three-bedroom house at 1445 Starview Court survived. “Nothing,” said homeowner Holly Webb. “It’s all gone.” And so, Webb was stunned when State Farm told her that getting the full $237,000 listed on…
January 4, 2018 Florida Supreme Court Ruling to Have Big Impact on Duty to Defend Construction Cases A recent case out of the Florida Supreme Court will likely have a big impact on the duty of insurers to defend Florida construction cases. The case, Altman Contractors, Inc. v. Crum & Forster Specialty Insurance Company arises out of a declaratory judgment action filed…
January 1, 2018 January Roadmap to Recovery Workshop Schedule – Northern California We look forward to continuing to help wildfire survivors on the road to recovery in the new year. Please save the dates for the following Roadmap to Recovery workshops scheduled in January. Santa Rosa – Workshop for Partial Loss Survivors: Wednesday, January 17th from 6pm-8pm…
January 1, 2018 A Super Search Box Need to know what exclusions to avoid when buying Directors and Officers insurance for your company? Looking for a good argument to get your insurance company to cover the cost of “matching” (restoring your property to a uniform and consistent, not patchwork quilt appearance)? Want…
December 18, 2017 Homeowners Fear Losing Insurance in Midst of California Fires California homeowners and regulators have a new fear about wildfires ravaging the state: that insurers will drop coverage. Massive, out-of-season fires in northern and southern California are causing billions of dollars in claims and challenging expectations of when and where to expect blazes. State law…
December 12, 2017 Hundreds of fire victims finding themselves vastly underinsured Hundreds of Sonoma County residents who lost their homes in the October wildfires say they are finding themselves underinsured and many are pressing their cases with their homeowners’ insurance carriers. Many displaced homeowners are discovering that they will likely have to pay tens to hundreds…
