June 9, 2017 Meet Your New Claims Inspector: A Drone After an April windstorm tore roof shingles off his house, Nick Ragone of Rochester, New York, figured it would be a routine claim process. But then his insurance company asked if it could use a new tool to inspect the damage. Instead of a ladder,…
June 4, 2017 The Ultimate Guide to Home Insurance for Dog Owners Shopping for home insurance can be a challenge if you have a dog–especially if its breed is seen as dangerous. This guide will help you get a policy and affordable rate) regardless. Sixty-five percent of US households have a pet, according to the 2015-2016 National…
June 1, 2017 Court rejects FAIR Plan’s policy of reduced insurance payments for homeowners in lower income neighborhoods FAIR Plan said the cost of repairing the lower income fire-damaged home wasn’t required, even though similar loss in a wealthy neighborhood would be covered. On Friday, May 26, homeowner Marlene Garnes won a legal victory against California FAIR Plan Association FAIR) when the California…
June 1, 2017 Don’t Be Blown Away By Your Hurricane Deductible Hurricane season is fast approaching, but don’t be too focused on the official June 1 start date. This year, late April saw Arlene, the first named tropical storm of the season. Coastal storms are always unpredictable so it’s smart to get your homeowners insurance in…
May 31, 2017 Insured homeowner owed full cost of repairs, appeals court rules An insured homeowner whose home has been badly damaged is entitled to coverage for the cost of repairs, even if those far exceed the property’s market value, a state appeals court has ruled. Reversing a Contra Costa County judge’s decision, the First District Court of…
May 25, 2017 Coverage Battle At 9th Circ. May Hobble Private D&O Policies Scottsdale Insurance Co. recently asked the Ninth Circuit to uphold a ruling that an exclusion in an education technology company’s policy for claims related to professional services bars coverage for a False Claims Act suit, and attorneys say a decision in the insurer’s favor could…
May 17, 2017 As Hurricane Season Approaches, Review Your Insurance The Atlantic hurricane season is a little more than two weeks away, so now is a good time for homeowners along the coast to check their insurance coverage. The annual hurricane season runs for six months, from June through November. “A good place to start…
May 13, 2017 This family lost everything in one of California’s worst wildfires. Now, they’re almost home COBB MOUNTAIN The wooded path between Maya Leonard’s house and the elementary school where she is a sixth-grader remains scarred and blackened, a reminder of the epic wildfire that stole so much from this community on a September afternoon in 2015. But as she has…
May 11, 2017 Builder Gets Help In Insurance Fray At Calif. High Court A policyholder advocacy group and two Christian organizations urged California’s high court Wednesday to rule that an employer’s negligent hiring or supervision of a worker who intentionally injures a third party is an accidental “occurrence” under a general liability insurance policy, saying state precedent supports…
May 9, 2017 Ga. Justices Should Weigh $8M Bad Faith Case, 11th Circ. Told The Georgia Defense Lawyers Association has urged the Eleventh Circuit to seek the Georgia Supreme Court’s guidance on whether insurance carriers may be held liable for negligent, as opposed to bad faith, failure to settle a claim against a policyholder, saying the issue is key…
May 4, 2017 Why Poor Credit Can Triple Your Homeowners Insurance It’s no secret that credit scores play an increasingly important role in our financial lives, determining everything from whether we qualify for a mortgage to what interest rate we’ll get on a new credit card. What still may surprise some, however, is how significant credit…
April 23, 2017 Essential Property Insurance Coverage Information Withheld from Consumers An April 2017 report by United Policyholders reveals the state rankings of homeowner insurance protections that impact buying insurance. The research revealed that many major insurance companies and many states withhold coverage and policy provisions from consumers during the purchase. These same companies and states…
April 20, 2017 Delaware Ranks High Among States for Homeowners’ Insurance Protections Dover, DE – Delaware homeowners are among the most protected in the nation against having their homeowners insurance non-renewed or rates raised due to filing or even inquiring about a claim. This is according to a recent study by the Rutgers Center for Risk and…
April 20, 2017 How your selfie could affect your life insurance A selfie reveals more than whether it’s a good hair day. Facial lines and contours, droops and dark spots could indicate how well you’re aging, and, when paired with other data, could someday help determine whether you qualify for life insurance. “Your face is something…
April 19, 2017 Rutgers Law School’s Essential Protections for Policyholders report recommends improvements by states to help homeowners buy insurance Coverage, quality, and price are the top issues consumers need to consider when buying or renewing a homeowners insurance policy, but a report by the Rutgers Law School in Camden finds that most states do not require insurance companies to provide adequate information to consumers…
April 18, 2017 Top 10 states for homeowners’ insurance protections Agents are well-aware of how state insurance regulations can affect themselves and the insurance industry as a whole. It’s also important to also know how they affect policyholders, especially homeowners. According to a report by the Rutgers Center for Risk and Responsibility at Rutgers Law…
April 12, 2017 Flood insurance premiums need to rise by 25% per year The National Flood Insurance Program NFIP) is buckling under the weight of a $25 billion debt, so something’s got to give. For some policyholders, this could mean as much as 25% increases in the rate they pay for coverage every year. In Mississippi, anecdotal evidence…
April 11, 2017 America’s flood insurance system is sinking Here’s some bad news for the 5 million Americans who have flood insurance policies: Premiums will rise an average 6.3 percent this year, according to the National Flood Insurance Program NFIP). But this could be followed by even worse news when rates rise as much…
