2018 Insurer Hall of Fame (or Shame)
- Thread starter Gunni
- Start date
Progressive denied my damage claim from Irma. Adjuster wasn't sure it was a lightening strike so they asked me to hire a marine electrician. $280 out of my pocket for a report to the company saying it was a strike. Progressive wanted me to pull the mast for inspection at my expense. We settled on close up pictures of the top of the mast even though you could easily see the wind instrument was broken off. More reports from the electrician and I was up to $500 out of pocket and claim denied. Electrician told me his experience was they seldom paid without a long drawn out battle. I gave up.
@Sailm8 When frustration time hits, that is time for the State Insurance Administrator. Here in Oregon they go after companies slow walking claims especially if the company is asking the individual to pay for evaluation.
You could possibly recover the expenses in Small Claims court
You could possibly recover the expenses in Small Claims court
I've used BoatUS and its various companies for 34 years. I've not had a claim with their current provider, GEICO, however I have had 2 claims in the past. In both cases they paid without question and paid promptly. The last claim I filed in 2010 was quite substantial, ~$15,000. My only complaint was the surveyor their hired to over see the repair, he was slow as molasses running uphill on a February morning. BoatUS has a program where the deductible decreases for each year in which a claim is not filed. After 4 years of no claims there is no deductible. On a larger more expansive boat, the deductible can be quite substantial.
This is a topic often discussed at our yacht club meetings. The 'key' is "marine" underwriter. Most insurance problems are self-inflicted in that people typically chose the cheapest policy or one written by a generic insurer, e.g., Progressive, Allstate, etc... rather than one who writes boat policies.
What "documented vessel" has to do with the issue is questionable.
I have Progressive and have had two minor claims this year and both were processed and paid expeditiously. I was very pleased with their service.
I have Travelers and had a stern dock line break during some nasty winds on our lake. Hull slamming against opposite floating finger pier that was also bouncing up and down scraped up the side of the hull, gouging through the gel coat. The plastic keeper under the rub rail also was damaged over about a 4 foot length. I sent some photos and they valued the damage at about 3500, thought that was pretty good. I put a chunk of keeper back myself and hope to fix the hull gouges myself in the Spring.
We had a lightning strike claim with Travelers this summer, and they did quite well. Their responses were prompt, and they covered what our yard quoted for repairs without giving us a hard time.
NotCook
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- Dec 29, 2008
- 805
We were insured by Lloyd’s through Offshore Risk Management when we had a loss from Hurricane Maria. They paid fairly and promptly once we established our loss. Rates went up dramatically, but I believe they probably did everywhere down here.
On the other hand, we just met a couple last week on Virgin Gorda who bought a boat the week before Irma, then got a call from insurance 2 days before Irma hit, cancelling their policy. There was a clause that said they could cancel within the first 30 days if they found an issue with the survey. The “issue” they found was that the surveyor dated his signature on the survey report as the day before the date of the survey. Their agency was the Pegasus Group, but apparently the agent skipped town with the premiums for a lot of clients and didn’t actually bind their policies with the underwriter.
We suggested they should contact the insurance commissioner, and also file against the surveyor’s Errors and Omissions policy...
On the other hand, we just met a couple last week on Virgin Gorda who bought a boat the week before Irma, then got a call from insurance 2 days before Irma hit, cancelling their policy. There was a clause that said they could cancel within the first 30 days if they found an issue with the survey. The “issue” they found was that the surveyor dated his signature on the survey report as the day before the date of the survey. Their agency was the Pegasus Group, but apparently the agent skipped town with the premiums for a lot of clients and didn’t actually bind their policies with the underwriter.
We suggested they should contact the insurance commissioner, and also file against the surveyor’s Errors and Omissions policy...
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BoatUS paid my claim even though we never determined what caused the electrical damage. I did everything wrong and BoatUS did everything right. I can’t imagine ever dropping them.
Find an attorney who drives a really nice car and tell your story there.
Ken
The check came from BoatUS but I’m pretty sure Geico actually insured it. I never dealt with Geico directly. In fact, Geico was never discussed.
Had State Farm during hurricane Sandy. Hauled out at discounted rate before storm that was processed by boat yard.
After Sandy damage claim was very unprofessional due to being passed off to multiple adjusters time after time and having to go thru the claim process over and over again, probably due to the massive amount of claims.
Had a second claim within five weeks of first claim due to the boat fell off the jack stands damaging all the repair work that was started. That claim went much better.
Now with boat us geico. no claims and so far knock wood. all customer service personal that I have contacted so far have been very helpful, and knowledgeable. They seem to be on the ball and hope to never need there service.
After Sandy damage claim was very unprofessional due to being passed off to multiple adjusters time after time and having to go thru the claim process over and over again, probably due to the massive amount of claims.
Had a second claim within five weeks of first claim due to the boat fell off the jack stands damaging all the repair work that was started. That claim went much better.
Now with boat us geico. no claims and so far knock wood. all customer service personal that I have contacted so far have been very helpful, and knowledgeable. They seem to be on the ball and hope to never need there service.
Yeah, I am not shopping price as a priority. A single claim on a big boat blows those nickels away. Especially if I need to hire an attorney to remind the claims dude what the agreement says. So looking for a boat insurance specialist and a solid broker.
Still trying to figure this one out...
2017 I had a major claim on my boat insurance due to a dismasting that occurred while the boat was in winter storage. The insurance company sent an adjuster who was familiar with sailboats and was diligent in his assessment of the damage. This ultimately resulted in a prompt and fair payment of the claim. Bear in mind the boat lives in Michigan.
2018 I get my bill for homeowner’s insurance on the house I own in Virginia and the premium is double the 2017 premium. This is a different company than the boat insurer. I call the agent and ask why and am told “you had a major insurance claim last year”. Of course I said that was my boat, not my house. (Obviously they have a database out in cyberspace that contains all that information.) That was not a satisfactory explanation. The agent seemed to think the increase was due to a theft of something in the house. So I went shopping for a new homeowners policy.
I called my Michigan agent and asked if they represented any companies that would write insurance for a house in Virginia. She told me that the company that insures my home in Michigan would. I got the quote and it was actually less than what I had originally paid the previous year identical coverage. What happened to the boat made no difference and so far my boat insurance premium has not taken a hit.
The moral to the story is that it pays to shop around.
2017 I had a major claim on my boat insurance due to a dismasting that occurred while the boat was in winter storage. The insurance company sent an adjuster who was familiar with sailboats and was diligent in his assessment of the damage. This ultimately resulted in a prompt and fair payment of the claim. Bear in mind the boat lives in Michigan.
2018 I get my bill for homeowner’s insurance on the house I own in Virginia and the premium is double the 2017 premium. This is a different company than the boat insurer. I call the agent and ask why and am told “you had a major insurance claim last year”. Of course I said that was my boat, not my house. (Obviously they have a database out in cyberspace that contains all that information.) That was not a satisfactory explanation. The agent seemed to think the increase was due to a theft of something in the house. So I went shopping for a new homeowners policy.
I called my Michigan agent and asked if they represented any companies that would write insurance for a house in Virginia. She told me that the company that insures my home in Michigan would. I got the quote and it was actually less than what I had originally paid the previous year identical coverage. What happened to the boat made no difference and so far my boat insurance premium has not taken a hit.
The moral to the story is that it pays to shop around.
THIS is exactly why I do not want to insure a marine vessel with a homeowner insurer. The system is CLUE, a reporting system for claims losses that home/auto insurers default to for loss reporting. Many, if not all of the homeowner insurers require use of the system to rate you as a risk. Those people are not qualified to evaluate a marine vessel loss claim, and I certainly don't want them conflating a vessel loss with my home or auto insurance. You can check your CLUE rating here.
Years ago I called my internet insurer to report that my wife backed over some friends shrubbery and that they may be reporting a claim. The damage turned out to be minimal and there was no claim filed. Yet Mr. Faceless Internet Insurer pre-filed a pending claim alert into CLUE and when auto renewal time came our insurance premium had a hefty bump. Upon interrogation, the insurer revealed what they had done. Dropping the insurer was the easy part, I had to spend a lot of time filing a complaint and documentation of no claim with CLUE to fix the problem. I no longer do business with an insurer unless I have a broker who is on a first name basis. Pay a broker who works for you to deal with the fools. Money well spent.