Multi-Policy Discounts

Perhaps you’ve seen the commercials and heard the radio ads from some insurance companies boasting a multi-policy discount. Did you know that almost every insurance carrier also offers the same discount? If you have your homeowners/ renters policy with one company and your auto policy with another, you could be missing out on extra savings. Even condos and mobile homes can qualify for multi-policy discounts. The best part? A multi-policy discount applies to both policies! If you have policies with two or more carriers, call us for a free quote today! Let us save you more money!

Home Claims 101

Things To Consider Prior To A Loss

Should you ever have a loss in your home, it is important to save receipts for all valuable items and/or expensive items.  Save them in a file or lock box of some sort.  Also get appraisals for all valuable jewelry, guns, and collectibles.  Many times these items are limited within your insurance policy depending on the type of loss.  Talk with us regarding your coverage to protect these items.  If you have a large amount of these items in your home, you may need to insure them separately.  We can insure these items for you at a small additional cost. 

Creating an inventory for many household items is a good idea.  Yes it’s a lot of work, however if you were to ever have a catastrophic loss to your property, you may forget many of your items during the claims inventorying process.  Take photos of your household rooms and put them with your receipts as a reminder of what you do have.

Should You Ever Have A Loss, What Should Be Done?

Hopefully you will never have to experience a loss to your home or property.  However if you do, it’s good to be prepared and know what to expect. 

An insurance policy has multiple conditions of compliance in order for coverage to apply for a loss.  Below are some of these conditions one needs to be aware.

Report the loss to your agent or insurance company immediately.  Don’t assume the loss is or is not covered.  Leave that to the experts.  If a claim is for theft, notify the police immediately, regardless of the size of the loss as other items may be missing.  Your insurance company will likely require a police report to reflect the same loss you have reported to your carrier.

Mitigate the loss. In most cases making temporary repairs prior to the insurance adjuster inspecting the loss is okay as long as one can secure photos that can be shared with the insurance company.  The policy likely states you must only mitigate the loss.  Again, make sure to secure photos of the damages and the source of the loss prior to making any repairs. Preserve all evidence from the loss.  Do not throw anything out until the adjuster has advised it is okay to do so. Temporary repairs do not normally require company approval.  You and your insurance company want your property protected from further damage.  Again make only temporary repairs to secure property from further damage.  Do not make full repairs prior to the adjuster inspecting the loss.  Keep receipts for all materials as they will likely be reimbursed.  If you have to rent or buy a generator due to power failure, keep receipts.  However, be aware that power failure to a home alone is not a covered loss. 

When inventorying items affected by the loss, be as detailed as possible when describing the items.  A vague description will not be enough to give a fair value on the item. (Example: a loss to a 27” TV with no description of the manufacturer or model will warrant a replacement value for the cheapest TV that is available on the current market.)  Also collect all your receipts, owner manuals, and if available, the item’s packaging.  This will assist in proving your ownership of the item and help the adjuster find a fair replacement value on this item.

What To Expect During The Claims Process

At the beginning of the claims process, you will normally be contacted by an adjuster to schedule an appointment to meet with you, inspect the loss, and verify damages.  There will be paperwork that needs to be completed. The type of paperwork will vary from claim to claim.  At any point if there are questions on this paperwork, you should call your adjuster for explanation.

The adjuster may require a recorded statement for the loss. Statements are common for most non storm related losses. 

When it comes time to receive a settlement check, your deductible is typically subtracted from your settlement.  For example, if the loss is $2200 and your deductible is $500, then you should expect to receive $1700.

Two policy conditions that can affect the claim settlement will be holdbacks and mortgage companies.

The insurance company can apply a holdback to your settlement.  Although you may have a Replacement Cost Policy, you may not receive the full replacement until the work is complete or items have been replaced.  The holdback can also be referred to as “recoverable depreciation”.  This is released when the repairs or replacement is complete.  The insurance company will typically want a final invoice, receipts for the materials, and to re-inspect the property.  This holdback can apply when the claim reaches a certain amount.  Ask the adjuster what the amount is for this condition.  If the claim is less than this specified amount, the settlement will be less the policy deductible. 

Additionally, if you have a mortgage, insurance policies have another condition stating they have the right to protect the mortgage company’s interest in the building.  Again, once the claim reaches a certain amount, the company may make payment to the policy holder and the mortgage company.  If this is the case the mortgage company will need to sign off on the settlement check.  At this point, it is advisable to contact the mortgage company immediately about endorsement procedures.

If the adjuster does not explain these listed conditions, ask them to review them.  You will want to know if they will apply so there are no problems along the way.

- Written by a claims professional at Erie Insurance!

Should I or Shouldn't I....

When you have an accident where you are not at fault, you’re offered two choices.  First, if you have comprehensive and collision coverage, you can pay your deductible and have your insurance company pay for the repairs.  In this case, your insurance carrier will work to recover the money from the other driver’s carrier.  Second, you can go directly through the other driver’s carrier and pay nothing out-of-pocket.  The second option may be the preferred way to go if you don’t want to pay your deductible.

If you go through the other driver’s carrier, one major concern is that it takes more time to settle and finalize a claim than if you go through your own insurance carrier.  I have personally been in the position of making this decision.

I had an accident in the beginning of August, right before I started my senior year of college.  I was a 21 year-old college student going into student teaching; a $500 deductible wasn’t something I was prepared to take on.  The other driver admitted fault, so I decided to go through the other driver’s insurance carrier instead of involving my own.  I realized that doing so was a lesson in patience.  I spent almost two and a half months making phone calls to my carrier and to the other carrier, trying to have everything taken care of.  Thankfully, my car was drivable, even if it did have unsightly dents on the driver’s side doors.  The other carrier had to wait to hear from their insured (the other driver) before they would begin the process of approving my claim.  Then they went through the process of recording my statement and reviewing the estimates and paperwork that my carrier sent over before they would approve the repairs and the rental vehicle costs.  By the time I was able to take my car into the shop, it was October.  I learned my lesson in patience.

Not every situation is the same however.  Most claims do not take over two months to be completed, but there’s always a chance of delayed repairs when going through another insurance carrier.  The process is longer and has more steps than when dealing with your own carrier.  If your vehicle is drivable and you are prepared for extra wait time for repairs, then going through the other carrier is a good option.  Always be sure to ask your claims adjuster the pros and cons of whatever decisions you make regarding your claim.  They are there to help make the process as easy as possible.  At least the Bradley Agency, my place of work as well as my insurance agency of choice, represents companies that have claims reps who make it their business to help facilitate the process for our clients.

(Written by Valerie R. Whitaker, Administrative Assistant at the Bradley Agency)