Consumption and Real Estate
Can your homeowners insurance choose not to renew your policy after filing one claim?
Question : Can your homeowners insurance choose not to renew your policy after filing one claim?
We live in Ohio and experienced a house fire last new year’s eve. We had been out of town. We lost everything. We filed a claim with our homeowners insurance policy and came close to maxing out our coverage in order to rebuild and replace what was lost, but we were in no way “padding” the bill, and actually ended up in a financial hardship because they did not pay us near what we had invested in the home and our possessions.
It’s been a year, we have never had any other claims with them before or after. Today I received a letter that they have chosen not to renew our policy. Is this something I should fight? Will we have trouble finding new coverage after this claim?
Thanks.
homeowners insurance ohio
Best answer:
Answer by Tim
They can chose to not renew for any reason.
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#3 written by PB2u 1 year ago
Although it doesn’t seem fair, they can non-renew your policy for most any reason. As explained above, in the insurance carrier’s eyes, you’ve been a loss to them financially and for that reason, they are choosing to end their relationship with you, as an insured.
It would be worth a try for you to speak w/ your agent and explain you would like for the carrier to reconsider dropping your coverage as you’ve been a loyal customer for (x) amount of years, you had no losses prior to the fire. Although the fire was a huge loss, the home has been rebuilt and is now up to 2008 code standards. Explain other safety measures you’ve taken to ensure future safety (new alarm system, installed fire sprinklers, replaced the roof with fire resistant materials, etc.) Tell of ALL the efforts you’ve made. You need to build your case.
If they stand by their decision, have your agent shop other markets for you. If you are with a direct writer (like AAA, State Farm, Farmers, Allstate), you will need to find another policy on your own. I would recommend going to an independent insurance agancy who has access to many personal lines markets. It will save you a lot of time and effort.
Be honest about your claim and use the same arguments regarding your “loss control” efforts. This loss was catastrophoic and unlikely to reoccur. Someone will write you a policy but expect to be paying higher rates for a couple of years, at least.
Another thing, you should get on this right away. The process could take awhile and the very last thing you want is a lapse in coverage. -
#5 written by Queen B 1 year ago
yes they can non renew. sounds like you claim was a huge one so you are now a higher risk for them. I just had a company non renew an insured as he made 1 claim for damage caused by his roof leaking. he claimed it was from storm damage but when the adjuster went out he found long term damage and mold present. what caused you fire? faulty or old wiring? leave something on the stove? it can make a difference.
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#6 written by MSAD 1 year ago
Yes they can non-renew your policy.
You can go and speak with your agent about it. There is not much an agent can do but it’s worth a try.
Look at it from a business perspective. Say you have a small house – insured for 100K. You have a house fire – they spend 70K on the claim. If you pay 2000 a year premium – its going to take 35 years and you never file another claim for them to brake even. It makes sense they would cut their losses and non-renew your policy.
I would go ahead and start looking for another policy. When other carriers ask about prior claims- go ahead and be honest about the house fire. They will find out about it anyway.
Good Luck.
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#7 written by mbrcatz 1 year ago
When they choose not to renew your policy, they HAVE to give you a reason why. Odds are, that REASON will be legal, in your state. If you think it is not, you can file a written complaint with your state insurance commissioner.
So, I don’t happen to know, off the top of my head, which reasons are valid in OHIO, but in many states, they can nonrenew for just about ANY reason – even filing one claim.
What you have to do, is list the REASON for the nonrenewal.
And yes, you’re probably going to have a hard time findng new coverage with a claim that big.
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~~They have the right not to renew your policy. When you have longevity as a customer with an insurance company, you usually don’t run into this.. Newer customers have this happen all the time.~~