| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Insurance situation
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Date:
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2/18/2007 9:23:47 AM
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I know everyone is tired of my posts about the insurance situation, but if you write a check to an insurance company you may want to read the attached article.
URL: State Farm on MS Coast
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| Name: |
Tallyman
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| Subject: |
Insurance situation
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Date:
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2/18/2007 10:18:27 PM
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Interesting. State Farm has always been difficult to deal with. Ask any lawyer. (I'm a lawyer.) So I'm not ever going to say it is a great company. I am adamant, however, that we are having, and are predicted to have many hurricanes in the Gulf and I don't see why premium payors far from the ocean should have to subsidize people who choose to build their houses on sand, near the water.
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| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Insurance situation
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Date:
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2/19/2007 8:07:17 AM
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If the purpose of insurance is to pool risks then you do not agree the basic concept of insurance. You believe in 'risk pools' which is the insurance industry's concept of getting rid of any group they can't be guaranteed a high profit for covering.
Thus, the Fed gov will have to step in and offer disaster insurance as a rider on the Nat. Flood Ins.--a bill has been introduced in Congress.
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| Name: |
Tallyman
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| Subject: |
Insurance situation
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Date:
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2/19/2007 9:18:58 AM
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Risk pools are for those exposed to ordinary risks. I don't want to be in a pool with those who choose to build their house on the sand or under the volcano. If I must be in that pool, then I expect insurers to charge higher premiums to those with higher risks.
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I totally agree; the "pools" must be risk adjusted.
It's wrong if I am paying higher premiums at the lake because beach owners don't have their premiums adjusted in a proportional amount based on their risk.
That being said, insurers should be forced to honor previous contracts, but you can't force them to write new ones.
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| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Insurance situation
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Date:
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2/19/2007 11:34:25 AM
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One thing that bothers me is Ins cos rate by state, but do not form separate companies for each state, and each state supposedly has a rate approval officer--most do little except accept contributions from the ins cos.
Based on both of your opinions the house in town, next door to the fire station, police station, high on a hill, in an area with little wind, no hail should pay about $2.00/year, while the house built 150 years ago, at twenty feet above sea level, within one mile of the shore, that has never had a claim can't get insurance at all. That's called pooling the risk?
To me that's called out of control insurance company greed that has to be brought back to reality.
We've got to break up the cartel.
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| Name: |
F1Fan
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| Subject: |
Insurance situation
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Date:
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2/19/2007 1:04:41 PM
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So, should my drunk brother's insurance on his Ferrari be the same as your Honda Civic? I don't think so, unless we're working on a socialism experiment.
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| Name: |
Tallyman
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| Subject: |
Insurance situation
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Date:
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2/19/2007 1:34:32 PM
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Every time I have contracted for insurance one of the question asked is, "How far is your house from a fire hydrant?" I suppose if I am 50 feet from a fire hydrant I pay less premium than someone living a mile from a fire hydrant. That seems fair to me.
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| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Insurance situation
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Date:
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2/19/2007 1:34:33 PM
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Depends on whether I'm a bigger drunk than your brother!! LOL
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| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Insurance situation
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Date:
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2/19/2007 1:42:49 PM
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Should the house a mile from the fire hydrant pay twelve times as much for the same amount of insurance as the house close to the hydrant? That's the subject at hand.
No one is talking equal payments regardless of where you live, but availability of affordable insurance. Know someone that has a house above flood line between Grayton Beach and Rosemary--cheapest insurance quote is $37,000/yr. That's not insurance; that's extortion.
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Insurance situation
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Date:
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2/19/2007 2:06:40 PM
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Don't know if the same holds true in Alabama, but that seems waaaay out of line, unless their house is valued in the millions. I have a 14x65' mobile home on the gulf side of the beach road in Orange Beach. My total investment in the trailer was $9,000 10 years ago. It's insured for $18,000 replacement value. My contents are insured for $15,000. I pay about $1200/year for insurance and, in 10 years, have had a total of approximately $5,000 in claims (after Ivan). So now I have paid more in insurance than I did for the dwelling. I believe the trick is to have nothing there that I am unwilling to lose. I would still have the ground, even if everything else blew away, and I would replace it another trailer, even though I could build a house on it if I wanted. Some of the $1 Million homes on the beachfront 600' from me disappeared. It is obvious which were insured; they have rebuilt/restored what was left. For the rest, anyone who could afford the land would't be worried about insurance. My little place has a great view and is close enough to the water to suit me, very comfortable with a couple of bedrooms and baths, and attractively furnished. I believe my insurance (which was not canceled after Ivan and my claim) is fair. For those who want a "showplace" they must be willing to pay the price...again and again, if necessary, I suppose.
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Risk is easily calculated and everyone should pay a proportional amount based on risk. This is why smokers pay more for life insurance and bad drivers pay more for auto insurance. I have no problem with pooling, as long as you pool similar risk categories; and this is how insurance is intended to work.
If a beach dweller does not wish to pay for his share of the risk, he should locate somewhere else. This is the exact reason I passed up a great deal for a beachfront penthouse condo on Hutchinson Island Florida six years ago; it was later nearly destroyed in a hurricane. The area had not been subjected to a bad hurricane in many years, but common sense and financial prudence helped me make the decision that I was unwilling to accept such risk.
When I look at property, I always consider location, insurance risk, distance to fire and police protection, probability of flooding and drainage, and many other items....it's part of the package.
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| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Harborcon
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Date:
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2/19/2007 6:40:05 PM
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You are paying almost 7% of the value of your coverage in premiums each year, or over 13% of what you paid for the property. Glad you're happy and understand your situation, but that is really steep for insurance.
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| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Insurance risk???
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Date:
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2/19/2007 7:04:42 PM
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If risk is 'easily calculated' why the h*ell did insurance companies do such a knee jerk reaction to the recent hurricanes? Those risks should have been planned into their 'predictable" risk calculations--come on!!
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I guess I wouldn't expect you to understand given your posts on the subject.
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| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Insurance risk???
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Date:
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2/19/2007 10:33:40 PM
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And 50% of the American population that live in coastal areas don't understand your logic. Its time to stop the cartel.
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Let me rephrase then. It seems those with higher risk don't want to understand my logic because they want others to shoulder their burden.
If its corruption in big insurance you are after, I'm right there with you. If you're after a subsidy, I'm not a willing player.
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| Name: |
Tallyman
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| Subject: |
Insurance risk???
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Date:
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2/20/2007 9:17:32 AM
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He is after a subsidy. He wants to take from the middle class and give to the rich.
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon
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Date:
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2/20/2007 9:21:41 AM
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I guess that was my point - I know it's steep compared to the value of property and personalty. Of course, it also covers liability/medical for those litigious folks (and when you own non-rental beach property, everyone you ever met or worked with is suddenly your best friend, and family members become even closer) who might get drunk and try to fly off the upstairs deck, or pick up a splinter or a sand spur and sue me for permanent partial disability of the body as a whole. And that scares me a lot more than wind and water. But when there was a storm, my company had resources, not available to me, to repair a mobile home, with recourse if they didn't do the job correctly. I recognize the risk, try to minimize it by not putting my "treasures" there, and consider my overhead reasonable for the enjoyment the place gives me. Although, more and more, I'd rather drive 90 minutes to the Lake than 4 hours to the beach!
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| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Fraud--subsidy....
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Date:
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2/20/2007 10:12:34 AM
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go hand in hand for the ins. industry. I am very definitely advocating an investigation of the Ins. cartel, and criminal proceedings where necessary. It's not me that's asking you to subsidize the coastal homeowner, it's your friendly insurance company. They jack your off-coast rates (simply because they can) while they're still making huge profits--because they refuse to pay claims.
I am bringing this debate to this forum so that readers will become aware of what their 'good neighbor' insurance company is doing in other parts of the US, so that we all will be aware that change is needed in the industry. The newspapers and TV away from the coast do not report this news because of their tie in with insurance company advertising. Don't you wonder why State Farm is in such a hurry to settle all the cases after they only lost one case. If they were innocent they would appeal, appeal, appeal.
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Fraud--subsidy....
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Date:
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2/20/2007 10:40:05 AM
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So, since I am getting set to build at the lake, who does this Forum recommend to call for homeowner's insurance? We have had either Allstate or State Farm for the past 25 years, and have made a grand total of about three claims during that time, I believe. The premium is currently in the $300/year range on a cabin valued at less than $50,000 replacement.
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| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/20/2007 11:01:23 AM
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First you might want to review your amount of insurance--you can easily put $50k in a boat house these days, much less a house (cabin). Shop around--read their policy before you buy. I found Auto-Owners Homeowners to have a very good policy at reasonable rates. Hope they'll pay if I have a claim!
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/20/2007 1:14:28 PM
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I won't be having a boat house - just keeping my dock/pier in case anyone with a boat wants to stop by, or bring their jet ski over for me to ride! Haven't decided on a plan yet. Hoping to meet with a builder this weekend. Feb was nice enough to give me the name of his builder, and I have gotten some "small house plans" books. Not looking to build anything bigger than 1,250 s.f. footprint, lotsa windows and maybe a loft for additional sleeping area. Just want a nice porch/deck to sit and watch the sun rise and set over my little slough. All suggestions welcome!
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| Name: |
Osms
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/20/2007 1:54:14 PM
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Sorry, I missed your first sentence where you said you are building. Couple of things: If you are going to be the general contractor you'll need to buy a 'builder's risk" policy. Not expensive, but necessary. You can't get homeowner's insurance until you have finished the house.
If you hire a general contractor, make sure he has builder's risk, liability, and covers his subs and employees for workman's comp.
Congratulations on building---good luck.
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/20/2007 3:10:08 PM
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so, this is how green i am - aren't builders contractors? And don't they have their own insurance? looks like i've got a lot of "studying up" to do!
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If you hire a reputable builder, they should have insurance. But ask, and don't hire someone who doesnt....It's also a good to have them provide a copy of their coverage. Get everything in writing as to what they will charge, provide, and what you expect.
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/20/2007 4:37:39 PM
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Thanks. I'm keeping a file with all the forum's suggestions and warnings. The problem is knowing who is reputable. And fair. And honest. I have been burned (read: "home cooked") so many times at the lake with service folks that I'm a bit leary. Even so, I am excited about this prospect. I've bought and sold about 10 houses, but never built one, so I'm kind of whistling in the dark here, pretending I'm not on shaky ground!
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| Name: |
Feb
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| Subject: |
You Will Need
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Date:
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2/20/2007 5:29:48 PM
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Insurace (builder's risk) to cover any damage from nature, fire or theft while you new Lake Home is under construction. You can talk to the builder when you meet with him, but he should insure risk to his employees during construction.
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| Name: |
boataholic
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/20/2007 7:38:08 PM
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For a helpful comparison, I've got a 1260 sq ft cabin witth 320 sq ft porch built in 1996 insured with Allstate for around $600.
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 9:22:45 AM
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who was your builder? and would you recommend him/her? that's just about the s.f. i'm looking for. 2 bedrooms (minimum) and 2 baths and a great big porch for settin' and rockin'
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| Name: |
wareaglechick
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 9:56:51 AM
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Do not use Pierce & Weldo out of Tallasee for your electrical. We had to get an attorney involved to get them to come complete their work! Warren Blalock is a really good plumber and always came in on time and within budget.
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| Name: |
boataholic
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 10:06:05 AM
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Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that I built it. I'm the second owner. The house is 40' wide and 32' deep, which actually calculates to 1280 sq ft. The porch is the full 40' width but I wish it was 10' deep instead of 8' deep. It is a bit cramped when everyone gathers round a table for lakeside dining.
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 10:24:27 AM
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Do you know who did build it? Assuming you are satisfied with the quality of the workmanship...
I know what you mean about the porch - mine at the beach is 10' and I know wish I had asked for 12!
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 10:26:53 AM
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Did you build your house? If so, did you act as general contractor (whatever that means!)?
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 10:26:55 AM
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Did you build your house? If so, did you act as general contractor (whatever that means!)?
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 10:26:55 AM
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Did you build your house? If so, did you act as general contractor (whatever that means!)?
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 10:26:59 AM
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Did you build your house? If so, did you act as general contractor (whatever that means!)?
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| Name: |
ot
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 12:36:15 PM
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Davis construction built a garage for me.... had signed contract upfront. really nice work. went exactly as planned... Mark Davis is insured and has workman's comp on his guys..
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| Name: |
Harborcon
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 12:58:21 PM
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Thanks so much. I'll give them a call.
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| Name: |
boataholic
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| Subject: |
Harborcon....
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Date:
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2/21/2007 1:52:10 PM
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Sorry, no idea who built it.
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