Loss of Insurance!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[kingman]

Hi

Today l read in Autoweek that if you are involved in an auto accident and your car has been modified your insurance company can and will not allow your claim.

This is something to think about!

Alan

 

[BigRed]

Depends on your Insurance company.

Mine (State Farm) won't allow anything "performance altering".

But some companys will insure based off of appraised value and as long as the appraisal is complete and matches the car then there is no problem.

 

[67HEAVEN]

I haven't read the article. I wonder what their list of disallowed mods includes.

Also, I wonder how far back are they going in model years? Pretty soon, most mechanics won't know a modded C1 or C2 from a whole in the ground.

 

[jenavet]

from my experience,the insurance companies will do absolutely anything possible NOT to pay your claim. so this dosent suprise me in the least. they have just developed another way out for them to pay .its even worse if you own the vehicle outright. if the bank owns the car,they dont seem to put up much of a fuss,but if you own it,they will try everything in their power to intimidate you and give you as little payment as possible. i had a real negative experience where they[insurance company] tried to intimidate me and i refused to back down. they denied my claim,so i was forced to hire a good attorney to fight them.after about 2 years of dicking around,we finally scheduled a trial date. as soon as the trial date was set,the insurance company started making offers to settle. after 3-4 ridiculous offers,they finally made a somewhat reasonable one.i accepted it but after paying my lawyer off,i really only recieved about half of the cars value.as usual,the lawyers make the money,and the insurance company makes money sitting on your dollars....ggrrr

 

[Edmond]

Hi

Today l read in Autoweek that if you are involved in an auto accident and your car has been modified your insurance company can and will not allow your claim.

This is something to think about!

Alan

That doesn't surprise me. Did they say what they considered modified? Would a catback system or K&N stop me from getting paid from my insurance company? If that did, it would really stink!

 

[rrubel]

You're quite oversimplifying. The main point of the article was that some insurance companies are denying coverage to those with lowering springs, which is not something one normally associates with performance upgrades... but IS associated with street racing...

Most insurance companies just want to be kept posted if you make major mods to your car (as the article said).
[RICHR]

 

[Green LT1]

I am a corporate attorney for a very major insurance company, and obviously a big car nut. There is a lot of mis-information out "on the street" about how insurance companies operate. As is often the case, a few bad apples ruin the reputation of the entire industry. I have never seen or heard of a situation where a valid property damage claim is denied due to modification of the vehicle. Remember, thyough, that a modified vehicle may be worth less than a stock one. However, a claim may be denied due to an improper USE of a modified vehicle, or for other reasons set forth in the policy. Insurance contracts are not very exciting, but take the time to read your policies and find out what the insuring agreement says. If you have any questions about coverage, ask your agent. The major and reputable insurance companies do not look for ways to not pay a claim. The one I work for actually looks for ways to find coverage if in doubt. Insurance fraud costs all of us a lot of money, so every time you hear about an insurance company horror story, find out if there is a second side to the story. If you saw all the ridiculous claims and lawsuits that I see, you would understand why the companies are cautious when paying claims.

 

[jenavet]

green
i hate to disagree with you...i guess maybe it depends on the insurance company that you have coverage with,that probably is a huge factor...and i agree that fraud and the wacky lawsuits make it tough for all of us...but i hired a very expensive civil lawyer who makes a very good living going against the insurance companies...he told me that the particular insurance company i was with,is known for going out of their way to deny your claim...they roll the dice,hoping that either you will throw your hands up and just let it go or that you dont have the money to fight them in court....i had the money,so i spared no expense in going back at them. their attorney was not a staff attorney,they hired him out of a firm to defend them against me at a very high rate,almost 100.00 more per hour than my attorney was charging me.....2 years later,at a pretrial hearing with myself,my attorney,the judge and their attorney present...the judge reamed the insurance companies attorney for probably 30 minutes as to how weak their case was,that from what she examined,there was absolutely no reason to deny the claim and that the insurance company should have settled from day 1......we set a trial date and then the insurance company started making these ridiculous offers....my lawyer wanted to go to trial.said it would cost me 20,000 to go to trial and he said we would kick the insurance companies butt......but after paying him off and what i would have probably won...i still would have been in the same boat as the offer i took to finally settle........so,not to disrespect you...but people in your position,shouldnt tell members on this site to let their guard down against the protection they will recieve from their insurance companies...i think the percentage of people that will end up in my situation,may be small...but when they are sitting at the table across from you,with you telling them your client is willing to go to court to not pay their claim...they wont be feelin so good...

 

[Green LT1]

Jenavet, I never said anyone should let their guard down. There are many substandard insurance companies out there, and they often treat claimants such as you poorly. I have seen that happen myself many times. But, that having been said, it is not fair to lump ALL insurance companies into that category. If yours treats you badly, find one that is reputable and doesn't. I'll get off my soapbox. Be careful out there and save the wave!

 

[bbw]

A rate is based on the exact car you have, including all options, etc. If you modify the car, let your insurance company know _in writing_. If they retain you, then you are covered. Better yet, inquire about the mod to them _before_ making it. Significantly modding an insured car without letting the insurer know is a form of insurance fraud.

 

[jenavet]

kewel green
i am glad that you agree with me that allstate is a substandard insurance company...you wont hear me argue with you on that one!!! and yes,i pulled them from all my vehicles,my homeowners and life coverages.

 

[Jack]

I wonder if the insurers are trying to limit their responsibility in a situation such as this:

Person buys a used $10,000 honda civic ... as far as the insurance company knows, its replacement value is $10,000 and its premiums reflect that. Then the civic owner spends $2000 on wheels & tires, $2000 on a stereo, $4000 for custom body panels & wings, $2000 on trick paint, another $1000 or so underhood and another $500 for header & canister exhaust ... for a total more than double the new car purchase price. More than likely the customized civic owner fails to inform insurer of the car's increased value. Then the hapless civic gets whacked and the adjuster calculates repair costs based on OE or OE replacement-quality parts ... or it gets stolen and the adjuster attempts to pay out based upon what his company thought the car cost. I've spent plenty with my insurer so I'm not defending the industry. But if someone drives a used $21,000 civic then it oughta be insured for an amount that reflects its true value ... with appropriate premiums. Same goes for vette ... if someone sticks a $12,000 crate motor in a ragged out 85 model ... without informing their carrier ... and premiums are appropriate for a ragged out 85 ... if the car's stolen, no one should expect compensation for a $12K motor.
JACK:gap

 

[Deluxe]

How are your investments looking right now? Your 401K or IRA looking like mine? Those same investments make up a big part of how insurance companies make their money, after all that's what the do is hold your money until you need it. When the stock market is unkind, some insurnace companies have to work hard to find ways to control their costs. When the market is good they can afford to be a little more customer friendly.

 

[jenavet]

How are your investments looking right now? Your 401K or IRA looking like mine? Those same investments make up a big part of how insurance companies make their money, after all that's what the do is hold your money until you need it. When the stock market is unkind, some insurnace companies have to work hard to find ways to control their costs. When the market is good they can afford to be a little more customer friendly.

deluxe
you hit it right on the nose...the insurance companies do not generate their profits from our premims,they invest it and make a huge profit this way.thats why it benefits them to hold your money as long as possible....

jack
i understand the premise of what you are saying.....but think about it...a 1970 corvette,a 1968 chevelle,a 1966 corvette......these cars are 30-40 years old...whats the difference between a guy that puts 12,000 into rebuilding/upgrading his honda,than the guy who does a frame off on his 66 vet?? either way,you are often investing more into the vehicle than any insurance company thinks its worth...thats why you need reciepts,appraisels and often specialty insurance to get coverages to protect a car thats worth more than its book value.......as far as modifications go...they are not neccesarily talking about mods that improve the cars value...they a talking about mods that increase the vehicles performance and the likelihood that because of these mods you will travel at higher speeds and drive in an unsafe manner...........i think what its coming to is you wreck your car.the police report staes it may have been related to excessive speed.the insurance investigator/appraiser goes out into the field and examines your car. he finds modifications done to the car that may increase its speed and performance...he therefore denies your claim and coverage because you modified your vehicle. you freak out!! he refers you to page 375 of your policy...section a part 16 paragraph 3[get out your glasses and read the tiny writing] "we can refuse your claim if you have modified your vehicle" they deny your claim...you meet green[above poster,corporate council for a major insurance co] in a courtroom like i did!! you spend 15,000 to get 20,000 from the insurance co.

 

[Seahorse51]

Ihad nearly the same experience with another company

A couple of years ago, my daughter was involved in an accident where another driver drove thru a stop sign and struck her in the seft front wheel. Damage was about $1,200 mostly mechanical. This is a 4x4 explorer and the left front hub was broken, the motor knocked out of line causing the starter to make a god awful noise and the bell housing, (cast iron) to break. Also some fender damage and the hood didn,t fit right anymore.

The company was GEICO and it took them over 30 days to contact me. They told me to take it and get an estimate. I told them that I thought driving it would further damage the car and they said to have it towed to a shop. I did that and got the estimate. The garage sent the estimate to them and they immediately assigned a different person to my case. They sent their own "specialist" to examine the car and he reported that all of the damage was pre existing and they denied the total claim. They told me this by phone. This process took a month total and they paid for a rental car for the entire month. As soon as they denied the claim, a rep from the rental company showed up at my home and took the rental.

To make a long story short, the "expert" they hired charged them $150.00 per hour, they hired an outside firm to represent them at who knows how much. I took them to small claims court and won the entire case. My guess is they spent 450 on the rental car, who knows how much on the expert who drove 150 miles to examine the car for two hours and the same drive for court tro testify, and a chunk on the attorney when they could have paid the claim for less money, had a happy client, the guy who hit my daughter because he is the one I had to sue and they represented him, and I would have been happy. The result was their client was sued, they had to pay the claim, they spent a bunch more money trying not to pay the claim and I was angry enough that to this day I still badmouth them in public whenever I can and that has to cost them too.

I think their whole purpose was to frustrate me to the point that i would just go away. SCREW THEM ALL!!

 

[jester]

WOW! I'm going to stick with my current company (State Farm) and agent. I've never had a problem with a claim and my last one I had a check in hand less than 12 hours after the accident.

 

[Green LT1]

WOW! I'm going to stick with my current company (State Farm) and agent. I've never had a problem with a claim and my last one I had a check in hand less than 12 hours after the accident.

Jester, glad to hear the "Good Neighbor" folks are taking good care of you.

 

[Fishman]

Hey GreenLT1

After seeing where you live... I'll bet the farm on you working for State Farm. I have done much additional work to my car, including adding the ZZ motor. My SF agent has all the records and pics of my car. I have a stated value policy that would cover the majority of my losses if totaled.

Point is... they have and know my mods and have no issue writing and backing my policy.

Now... if you folks could just get a bit more competitive on homeowners insurance... :L

 

[Green LT1]

Fishman, let's just say you have good investigative skills. I agree that homeowners rates have shot up a bit lately for all carriers, but as you already know, price is important but is not always the best indicator of total value. A solid reputable company will stick by you after you make a claim, and the large majority of less reputable companies will cut you loose. Try to find coverage with another carrier after you have been non-renewed or cancelled with another company. I'm just glad to hear that your experience with the Farm has been good, which is usually the case. I hate to even go into the insurance topic, because so many people have horror stories to tell. It is dangerous territory to enter, but I hate to see all insurance companies lumped together as greedy bean counters who do everything they can do to deny a valid claim. Having said that, I can't wait to get into my polo green LT1 after work and drive home...

 

[WhalePirot]

hate to even go into the insurance topic

Now U know why I don't talk about flying. :eyerole