Snowmageddon 2014: Are You Covered?

Snowmageddon buried western New York this week with the lake-effect snowfall. Winter storms are the third-largest cause of catastrophic losses in the United States (after hurricanes and tornadoes). The good news for homeowners is that in most cases their claim for snow-related damages will be covered under the standard homeowners insurance policy.

 

Is Someone From Special Investigation Unit ("SIU") At My Door Just Because I Have A Public Adjuster?

I have heard that a common approach to handling claims by some insurance carriers in Florida is to send a Special Investigation Unit (“SIU”) representative out on all claims where there is a public adjuster involved. When I did insurance defense work much of my focus was on fraud investigations. We worked closely with SIU for various insurance carriers in that regard. If SIU was involved, it typically meant that the insurance carrier felt there was something suspicious about the loss.

Does a "Duties after Loss" provision Obligate the Insured to Produce Documents to the Insurer Unsolicited?

When a loss occurs, policyholders must always be mindful of their property insurance policy’s section titled “Duties after Loss.” A policyholder is required to perform specific duties after a loss and failure to meet the obligations may jeopardize a claim.

New York Federal Court Rules That Definition of "Covered Location" in Flood Policy Does Not Include Generator in Basement

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals recently considered whether a generator damaged by Superstorm Sandy – located in the basement of the insured’s corporate headquarters in New York City – was covered under a flood policy. Based on the plain language of the policy and the definition of “covered location,” the court concluded that damage in the basement was not covered under the policy.

Watch Out For Those Policy Limits on Valuable Collections

While many homeowners primary focus in obtaining homeowners insurance is securing coverage to protect their real property, a homeowner should not overlook obtaining coverage for his or her valuables. This is especially true when a homeowner owns personal property which may be worth a higher monetary value, such as jewelry, artwork, or a valuable collection.

Take Mario Lopez's Advice and Get a Rental Insurance Policy!

If you have been a reader of our blog, you know that we have frequently partnered with and supported a non-profit organization called United Policyholders. This organization helps policyholders after a loss and has been an incredible help to insureds after catastrophic disasters like wildfires, earthquakes, and hurricanes.

One of the things that United Policyholders does really well is educate the public. Visit UPHelp.org to learn more about the three programs UP has to offer:
    Roadmap to Recovery™ provides tools and resources for solving insurance problems after an accident, loss, illness or other adverse event.

Credit Scores and Interest Rates

A new study by LendingTree shows how both credit scores and loan terms can affect interest rates

What we know

Credit Scores and Interest Rates
One of the first questions we get asked by borrowers with bad credit is what interest rate they should expect on a car loan.
So while we’ve been in the subprime car loan business for over two decades, we still can’t answer this question although we can understand the frustration this causes.
That because while high-risk lenders do take credit scores into account, they also look past these scores by considering an applicant’s income, bills, job and residence stability as well as payment-to-income and the loan-to-value of the particular vehicle the buyer wants to finance.