OT home buyers insurance policy?

Taria: Sorry to hear your house is not a dream house. Not sure what a pullman is. A bathroom? A vanity sink? What is the Ac room? Is that a closet with the Air Conditioner Unit? Is it the condenser or what? Please clarify the terms. Maybe someone has a similar experience and can suggest solution.

About the house warranty insurance. I would have thought that would cover the whole house ... you bought the whole house! Good luck. Can't offer any advice but send a gentle hug.

PAT >

Howdy! Get out your insurance policy, read the details. Home owner's policy: good luck! (We're in Texas, where the insurance companies have been screwing us for years.) When I called the insurance company about the leaking kitchen window, the adjuster/inspector came out to have a look. "Pre-existing condition," he said; "We don't cover that; if it had been part of a tornadic storm, like the big wind & hail that damaged the roof before you moved in, we'd cover that. This is considered regular wear&tear and you're on your own." Thanks. But when the toilet (upstairs) developed a leak and water seeped thru' the floor and into the ceiling, they covered that; of course, they don't cover much water damage now, but the work was done. Home owner's policies are for taking care of big catastrophes, fire, tornado, wind burst, and one year when our former home got shot by kids playing w/ a rifle 1/2 a block away. That's one reason they have those "deductible" clauses; if your repair is within a couple of hundred dollars of the deductible, you're better off paying for it yourself and saving your "claim allowance" for something really big, which god forbid should ever happen (that's an old insurance cliché, "god forbid but what if!" ).

So, where's your problem fall, Taria? Good luck. Get a good plumber, someone you trust, someone who works *for* you. And remember this next time your insurance policy is up for renewal.

Ragmop/Sandy-- And save the quilts!!! *next class we'll explore the Home Warranty Policy issues*

Raise a stink. Call the home warranty company and explain that the reason you have the warranty is for the stuff you had no control over before you bought the house. Talk to a supervisor and ask for his/her supervisor's name and address. Keep raising a ruckus. That's what I did when they told me (a few years ago) that the reason we were having AC problems was that "routine maintenance" had not been done years ago...... and it was something that had to be done by a service person. I said baloney. and proceeded as above. The company covered the service........ which wasn't the problem anyway.

Pati, in Phx

Just a side note........ they came out today and checked the outlets we had finally gotten "uncovered". As I was moving a (heavy, old, oak) desk, a lightweight box fell on the computer cord plugged into the wall..... and we had power again. It was the bad outlet that caused all the problem. had the guy check the others anyway.

taria wrote:

Ha! My insurance company is rotten-er than yours! I have 5 large oak trees- 70 to 80 ft. tall that are all 5 dead and very close to my house. I got a bid of $300 to take them down and haul off the wood- I can afford that. My homeowner's insurance company says DO NOT hire that man! He does not have business liability insurance! I can't find anyone else to take the trees out who has insurance- the reason? The insurance premiums are too high for what they can earn taking out dead trees! BUT- my insurance company will wait until the trees fall ON my house, pay thousands to repair the damage to my house and hire these SAME uninsured guys to take the downed trees *off* my house!!! Now, how much sense does THAT make??? I'd think they'd jump for joy that I'd be willing to pay the $300 and have the trees taken care of at this point and save them tens of thousands in repairs at some future date, but nooooOOOOOooooo.....

Leslie, The Frustrated

This thread seems to be talking about 2 different kinds of insurance. I think Taria is talking about "home buyers" insurance -- something you get when you buy a house to make sure everything is working as you were told it did. I think this is a relatively recent thing, because we didn't have it when we bought our last house 19 years ago, but my daughter did get it when she bought her first house 3 years ago. It seems to me that this should cover the problems Taria is describing, but I am not real knowledgeable about this.

The other type of insurance is "home owners" insurance, which all home owners should have to insure against catastrophic loss. This generally wouldn't cover the kinds of losses Taria is describing.

Julia > You guys know everything so maybe you can help. We bought

Julia, we got the "home warrenty insurance" which covers things like electric, plumbing and "built in" appliances when we bought our house 19 years ago (in Oct). We had a good real estate person that insisted that the seller provide this for the first year or two. We have kept it up for the rest of the time, and it has definitely paid for itself. (Hate to think what the latest electrical problem would have cost us with out it. Even though it turned out to just be a faulty outlet.)

Pati, > This thread seems to be talking about 2 different kinds of insurance. I

even call my homeowners insurance guys. Taria

fell on the house, you would NOT be covered.

I think the biggest concern is the workers getting hurt. Lawsuits are huge for that kind of thing. Taria

I suppose the problem is, what if a tree falls on your house when he's cutting them down. You wouldn't be covered, therefore it would cost "you" thousands of dollars and not the insurance.

Can your insurance company refer somene to you perhaps?