Amfam Home Insurance Issue.

[MishMouse]

Amfam had someone come over to do an assessment on my property.
The person doing this assessment did not stop in to talk, they just looked at my property and left.

Well, I got a notice in the mail stating that I need to remove my "solid fuel" device by October.
Contacted my agent on Wednesday and they said they will get back to me, still waiting for their response.

Note: The insurance agent was at my house shortly after I got the TL-300 professionally installed and he had no issues with it. (2007-2008)

As with all of us who burn wood for heat, it will be a 80 day in MN in the coldest part of February before I remove the stove.

So, I am looking for an alternative in case Amfam no longer wants the over 2K it gets from me in premiums every year. I need an insurance company that insures manufactured homes and is wood heat friendly.

 

[Grisu]

According to some member comments here, State Farm seems to be relatively relaxed regarding wood stoves. In any case, it never hurts to shop around. I don't know what your home is assessed at or your local insurance rates but I pay a lot less than you. Unfortunately, my insurance company does not cover MN.

 

[BrotherBart]

Funny that AmFam has this on their website:

"If you have a wood stove, make sure it meets today's safety standards and is properly installed on a non-combustible base that can withstand intense heat. Keep heating devices (including a stovepipe) at least 36 inches from walls and furniture. Have chimneys on wood stoves and fireplaces cleaned and inspected yearly. Remove ashes using a metal container, not cardboard boxes or plastic pails."

(broken link removed to http://www.amfam.com/advisor/2013-02.asp#.ValtOPmrSHs)

 

[fire_man]

Insurance companies can be frustrating. I switched from Commerce Insurance to Amica because Commerce was surcharging me $$$ for not living within 500 feet of a fire hydrant even though we live within 500 feet of a huge pond with a built in firewater tap. I disclosed all this to Amica before I switched and they said "no problem, no surcharge". Less than 2 years after I switched they hit me with the same surcharge as Commerce did. Can't win. Other than that Amica is great for Wood Stove owners.

 

[claydogg84]

Hopefully it all gets straightened out. If it doesn't, Allstate hasn't given me an issue.

 

[Ash]

You could try Ram Mutual. I think they are based in Cloquet or Esko. They are good with wood stoves.

 

[Warm_in_NH]

+1 with all state (in NH anyway) no problem with a stove or a rottweiler.

 

[MishMouse]

Thanks, for all the suggestions, I will start contacting them this week and get some quotes. Since my TL-300 was installed to code and meets current and future EPA requirements I am thinking that it was just an act of a newbie doing the inspection. But, it will be good to get alternative prices on insurance so that if I can find it at a cheaper price I can go back to them on higher ground.

 

[BrotherBart]

Just walk in ready to cancel. Even "captive" agents get paid by the number of accounts and level of claims. Have had Allstate for 30 years and they jumped mine 50% two years ago based on distance from the firehouse. Walked in two days later and told the fool to cancel it. Ten minutes later it was back to the old ridiculous rate.

 

[Grisu]

Try also an independent insurance broker. I got some quotes from the "big name" brands but then a coworker suggested to give his broker a call. Within a day I had a quote for less than half of the other quotes with even slightly better coverage. The insurance company is a mutual group mainly operating in the NE that I never had heard of and would never have checked out by myself. It has saved me a ton in premiums already.

 

[MishMouse]

BB, I checked out your link and I can not find your comment, where is it located on that page?

I just got notice and they said they will not re-new my insurance once it expires.

 

[Ashful]

Insurance companies can be frustrating.

Don't be too quick to throw them under the bus. I work with the father of this poor homeowner. Septic tank truck crashed thru his kitchen last week.

Insurance co had them set up in a new house, with new furniture and a check for their trouble, within 24 hours.

 

[blades]

sometimes its not the insurance co itself but the underwriter, there are some real idiots in that part of the equation. also a lot of so called inspectors do not know squat about wood stoves or pellet or the like.

 

[MishMouse]

Blades, think that is the problem.
I talked to the secretary, and what she heard is the reason why they do not want to cover it is that since it is a manufactured home they want the wood stove to be installed at the factory. If that is what the issue is, I think the underwriter is on some serious mind altering drugs either that or a complete fool. Can anyone on here imagine having non-professional hearth installers install stove pipe the cheapest way possible, then having it shipped across country? Note: That they would not do it to code and use the cheapest materials available, then to have the AmFam underwriter say that is the only way they would allow it, this is crazy.

 

[brenndatomu]

Septic tank truck crashed thru his kitchen last week.

What a load of crap!

surcharging me $$$ for not living within 500 feet of a fire hydrant even though we live within 500 feet of a huge pond with a built in firewater tap.

Our ins co says we could get a discount if we are within 1000' of a hydrant. We are within 1000' of a pond that the owner said he would let the township install a dry hydrant in. The township says they want to do it but don't have the extra money for dry hydrants, the want us to pass a levy for the fire dept before they can do the hydrants...
So let me break it down for ya, if we pay more taxes we can get (maybe) an insurance discount
You can't win

 

[begreen]

Everybody wants to put a hose into your wallet.

 

[Buzz Saw]

Cincinnati insurance company and Nationwide have been good to me in Ohio. Not sure if they do business in Minnesota.

 

[3650]

Nazis have taken over the insurance industry. All state told me to remove abandoned vehicles from my property. I ignored them because all my cars (4) run and aren't abandoned. They cancelled me.

my elderly mother gets a notice from them saying she needs a new roof which she didnt. She takes out a mortgage and spends $12'000 on a roof. Then they send her another notice telling her she needs a new garage door. She was on the phone with them when I was there so I told her to let me talk to him. I told him the door was fine and didnt need replaced and if continued down this line I was going to cancel my auto insurance and get the rest of my moms brothers and sisters to do the same. When I handed the phone back he shouts out my mom to never hand the phone to that man again. So far she hasn't replaced the door and they havent cancelled her...yet.

 

[BrotherBart]

BB, I checked out your link and I can not find your comment, where is it located on that page?

I just got notice and they said they will not re-new my insurance once it expires.

They moved the page.

(broken link removed to http://www.amfam.com/press-releases/archives.asp?article=2013-1210)

 

[firefighterjake]

Call me crazy . . . but the one time I started to get the run around from an insurance agent I fixed the problem right then and there . . . by getting a new insurance company. Just because you've been with the XYZ insurance agent or company since 1988 doesn't mean you can't look elsewhere.

When I called up the local agent to tell him I was canceling since I had found a better deal with a reputable company (went from All State to Travelers incidentally when AAA was selling Travelers) all he could say in response to me telling him I had better coverage at a much, much cheaper rate was "But you and your family have been doing business with me for years" . . . to which I thought . . . so great . . . we've all been paying too much for years.

Seriously . . . if your insurance company gives you grief on anything prior to a submitting a claim consider looking around . . . I'm not a huge advocate of switching insurance companies every other year just to save $15, but when you can save yourself a lot of money and grief through some simple phone calls or checking around . . . well, it just makes sense to me.

 

[begreen]

It's not a bad idea to periodically review one's insurance and get fresh quotes, particularly if rates are creeping up annually.

 

[fire_man]

You guys are making me want to check up on Amica. They have top notch ratings for paying out claims fairly, and reasonable rates. But it never hurts to check up every so often.

Last time I shopped around I got disgusted. I sent my policy to Liberty Mutual and asked for a quote for similar coverage. The quote came back real cheap but when I read the fine print the coverage was much lower.

 

[kennyp2339]

Some of these insurance stories flat out scare the crap out of me, legal extortion? I live in NJ and I have Plymouth Rock Insurance "High point" for both my vehicle and homeowners. My rate isn't that bad for my homeowners and they know about the wood stove installed in the basement. What scares me is that after Hurricane Sandy came through many people who filed claims (big & small) had there next years rates go through the roof or they were dropped entirely all together.
I did try to be proactive when they came to see the woodstove, I made sure I mentioned the new roof I put on the house, making sure I mentioned that it was a whole strip off right down to the plywood, also I had (2) very large and close to the house maple tree's removed, The adjuster / inspector said that's good and I think my bill went down $20.00 due to the new roof, nothing for the tree's that were removed.

 

[fire_man]

Seems like insurance companies can be either your best friend or worst nightmare. That's why I stick with Amica - they have a good track record with customer service and they pay claims fairly.

Insurance is a funny product, because when used for the intended purpose, the seller of the product loses.

 

[Ashful]

I have a take on insurance that really baffles the insurance agents, when I go for a quote. Buying insurance is obviously a losing proposition for the majority of people on the majority of items, so why insure things you don't absolutely need or intend to replace? Also, why pay rates for a $500 deductible, if you'll never submit a claim for items under $5k?

Trouble is, when you tell a prospective agent you want him to quote you with a $5k or $10k deductible, they stutter, and don't know what to do. I've owned homes and vehicles for 25 years now, and have yet to make a claim.