Cleaning up loose ends

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womaus

Feeling the Heat
Oct 25, 2015
498
Central MA
Just got back from the insurance agents office, finally getting all thing legal in the eyes of big buck corporations...

I did the install myself, a used Harman Accentra. Pulled the building permit as needed, followed up with them after the install, had the inspector come to the house. That was two weeks ago or so.

Been running the stove off and on for the last two weeks, trying to get acclimated to it's goods and bads. So far no real surprises other than the need for a new control board.

Dreading the insurance part of it, because I have a strong dislike for all things insurance, I was expecting the worst.

Need to fill out a short questionnaire:
1) Type of stove
2) Name of stove
3) UL Certified?
4) Was a building permit pulled?
5) Was it installed according to manufacturers instructions?
6) "Was this unit professionally installed by a licensed contractor, appliance distributor, or licensed expert, and/or inspected by the fire department or building inspector?".

It was inspected by a Building Inspector...so I'm thinking I'm fully covered here...need to go over it all on Monday with the agent.

I was told that my premium would not increase...

After reading some of the horror stories on these forums that detail installations through stove companies and their installers I felt that I could do at least a comparable job that a competent stove tech would do, and a 100% better job than those not fully interested in their craft.

I will say that the Building Inspector was impressed by the overall look of the installation, inside and out, and even more impressed when he became aware that the stove was over 10 years old.

So, the real reason for this post is to once again thank you all for putting up with my questions, giving advice, and not most of all for not doing a background check on me when I signed up...of course, that last part may eventually back up on you.
 
Dreading the insurance part of it, because I have a strong dislike for all things insurance, I was expecting the worst.

Need to fill out a short questionnaire:
1) Type of stove
2) Name of stove
3) UL Certified?
4) Was a building permit pulled?
5) Was it installed according to manufacturers instructions?
6) "Was this unit professionally installed by a licensed contractor, appliance distributor, or licensed expert, and/or inspected by the fire department or building inspector?".

It was inspected by a Building Inspector...so I'm thinking I'm fully covered here...need to go over it all on Monday with the agent.

As a contract analyst, if that were a contract from one of our customers and it said we had to be ISO 9001 certified and/or audited by Company X without any major findings. And we had Company X audit us and they discovered no major findings, and I had a paper (or electronic missive) stating such, I would say we were covered and complied with the requirement.

Looks to be pretty much the same thing, but always good to check with the agent to make sure.
 
As long as the inspector signs off you are covered IMO. I am a contractor and once I get the inspectors blessing it is all good. If your agent or insurer gives you any issues it might be time to shop around.
 
As long as the inspector signs off you are covered IMO. I am a contractor and once I get the inspectors blessing it is all good. If your agent or insurer gives you any issues it might be time to shop around.

I'm hoping this is the last year with this insurance company. Used to have a great agent that worked there (great in the sense that even when you were getting screwed it didn't feel quite so bad), but he retired.

If I need "verification" on correct installation I've got a few people up my sleeve that I've worked with in the past on other things...firemen, HVAC, etc. Certainly won't be an issue if it comes to that, just will be time consuming.

Thanks for the encouragement.
 
I do not think your insurance co. will require anything else as long as you've met the requirements they sent above which you have. Don't even get me going on insurance............ I have never had any claims and my home owners just doubled last year out of the blue. Horse S**t!
 
Hello Womaus
I did the same as you
Bought the stove, Got the permit from the town for install, Installed it myself, Had them come out to inspect the install so the town has it on record then called my insurance co and let them know I have pellet stove. My rate increases 24 dollars a year but it is worth the piece of mind if anything did happen.
You did the right thing some people don't tell their insurance company or get a permit to install.
 
Just keep copies of all the docs/pictures and dates, you should be good

LOL about the insurance companies and agents. We had an agent we had worked with for many years, good guy. When we went to install he sent me what I needed and then requested photo's of the install with measurements and documentation from the stove manufacturer. Did everything they wanted and more. I did a corner install with the stove cocked across the corner. I had plenty of room to work with so I doubled all the clearances, this also made it easier for future maintenance for my arthritic bones.

So they OK it and a couple of weeks later the agent calls and asks if I'd be around that one of the companies inspectors wanted to take a look at the install. I said ya come on over. Turns out that with the extra room I had and had used to double the clearances someone in corporate didn't believe it was installed in a home and were pictures from a showroom! Needless to say they left satisfied.
 
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Hi Womaus,

I am in southeastern MA and pretty much did the same thing. Pulled permit, did install myself, and had building inspector ensure install was up to code. My insurance company asked the same questions and one other: "How often is the stove and exhaust cleaned?" They required a copy of the building inspector's report to keep on file. My insurance premium went up $25 per year.

Just got back from the insurance agents office, finally getting all thing legal in the eyes of big buck corporations...

I did the install myself, a used Harman Accentra. Pulled the building permit as needed, followed up with them after the install, had the inspector come to the house. That was two weeks ago or so.

Been running the stove off and on for the last two weeks, trying to get acclimated to it's goods and bads. So far no real surprises other than the need for a new control board.

Dreading the insurance part of it, because I have a strong dislike for all things insurance, I was expecting the worst.

Need to fill out a short questionnaire:
1) Type of stove
2) Name of stove
3) UL Certified?
4) Was a building permit pulled?
5) Was it installed according to manufacturers instructions?
6) "Was this unit professionally installed by a licensed contractor, appliance distributor, or licensed expert, and/or inspected by the fire department or building inspector?".

It was inspected by a Building Inspector...so I'm thinking I'm fully covered here...need to go over it all on Monday with the agent.

I was told that my premium would not increase...

After reading some of the horror stories on these forums that detail installations through stove companies and their installers I felt that I could do at least a comparable job that a competent stove tech would do, and a 100% better job than those not fully interested in their craft.

I will say that the Building Inspector was impressed by the overall look of the installation, inside and out, and even more impressed when he became aware that the stove was over 10 years old.

So, the real reason for this post is to once again thank you all for putting up with my questions, giving advice, and not most of all for not doing a background check on me when I signed up...of course, that last part may eventually back up on you.
 
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