I’m in the business of settling property insurance claims so call me bias if you like but I’m also a home owner who has been paying property insurance premiums for decades.

As both a Public Adjuster and a home owner it really irritates me when I am standing in the middle of a serious property damage claim and the policyholder asks: “Will a claim cancel my insurance?” I’m not bothered by the question, it’s a legitimate one. I am bothered that the policyholder who now has to deal with damage to their insured property has to worry about their insurance company potentially canceling their policy.

This no doubt is due to the “scare tactics” and what I call “corporate bullying” of the insurance industry. The policyholders’ pay… the insurance companies take… and when the policyholders’ requests, seek, or complain the insurance companies punish. Classic case of school yard bullying.

As a Public Adjuster who takes insurance adjusting serious I go by one rule: If a legitimate claim exists and the overall damage exceeds the financial burden of the policyholder when considering the policy limits and deductible; then my professional advise is always to file a claim without fearing what the insurance company decides to do with your policy in the future.

http://www.cavalrypublicadjusters.com
//cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/html5shiv/3.6.2/html5shiv.js

Your home owners’ insurance policy is a year to year contract. The insurance companies reviews and make policy canceling decisions all the time. I mentioned that as a home owner myself, I have been paying insurance premiums for decades. In that time frame I have never had to file a property claim with my insurance company. However, I have had my home owner’s policy canceled on two occasions by two different insurance companies for no rhyme or reason. I also know countless of similar cases.

Don’t believe for a second that you’re insurance company won’t also quit on you weather you open a claim or not. Insurance companies like any other business are in the business of making money. If they believe they can still make money from you with or without you filing a claim, your policy will be renewed. The minute they believe you risk their bottom line with or without filling a claim, your policy is canceled. It’s that simple.

I once learned of a policyholder who called his insurance company to simply ask about the claim filing process and less than two weeks later received a cancellation notice. I also know of policyholders’ who have had to file different property damage claims with their same insurance carrier and they continue to have their policy renewed.

Yes insurance fraud is real and insurance companies need to protect themselves. But I also believe that insurance companies should honor all legitimate claims without this intimidating climate that exist for the paying policyholders’. “Don’t penalize the policyholders’ for using the product that was bought and paid for.”  Wow what a concept!

I recommend that if you are a policyholder and your insurance cancels your policy for opening a legitimate claim on your property, that you contact your State Insurance Commissioner and your State Legislatures. Eventually it will be State Representatives that will need to step in and force insurance companies to change the way policyholders’ are being penalized.

For now you are the home owner, the consumer, the policyholder. Never hesitate on filing any legitimate property damage claim. Cavalry Public Adjusters – 305-898-7562 are experts in reviewing home owner’s policies and provide FREE consultations.