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re: Homeowner's insurance quotes - grossly overestimating value of a rebuild

Posted on 7/3/24 at 11:50 am to
Posted by notsince98
KC, MO
Member since Oct 2012
22084 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 11:50 am to
make sure they have the correct square footage for your house.

Send them a link to a new build similar to your house. They should be somewhere in that price range of coverage.
Posted by Slickback
Deer Stand
Member since Mar 2008
28146 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 11:55 am to
What’s the square footage? What are new builds in the area going for/sq ft? If the price/sq ft is way out of whack, ask them about it.

The insurance company is contractually obligated to rebuild a house of similar construction materials and sq ft, so even if you don’t think it’s “worth” that much or “wouldn’t rebuild the same size” they have to insure it for enough to do that. Insurance companies are always going to be on the conservative side, bc even if at today costs it’s enough to rebuild, they have to consider inflation and skyrocketing prices after a major event. You can literally see costs of building prices, labor rates, and materials shoot up overnight after a major disaster. Then guess who you’re calling to bitch at when your coverage isn’t “enough.”
Posted by MSTiger33
Member since Oct 2007
21661 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:05 pm to
Insert “first time” gif
Posted by LSUFanHouston
NOLA
Member since Jul 2009
41081 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:19 pm to
Huge issue in LA right now.

There's a formula / computer system they use. According to them, the cost to rebuild after a disaster, given how high materials and labor are now, basically means the cost to rebuild is much higher than the cost to sell the house we currently have.

I think there is some BS in here, but when there's only 2-3 companies selling insurance here, what are you gonna do?
Posted by LSUFanHouston
NOLA
Member since Jul 2009
41081 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:23 pm to
quote:

And know that insurance companies would rather err a little on the high side than to err on the low side and risk getting sued when someone has a total loss and they can't rebuild it for what the company insured it for.


I understand anyone can sue anyone else, but this to me should be laughed out of court. You are not insuring to replace, you are insuring to a value. If you didn't ensure a high enough value, that's your fault, not the insurer's fault.
Posted by WaterLink
Baton Rouge
Member since Sep 2015
20745 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:24 pm to
quote:

You are not insuring to replace


What do you think "replacement cost" means?
Posted by Slickback
Deer Stand
Member since Mar 2008
28146 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:33 pm to
I’ve also seen it cost $50-75k to finish demolishing and hauling off a total loss home. So you’re already that much in the hole just to get to a blank slate to start from.
Posted by notsince98
KC, MO
Member since Oct 2012
22084 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:38 pm to
quote:

I understand anyone can sue anyone else, but this to me should be laughed out of court. You are not insuring to replace, you are insuring to a value. If you didn't ensure a high enough value, that's your fault, not the insurer's fault.


I dont think it is quite that simple for home insurance. They are insuring the cost to rebuild and if you have a mortgage, there are probably all sorts of issues with not covering enough costs to rebuild exactly the same.

If you had no mortgage, it should be super easy to insure for only the cost you want to cover unless there is some verbiage in there for the insurance company to buy you out instead of rebuilding yourself.
Posted by Weekend Warrior79
Member since Aug 2014
21748 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:43 pm to
quote:

You are not insuring to replace, you are insuring to a value. If you didn't ensure a high enough value, that's your fault, not the insurer's fault.

Isn't part of that insuring to a certain value also factoring in the replacement costs for a total loss, mitigation costs, the cost to rebuild/replace the exact house that was totaled under inflated material & labor costs, and also making sure the entire costs to do everything will fall within at least 80% of the total costs or the homeowner then gets hit with underinsured penalties.
Posted by Chad504boy
4 posts
Member since Feb 2005
179035 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:45 pm to
quote:

Isn't part of that insuring to a certain value also factoring in the replacement costs for a total loss, mitigation costs, the cost to rebuild/replace the exact house that was totaled under inflated material & labor costs, and also making sure the entire costs to do everything will fall within at least 80% of the total costs or the homeowner then gets hit with underinsured penalties.


yes, insured's don't have an option to choose to underinsure themselves. The first X% layer of replacement cost value is obviously the most risky.
Posted by SmokinBurger
Bayou Self
Member since Sep 2021
542 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:57 pm to
One of the few things that I can honestly say I hate in life are, insurance companies, and Latoya Cantrell.
Posted by DCtiger1
Member since Jul 2009
11788 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:59 pm to
These threads always bring out the retards.

Muh insurance is a scam. Muh agents are scum.

It sure feels good to be scum.
Posted by DCtiger1
Member since Jul 2009
11788 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:01 pm to
quote:

this is a legit question from a normal, middle class, hard-working American.


What does this even mean? Every company uses Xactware. They aren’t purposely inflating anything. In fact, here on the coast that tool usually underestimates replacement cost.
Posted by DCtiger1
Member since Jul 2009
11788 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:02 pm to
quote:

You pay for a "dwelling value" that is 40%+ over the appraisal they require. Then, when you file a claim, they lowball you on the cost to repair/rebuild.


Never in my life have we required or asked for an appraisal, whether the home is 60k, 600k or 6 million
Posted by Slickback
Deer Stand
Member since Mar 2008
28146 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:09 pm to
quote:

These threads always bring out the retards.

Muh insurance is a scam.

Muh agents are scum. .


It’s always a scam until you recommend that they self insure.
Posted by DCtiger1
Member since Jul 2009
11788 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:14 pm to
Everything is a scam when you’re uneducated
Posted by Turnblad85
Member since Sep 2022
5563 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:23 pm to
quote:

Everything is a scam when you’re uneducated




May be the single best indicator of a dummy. That or buying lotto tickets....which of course is a scam
Posted by donRANDOMnumbers
Hub City
Member since Nov 2006
17456 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:23 pm to
welcome to the last 5 years. TIV are up, rates are up, etc.
Posted by Slickback
Deer Stand
Member since Mar 2008
28146 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:33 pm to
The estimated cost of Ida in Louisiana was $75 billion. The estimated cost of Laura was $10 billion. The Census says there’s 1.765 million households in Louisiana. many of those don’t own a home or pay home insurance, but let’s use that number for the math.

$85b/1.765m = $48,158 in cost per household in Louisiana, between 2 events over 2 years. That number isn’t exact and doesn’t really tell the whole story, but you start to get a sense of how much premium these companies would NEED to take in in order to make money in Louisiana. Not many scams are in it to lose money.

And that number is just for 2 events…Not counting Delta, Zeta, the freeze, the huge increase in hail claims, in addition to your normal day to day claims (water losses, fires, theft, trees falling, and the crazy amount of bullshite liability claims).

Insurance is not profitable in Louisiana and it’s one of the most regulated industries in Louisiana.
Posted by donRANDOMnumbers
Hub City
Member since Nov 2006
17456 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:41 pm to
the problem is the market got way too soft from 2010 - 2020 and insurance companies/reinsurance were enjoying profits too much to care.

then we get crushed by multiple CAT's across the country/globally, so reinsurance starts kicking arse, then add that to an inflated economy where houses have doubled in cost to build.

people weren't complaining when their insurance was way under-priced. now we are paying for that.
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