File an insurance claim, or not?

Question

I have a house I just evicted a renter from.  Found out that the floor in the house is buckling.  I crawled under the house and found standing water.   I turned all the faucets off and the meter still spins very slowly.

Looks like I'm going to be tearing up the floors and sublorrs in the kitchen and living room, and  replacing some plumbing.  This nothing I can't do myself, but isnt this why we pay for insurance?

I have 11 houses, all insured with the same company  I've had 3 claims in the past 2 years.  Am I running any risk of being dropped or my rate raised dramatically by filing a claim on this?

Jeff Bridges · Answer

Sorry for your issue. It might not have addressed your past issues, but I now put $10 battery water alarms next to the washing machine, water heater and under the sink. It will alert your  tenants potentially faster upon an initial leak to shut off the source before the appliance dumps its entire contents onto the floor. This actually helped me out recently when the condensate line got clogged in the HVAC closet and the water puddled and set off the water alarm. I actually put it there in case of a water heater leak, but it ended up bringing immediate attention to a clogged condensate line much faster than they otherwise would have noticed with a slow overflow leak.

You have several claims in the past few years; I would definitely avoid making any more claims unless they are catastrophic and you can't afford to pay for current repairs or you risk getting dropped. 4 claims in 2 years would defintely put you in the high loss history category and insurers might think twice about keeping your policy.

Roger S. · Answer

Yeah, I've already had one water damage claim this year, from a washing machine that overflowed and ruined a whole houseful of brand new laminate.   Damned if you and damned if you don't.   Crap.

Roger S. · Answer

@Pat Alford

I've decided to just bite the bullet.   Looks like a long term leak and I discovered the dryer was vented under the house.   Lots of rot.  Even the floor joist are rotten.   Got a guy coming next week to level the house and I'll replace the joists and subfloors and floors.

Alexander Felice · Answer

I avoid claims like the plague. Yes you run the risk of being dropped, and premiums raised. I had a legitimate claim last year from hurricane matthew (on a primary) and since then I've had increased obstacles covering all my properties in the same area. Not impossible, but definitely more of a hassle. This wasn't' a "I don't feel like writing the check" claim, this was 25K

I would get an estimate to repair, then you'll have enough information to make the call. You can't make the proper decision if you don't know the cost spread between both options. Unless it's a bank breaking repair, I personally wouldn't make a claim.

Joe J. · Answer

@Roger Sandmann Water loss claims seem to be tricky.  If the costs far exceed your deductible then there would be a stronger case to make a claim.  I had 2 water loss claims in the past 5 years on two SEPARATE properties and my insurance carrier dropped me.  I had to get a new policy with a 2nd tier carrier and am paying a bit more.  I'd call your carrier to see what their policy on water loss claims are.  I was surprised that none of the major insurance carriers would insure me: either resulting from my previous claims or other logistical reasons on their end.

JD Martin · Answer

Depends on the amount of damage. My deductibles are 1%, so for example on one of my properties the deductible would be $1300. One room with laminate might be $1000, so there you go. No point filing unless A) your damage exceeds the deductible,  B) you expect to find additional damage later that may be covered, or C) you expect the tenant is responsible and they have insurance that can be abrogated against.

Roger S. · Answer

@Jd Martin,

Yeah, but would you file the claim?

JD Martin · Answer

Depends on the amount of damage. They're not going to cover the plumbing issue but they would/should cover the floors.

File an insurance claim, or not?

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