by Chris C » Tue Mar 08, 2011 07:23 pm
Hi,
I rent a house and had a large tree branch fall on my car, in the driveway, during a recent ice & wind storm. My auto insurance is liability ony, so no comp coverage.
My landlord's Home Owners insurance states they will not cover the damage because it was an Act of God. We live the Northeast where ice & wind storms are very common. Do we have any recourse with the Home Owners Insurance?
Thanks
I rent a house and had a large tree branch fall on my car, in the driveway, during a recent ice & wind storm. My auto insurance is liability ony, so no comp coverage.
My landlord's Home Owners insurance states they will not cover the damage because it was an Act of God. We live the Northeast where ice & wind storms are very common. Do we have any recourse with the Home Owners Insurance?
Thanks
Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 09:52 pm Post Subject:
Chris, insurance covers "acts of god" all the time. What do you think a windstorm, hurricane or tornado is?
I am at a loss as to specifically why the insurance company says that your car isn't covered. The information you provided in your post doesn't play... the carrier can't deny a claim under the "act of god" clause... because there isn't one. There's got to be more than that. Now, landlords really shouldn't carry a homeowners policy on the structure unless they are actually living in one of the units. This applies to a duplex, triplex or fourplex. If it's a single-family home, it's usually required that the owner actually occupy the home under a homeowners insurance policy. We usually place "fire dwelling" policies for property that's landlord owned. Coverage is somewhat similar but there are major differences.
We need to know specifically what the denial letter said. They are required to cite "chapter and verse" when it comes to declining a loss, so there's got to be more information.
Is there?
InsTeacher 8)
Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2011 01:01 am Post Subject:
I am at a loss as to specifically why the insurance company says that your car isn't covered
I think you missed this part:My landlord's Home Owners insurance
Or some other part.The posters landlords liability insurance won't pay for the loss as there was no negligence against the landlord. He/She did nothing wrong. Hence, the "Act of God" statement (which I don't like). The landlord is not there to protect anyone/everyone against anything that happens to their property... this is why people carrier their own insurance.
Do we have any recourse with the Home Owners Insurance?
No... as they did not cause the damage to your vehicle. If the _homeowner_ knew that there was a problem with the tree then you could pursue a lawsuit against him/her. But you really would not have a case if their was an ice storm in the area. Let me put it like this... if a tornado push your car into someone else's home, would your pay out of your pocket for the damage to that home? Why not?Add your comment