Allstate (homeowners) avoid

FST FOX · #1 (**permalink**) 04-04-2008, 08:53 PM

I have had Allstate for a while now on my home well in January I added additional property insurance to cover mainly my 200 gallon fish tank against anything that might happen. Well today it did, I woke up to 200 gallons of water covering my living room, I scrambled to siphon water out the front door and managed to get about 1/2 out of the house. Well I called to file a claim and I got denied. I pointed out to my agent we agreed on coverage in black and white via email. They were still trying to deny my claim, so Monday all hell might break lose, I am an insurance agent myself (not property/casualty though) and will take this as high as I have to get my property covered. Just wanted to vent, only 1 fish was lost they rest were put back in the spare 55gallon tank. So today I lost a 5800 aquarium and 1,000 dollars worth of water damage, yes it could of been worse (had plans where I would of been gone till late afternoon) so I guess I got lucky I could of lost 1,200 worth of fish as well. anyone have any good/bad experience with Allstate?

Excaliber · #2 (**permalink**) 04-04-2008, 10:11 PM

Fresh water or salt water? I gave up my 150 gallon salt water tank some years ago, been thinking about getting another one. Better make sure it's covered under my home owners, now that you mention it...

Doug I · #3 (**permalink**) 04-04-2008, 10:40 PM

I have plenty of bad (read very) experience with Allstate. Auto, not homeowners but it's been very bad from the beginning - and I'm not even a client of theirs.

FST FOX · #4 (**permalink**) 04-04-2008, 10:46 PM

It was a fresh water with South african Chiclids

Ron61 · #5 (**permalink**) 04-05-2008, 03:32 AM

I have had my home with Allstate since I built it in 1976 and have only had to turn in one claim back a few years ago when we had the big snow and all the trees fell. Other than a snotty claims adjuster that had came up from down South to help out I had no problems at all. I just called my agent and he told that adjuster to take whatever my claims were and not argue about it. I believe the total was around $7800 by the time the fences and car port were replaced.

Ron

Wes Tausend · #6 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 06:24 AM

...

Allstate.

Back in about 1995, my son totalled my 5.0 Mustang by driving off the edge of a sharp gravel turn at about 35 mph. Something about putting a new tape in the stereo. The doors still opened and closed but they didn't fit right. He had a prior 10 over speeding ticket in 3 years of driving.

Allstate immediately nearly doubled my rate so I switched to State Farm which cost less than Allstate in the beginning. In the years since, State Farm has all the money back and then some, so I guess the auto insurance industry is healthy as a whole. Weird.

...

427sharpe · #7 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 06:34 AM

I guess all insurance companies are great until you need to file a claim.

I went thru Allstate, State Farm and am now with Farmers. I shop the prices every year or two and go with the cheapest national insurer as it seems the longer you stay with one the deeper into your......pockets?....they go.

I left Allstate for the same type of bs. Had coverage (car) and when it was totalled (via drunk driver) they refused to pay as per the policy, which was replacement. Ended up in court where (after 3 years of stalling via Allstate) it took about 45 minutes for the judge to read the policy and agree with us. Took another 2 months for the check to arrive.

Ron61 · #8 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 07:14 AM

Darn, I seem to be the exception on this subject. I don't know about car claims as I have only turned one in during my life and that was way back in 1963 and I was with some insurance company that doesn't exist today. They didn't pay but did make the other guy's insurance repair my car as he rear ended me while I was sitting at a red stop light right in the center of town. The claim for property damages was the only other claim I have ever turned in and it did run into a pretty good amount.

Ron

Wes Tausend · #9 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 08:31 AM

...

Ron,

It sounds like Allstate was also ready to leave you for the vultures ...but your agent saved you. Don't know if that is really an exception. Kudos to your agent.

The strangest insurance deal I ever ran into was while I was driving my girlfriends (now my wife) Corvair, years ...and years ...and years, ago. A fellow center-punched me at an intersection and totalled it. While it was rather dumb of me to not be watching closer, he was speeding and was supposed to yield. So I figured legally, if not morally, he was liable to me for damages.

The kicker was we had the same exact insurance company ...and agent. And they figured that they broke even ...so weren't planning on paying any damages to either. After some wrangling in his office, I got my agent to pay.

My wife has never forgiven me nor let me forget it, as that Corvair was posthumously the best car she has ever owned ...of course.

I told her it would have tipped over on its' own eventually anyway. Unsafe At Any Speed, you know. Ask Ralph Nader.

...

Ron61 · #10 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 08:37 AM

Wes,

The claims adjuster that was so nasty to me was sent up here from Southern Calif. and he was mad because he had to be away from home. We don't have many big snows like that year and as a result they had so many claims that the few adjusters here couldn't begin to cover them all. After my complaint and a few others, they sent that adjuster back with my agent calling the office he worked out of and telling them about the problems he had caused here. I doubt if they said anything to him about it, but he wasn't trying to save the Insurance Company money, he was just ticked off at being sent up here and told us so over and over. With any luck I won't ever have to turn in another claim.

Ron

trularin · #11 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 09:56 AM

I have AAA on my cars, never had a problem.

Autoowners on my house, never had a problem.

Just luck of the draw that I would pick good companies.

tcrist · #12 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 11:51 AM

I had Allstate for 15 years on my house with 2 claims. A fence and one time there was a water leak under my kitchen sink. They covered it with no problems and no rate hike. My car insurance was with State Farm for 20 years. Had 4 claims with them. 1 stolen car (my sons) and 3 accidents (the wife , go figure) only one was her fault. When I wanted to put all of my insurance together I checked with Allstate and State Farm . Allstate wanted $500.00 more per year than State Farm. I now have State Farm for my auto and house insurance.

Terry

Ron61 · #13 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 12:10 PM

Terry,

Mine was just the other way around. I had State Farm on the cars for about 17 years and never a claim but I had Allstate on the house. State Farm just kept raising my rates every 6 months until I called them as I had been on their lowest tier for years. They had no real excuse for my rates being so high so I called Allstate to see what they would charge and it was about $200 a year less on the car plus they lowered my house insurance by over $175 a year by me having the cars and house together, so I now pay about $400 a year less. Of course. like all things, the rates goes up every year.

Ron

FST FOX · #14 (**permalink**) 04-07-2008, 07:50 PM

Well today I was able to file a claim and get a claim #, but the agent thinks I will have a battle ahead of me as it will come back denied

Ron61 · #15 (**permalink**) 04-08-2008, 01:38 AM

Fox,

Did you agent give you any reason for why he thinks the claim will be denied? I must just be the lucky one of the bunch, but maybe the fact I have only filed one claim in 30 years helped too. And on that claim, once they got rid of that borrowed adjuster he just had me send him in the estimates on the repairs. I got the check about two weeks after all the estimates were in.

Ron

427sharpe · #16 (**permalink**) 04-08-2008, 06:32 AM

Just tell the sob's to hury up and fix the damage because their delay may lead to black mold...and be sure to cough a little when you tell them.

Joe Wicked · #17 (**permalink**) 04-08-2008, 07:56 AM

Patrick,
I have Allstate as well. I know that on my policy that I am not covered for water damage unless the damage is a result of another covered claim. If a tree fell and hit the house, breaking a water line, then it would be covered. If a car hit the house and broke a water line, it would be covered. In the case of the tank, I would have to double check, but it would only be covered if it was caused by another covered item. If I wanted to, I could add additional coverage to include the water damage with everything else, but the cost increase would add up to the cost of the average repair for a sink leak within about 2 1/2 years. Being a new house, I opted to not get the coverage as I am betting that it will cost me less over time to have to fix it myself.

FST FOX · #18 (**permalink**) 04-08-2008, 08:18 AM

Well you saw the size of the tank, and when I bought it I was very specific about it being covered, I have it in black and white that it's covered but they are giving me the run around, actually just talked to my adjuster and he tried to deny it, I faxed over the paperwork where the tank and related items are covered, I gave him till end of business Wednesday before I report them to the Texas department of insurance.

Joe Wicked · #19 (**permalink**) 04-08-2008, 08:55 AM

That is a bunch of BS there. I don't know who your agent is, but I would think that they should be fighting this for you. If not, then I would definitely move on. I went with Allstate because I was tired of Progressive for my auto as they would not fight for me when my wife got hit. My Allstate Agent is also a member of our local sometimes good/sometimes bad Mustang site. She was willing to answer questions for me about home owners policies before I switched, and even took the time to drive out from south of Ft Worth to North Dallas to go over things with us on a Sunday. I felt that she would fight for me if I ever need it, so I went with them. The State Farm Quote was a little bit lower ($75/year) for home and the same for auto, but the agent acted like he didn't have time for me.

Edit: If I had a tank like that, I would have the coverage as well.

jhv48 · #20 (**permalink**) 04-30-2008, 06:12 AM

Did you guys not see the TV news special on Allstate insurance last year?

An internal memo was discovered (from upper management) that encouraged the Allstate claims adjustors to turn down any questionable (gray area) claims and then if the policyholder sued, they would defend vigorously in order to bury the client in legal fees and paperwork in order to make him go away!

Well documented!

I want NO PART of any company that has this attitude!