Many of our racing compadres would be shocked to
learn that the use of powered scooters in and
around the pits and parking lot is not covered
under any policy they own. Perhaps the event
policy would defend the use by an underage pit
member( I doubt it), but neither go-peds nor any
other powered vehicle (such as an ATV or small
motorcycle) are covered under either your
homeowners or auto policy. You must purchase a
special policy such as "golf cart coverage" or
motorcycle coverage.
Perhaps Tom or one of our other barristers can
add to this.
Don Queen
--- Tom M <tmatycho@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>
>
> Craig Wright wrote:
> >
> > Tom,
> >
> > Could you give us any hints as to the
> companies that behave the way you have
> > indicated. Through experience, I've come to
> the conclusion that the first
> > response to any claim is refusal. My last
> three claims required legal
> > encouragement from my end.
>
> Actually, my impression is that most of the
> major companies do try to
> protect the interests of their insureds. I
> have seen more instances of
> carriers defending and settling claims that
> involve a question of
> whether the loss is covered than I have of
> carriers denying a righteous
> claim. With one exception, which will remain
> nameless, I think
> erroneous denials of coverage are not the
> result of company policy, but
> the result to some human error early on in the
> claims department. Then
> there are some smaller insurers that are
> undercapitalized that enter
> markets and gain income from low premiums.
> Things go fine until the
> claims start coming in, and then the company
> may engage in what's
> referred to as "post-loss underwriting."
>
> I think a mistake many people make is that they
> shop for the lowest
> premium and nothing else. I've been with an
> independent broker for
> fifteen years. The reason I went with this
> agency was they were a minor
> defendant in a major case brought primarily
> against an insurance company
> and I was defending them because it was alleged
> they had failed to
> obtain the proper coverage. It was abundantly
> clear to me that this
> brokerage was very knowledgeable about
> insurance matters generally, but
> also very committed to going to bat for their
> clients with the
> carriers. I pay a little more in premium, but
> it's well worth it.
>
> As far as companies and their handling of
> claims, doesn't Consumer
> Reports publish info on this?
>
> --
> Tom M.
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