Tols And A Warning....

tthomas

Man….talk about going from bad to worse…...first the bad… Finished a 16 by 30 deck…took my tools to the house I’m building for us and came back at 6:30 am the next morning, I’m sure you’ve guessed by now where I’m going with this. Somebody broke in the back door and took ALL my small tools, roughly $7,500 worth. They left my 12” sliding miter that was on a stand , my contractor table saw and my new dewalt power washer, I guess their truck was full…..:-( I remodel for a living so not only did I loose the tools but it is putting a cramp on the working as well…..Police didn’t/couldn’t/wouldn’t do much, not sure what I wanted them to do just something other than take the report. The thing that really pisses me off is that they took their time, had a couple of smokes, had a few drink out of my cooler and ate some snake food me wife had brought up to the house for me…..NOW THE WORSE…
I have had a builders risk plan with Zurich since 2005, I flip houses most of the time, at that time my agent told me I had $20000 in tool coverage, because I asked at the time. Being mostly a one man show that was enough coverage, I rent the big stuff if I need it….I report the crime to my agent and said” I understand I have a $1,000 deductible and up to $20,000 in coverage for my tools” and she said “yes you do” and that she would follow up with the claim…...later in the day I get a call from the adjuster and he tell me that there is no tool coverage on the plan I have and that it is not even an option on that plan…...Sooooo I decide to go talk to my agent in person…when I got to their office she was at lunch so another agent asked if she could help me. So I went on and told her the story and said” it is my underatanding that I have a $1,000 deductible and up to $20,000 in tool coverage” and she said…”yes you do” ...I explained that I had just talked to the adjuster and he said that I didn’t have ANY tool coverage…a blank look fell on her face…she pulled my policy, same as all the others, and we began to read through it….it said, id space “No coverage for contractor tools”...she keep looking through the policy because she was sure there was coverage…we came upon some wording the said “scaffolding, forms and some other stuff, not sure I was seeing red after that, was covered up to $20,000… so the agents did not know…...so I went on to the top guy…and told him my story and that 2 of his agent had told me 3 time, once in 2005 when I bought the policy and 2 more times within 2 hours that I had coverage and asked him what could be done…..I’ll try to quit rambling, he said nothing could/would be done….when I told him that I used to be an agent and the he could turn it into his E&O insurance that they carry because this was clearly the case he said no that he wasn’t interested in that good bye…...

Well I’m just a poor working stiff and can not afford to replace 7500 in tools…no tools no work just screwed by the criminals and my own insurance agent….I’m talking a a couple of lawyers be they don’t sound very confident that we could win if this goes to court…...this blows me away…. unbelievable

What can/should I do… anybody had anything similar?
Not sure if I should have post this here, sorry for the double post

Stupid in TN

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Todd Thomas
Thomas Construction
1Tim. 1:16

pcplumber

If you think your lack of insurance is a mistake made by your agent, they are insured for Errors and Omissions. If you are right and your agent is wrong don't feel guiltiy about filing a claim. I insured all my wife's jewelry, gave the insurance company all my appraisals, and they failed to insured my wife's most valuable ring. When she lost the ring I filed a claim for Errors & Omissions and they paid me immediately, but I had proof because I had a copy of the list I gave the insurance company. Maybe, if you had your tools insured before and you did not ask to remove the tools your insurance company will pay you.

I never insured my tools and our vehicles have a sewer camera that is worth about $10,000, locator $2600, sewer machine $1600, and about $5,000 worth of cameras and electronic testing equipment. The insurance is so expensive I think I could buy new tools every 3 years, anyway. Especially, when you have a deductible and the insurance company pays you the swap meet value for your used tools.

I know your feeling and feel bad. I've often though about putting a GPS or LoJack on my expensive equipment. I think it would be very simple because they have Pocket GPS tracking devices.

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Astrix

You definitely have a case to pressure your agent/broker into reimbursing you for your uninsured loss; either they pay themselves or they claim it through their E&O insurance.

E&O insurance for insurance agents/brokers is pretty expensive and usually has a high deductible. The brokerage I work at has a $100,000 deductible. Mind you we are a big outfit. Any claims under that, it comes out of the business' profits. Maybe that's why the boss doesn't want to pay for the mistake; because it would be coming out of his own pocket.

I'm surprised you write that the lawyers you approached aren't confident you have a case. The courts are actually in your favour. As the professional advisor, the insurance broker has a higher standard of care to make sure they gave you the right coverage. You, as the I-know-nothing consumer don't have an obligation to read the policy on your own or fully understand what you are or are not covered for. That's what you pay the broker/agent to do for you (through the commission they earn on your policy).

Furthermore, if two agents told you that you are covered, they have now committed what is referred to as "estoppel". In other words, even if the policy really doesn't cover you once the fine print has been read, because the professional agent led you to believe you were covered, they are now obligated to follow through as though you did have the coverage.

Tools coverage is one of the most basic and required coverage any contractor would need and it is logical that it would be part of any contractor's insurance program. If you don't have it, then somewhere you should have signed a form acknowledging that you don't have this coverage that would have been common sense for you to have.

I could go on and on. This type of "bad" broker scenario actually makes me quite angry. It is hard enough working in a business that has a bad reputation and the treatment you describe is exactly one of those examples that "good" brokers" cringe over because it makes their jobs all the more difficult.

I really hope you don't drop this and make a point of getting them to compensate you for their mistake. Sure, maybe the first time, the boss tries to get rid of you, but I would hope that if you go back again and press for your rights, they will see that you are an informed consumer and they are not going to get away with it.

One more thing, all states and provinces have insurance ombudsmen and/or insurance agent associations which monitor licensing and complaints. Take your grievance there.

Aargghhh.... guess I'm the one rambling now. Please come back and let me/us know how you made out.

Astrix

Back again. I found the site for the state of Tennessee:

http://tn.gov/commerce/insurance/consumerRes.shtml

You can file a complaint on line at this site and then they will assign an impartial third-party mediator to investigate.