You Thought You Bought
PEACE OF MIND
Imagine for a moment, the government didn’t provide you your rights and tax forms but rather, came to your home, inspected your records, calculated and prepared your tax forms for you. Then they told you not to worry because they had your best interest at heart, and the cost of the “extra service” along with the cost of advertising, would be paid from higher taxes. Peace of mind?…hardly. Well, get ready for reality. This is a very real scenario in the world of insurance and it could happen to any one of us. Most people believe disaster insurance claims only happen to someone else. However, millions of people each year find they are that someone else.
No matter how fair insurance companies imagine themselves to be, they have a separate interest, self-interest. The more they pay, the less they keep. This can be even more evident and compounded when large sums of money are at stake and policyholders have surrendered their authority, looking to the insurance company for instruction and direction. In simple terms, it is much the same as putting your property up for sale without first finding out how much it is worth, then trusting the buyer with setting the price and explaining the deal. That is probably not something you normally allow.
You are even more vulnerable at the time of a personal disaster. If you cannot look to yourself for know-how it is a good rule of thumb to look to a source that has nothing to lose from the transaction…
The company has the right to determine the amount of their liability, you have the right to determine the amount of your claim. Don’t blur this fine line. When you suffer a loss, you are the one to claim how much your policy owes you. This means much more than just reporting your loss, it means actually knowing what to ask for, asking for it, adjusting your differences if possible, and knowing what to do if you reach an impasse. The wait and see approach gives up your authority and places you in a much weaker negotiating position. It is very difficult to re-establish authority once it has been relinquished…
Get Ready For Reality
Full introduction in the book, “Policy Ensurance”
The Cat In Your Hat
Reform needs more than lip service, change takes action: This content is local to your area in that it affects virtually everyone in your area, indirectly or directly: property insurance policyholders. When the next stories run having to do with a local disaster such as a hurricane, earthquake, flood, tornado, fire, etc., perhaps think of those disaster survivors and to what extent you may have helped in their preparedness and recovery. The simple truth is still the most powerful to articulate and pass-on, especially in this day of social media. Thank you for any help you may give.