Payment to the agent is payment to the company. Wether it is in the mail, door slot or in person. Out of all of the hurricane / flood claims for the past two years, it is finally good to see an agent get sued for something. The company isn\’t always at fault. This case will set precedent. Agents better make sure their clients pay on time. In addition, for all of those individuals that did not have flood insurance or enough of flood limits, the underlying ho carrier paid the tab this time. Not anymore with the new laws. Flood is now excluded, no exception. Agents get it together.
Payment to the agent is payment to the company IF THE AGENT ACCEPTS THE PAYMENT. Did the agent \”accept\” the payment becuase someone slipped it through a mail slot? I thought mail slots and mail boxes were off limits to any but USPS. These folks hand-delivered a payment and only they know when it was delivered. If it was delivered to the agents office on Sunday, it was already TOO LATE. They knew when the payment was due – now they want someone else to pay for their mistake.
\”…it is finally good to see an agent get sued for something…\” It is obvious that you know nothing about the insurance industry. Agents get sued regularly, winning most of the suits becuase they are battling folks who know next to nothing about insurance and are spurred on by scum-sucking, bottom-dwelling ambulance chasers.
The agent has no binding authority with the Federal Flood Program. In the true definition of \”agent\” the retail agent is not an agent of the Federal Flood Program. With a real insurance company the agent may be an agent of the company, so acts of the agent are the same as acts of the company.
In the case of Fed Flood, the agent has no more authority to effect coverage than the mail carrier who delivers the envelope containing payment.
Why did they wait for the last minute? The same reason my wife waits to the last minute to pay the cable, electric, gas, student loan bills. Because they let you. Isn\’t it on time if it is post marked for the day it is due? NO! But that doesn\’t keep her or others from doing it.
So – their flood policy was set to lapse on August 14th (a Sunday) and they dropped of the payment in the mail slot of the agent\’s office. Likely story. They would have had sufficient notice that the policy was to lapse, so why did they wait until after the agent\’s office was closed to drop off the payment. There is no proof of when they dropped it off, and that is probably what they were planning on. Obviously, the agent is not open on Sunday, and probably not on Saturday so we can assume tht the earliest the check was dropped off was Friday after the agency closed. What did they expect?
As for the 30 days – that is the law! Neither the agency not the writing company can waive the federal requirements.
Why do these folks who have ignored their first and perhaps second billing notice and then wait until the cancellation notice and drop off a check that would probably not been seen until after the policy lapsed think that they can expect consideration. They were responsible for the lapse in coverage, not the agent. But, hey, he probably has a good E&O policy so let\’s get a lawyer going after his big chunk of the pie.
August 14,2005 was a Sunday. I\’d be willing to bet the premium was placed in the mail slot on Friday after the close of business and discovered on Monday AM upon opening. When discovered a new policy was written and was effective 30 days later as evidenced by the story. Just like the bank, a deposit made after business hours is not credited until the next BUSINESS day, so too with payments. The insured can remember when they made the payment but can\’t remember to make an insurance payment on time, and of couse the agent is responsible since he/she didn\’t act like their mother. Come on people – be responsible for your actions or lack there of.
People are used to the lax billing of car insurance companies — sure, your payment was a day or two late, but don\’t worry, we\’ll reinstate with no lapse in coverage.
Unfortunately, when you have a policy with no grace period, lots of people just don\’t believe it, they\’re so used to being able to pay everything a little bit late and get away with it.
I\’m amazed at the gall some people have!
The loss I am sure was devastating, especially when their intentions were to renew the policy, however it still falls back on the insured or the party responsible for payment of the coverage, if they wanted to renew, as there are several notices required prior to the cancellation or confirmation that coverage has lapsed. There are so many agents that are willing to work with their clients to get the coverage renewed & if the insured has written or documented verbal correspondence that the payment was in their office early enough to renew or that their coverage would be renewed in-lieu of having to be rewritten then it really is an E&O exposure, otherwise it is the responsibility of the consumer to get what they pay for according to the terms of the seller.
This kind of complete disregard is present in all industries, not just insurance, so should I sue the Lottery Commission for buying the lottery ticket with the last drawings winning numbers & claiming that I wanted it for the last drawing? I wonder how that would go over in our court system?
The flood policy has a 30-day grace period. Why was a new policy written instead of renewing the one that had just expired? There may be agent negligence.
With all the hurricane activity last year you would think the agent would be doubly careful and call the insured or better yet return their money (via Fed Ex) with a letter reiterating the fact that the coverage had cancelled and could not be reinstated.
Were his office hours posted on the door next to the mail slot? Was there at least a note that stated coverage could not be bound, altered, endorsed or reinstated if money was dropped off after hours? If he hasn\’t already, he should consider a PO box and get rid of the mail slot.
The insured waited until the 11th hour but the agent was actor in this play.
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Payment to the agent is payment to the company. Wether it is in the mail, door slot or in person. Out of all of the hurricane / flood claims for the past two years, it is finally good to see an agent get sued for something. The company isn\’t always at fault. This case will set precedent. Agents better make sure their clients pay on time. In addition, for all of those individuals that did not have flood insurance or enough of flood limits, the underlying ho carrier paid the tab this time. Not anymore with the new laws. Flood is now excluded, no exception. Agents get it together.
Payment to the agent is payment to the company IF THE AGENT ACCEPTS THE PAYMENT. Did the agent \”accept\” the payment becuase someone slipped it through a mail slot? I thought mail slots and mail boxes were off limits to any but USPS. These folks hand-delivered a payment and only they know when it was delivered. If it was delivered to the agents office on Sunday, it was already TOO LATE. They knew when the payment was due – now they want someone else to pay for their mistake.
\”…it is finally good to see an agent get sued for something…\” It is obvious that you know nothing about the insurance industry. Agents get sued regularly, winning most of the suits becuase they are battling folks who know next to nothing about insurance and are spurred on by scum-sucking, bottom-dwelling ambulance chasers.
The agent has no binding authority with the Federal Flood Program. In the true definition of \”agent\” the retail agent is not an agent of the Federal Flood Program. With a real insurance company the agent may be an agent of the company, so acts of the agent are the same as acts of the company.
In the case of Fed Flood, the agent has no more authority to effect coverage than the mail carrier who delivers the envelope containing payment.
Why did they wait for the last minute? The same reason my wife waits to the last minute to pay the cable, electric, gas, student loan bills. Because they let you. Isn\’t it on time if it is post marked for the day it is due? NO! But that doesn\’t keep her or others from doing it.
So – their flood policy was set to lapse on August 14th (a Sunday) and they dropped of the payment in the mail slot of the agent\’s office. Likely story. They would have had sufficient notice that the policy was to lapse, so why did they wait until after the agent\’s office was closed to drop off the payment. There is no proof of when they dropped it off, and that is probably what they were planning on. Obviously, the agent is not open on Sunday, and probably not on Saturday so we can assume tht the earliest the check was dropped off was Friday after the agency closed. What did they expect?
As for the 30 days – that is the law! Neither the agency not the writing company can waive the federal requirements.
Why do these folks who have ignored their first and perhaps second billing notice and then wait until the cancellation notice and drop off a check that would probably not been seen until after the policy lapsed think that they can expect consideration. They were responsible for the lapse in coverage, not the agent. But, hey, he probably has a good E&O policy so let\’s get a lawyer going after his big chunk of the pie.
August 14,2005 was a Sunday. I\’d be willing to bet the premium was placed in the mail slot on Friday after the close of business and discovered on Monday AM upon opening. When discovered a new policy was written and was effective 30 days later as evidenced by the story. Just like the bank, a deposit made after business hours is not credited until the next BUSINESS day, so too with payments. The insured can remember when they made the payment but can\’t remember to make an insurance payment on time, and of couse the agent is responsible since he/she didn\’t act like their mother. Come on people – be responsible for your actions or lack there of.
People are used to the lax billing of car insurance companies — sure, your payment was a day or two late, but don\’t worry, we\’ll reinstate with no lapse in coverage.
Unfortunately, when you have a policy with no grace period, lots of people just don\’t believe it, they\’re so used to being able to pay everything a little bit late and get away with it.
I\’m amazed at the gall some people have!
The loss I am sure was devastating, especially when their intentions were to renew the policy, however it still falls back on the insured or the party responsible for payment of the coverage, if they wanted to renew, as there are several notices required prior to the cancellation or confirmation that coverage has lapsed. There are so many agents that are willing to work with their clients to get the coverage renewed & if the insured has written or documented verbal correspondence that the payment was in their office early enough to renew or that their coverage would be renewed in-lieu of having to be rewritten then it really is an E&O exposure, otherwise it is the responsibility of the consumer to get what they pay for according to the terms of the seller.
This kind of complete disregard is present in all industries, not just insurance, so should I sue the Lottery Commission for buying the lottery ticket with the last drawings winning numbers & claiming that I wanted it for the last drawing? I wonder how that would go over in our court system?
The flood policy has a 30-day grace period. Why was a new policy written instead of renewing the one that had just expired? There may be agent negligence.
With all the hurricane activity last year you would think the agent would be doubly careful and call the insured or better yet return their money (via Fed Ex) with a letter reiterating the fact that the coverage had cancelled and could not be reinstated.
Were his office hours posted on the door next to the mail slot? Was there at least a note that stated coverage could not be bound, altered, endorsed or reinstated if money was dropped off after hours? If he hasn\’t already, he should consider a PO box and get rid of the mail slot.
The insured waited until the 11th hour but the agent was actor in this play.