Long Island Homeowners Insurance (Commack, Jericho: purchase, farm, friendly)

[TMing]

Originally Posted by jen919ifer

I would not deal with Interboro, their recent financial status would scare me. Travelers is an excellent company but not the best out there. Unless you live in a million dollar home, I am seeing the average price per sq. ft anywhere from $160 to $200 depending on where you live. My house is at $165 per sq. ft not including the extra 25% in replacement cost that I get. There are so many A & A+ companies out there so def shop around.

Yikes, I signed up with Interboro after AllState cancelled my policy. Found them through my broker. Anyone else have any experience with Interboro Insurance? Maybe I should switch?? Thank you.

[superfly10]

I bough last year very close to the water and had a tough time finding companies who would write the insurance... but I found a few. one of them was interboro.

I did a bunch of research on them. I was worried they were a little undercapitalized.

Yes, they had problems a few years ago but have since been brought back into good standing and are licensed to sell in NYS. They are backstopped by other companies as well (your broker will probably send you a sheet if you ask for it that will explain how Interboro is backed up by these other companies.)

More important, if the company is in good standing when you make a claim, and go bankrupt afterward (let's say a major storm hits the area and they are too exposed), then NYS also backstops them to 500k (according to the state insurance office I called). If they go bankrupt, lose their standing, THEN you file a claim, you won't be covered by NYS.

So, since my policy was less than 500K, I did go with interboro, because the 2% deductible was much more attractive than the 5%. If I had a more expensive home, and my policy was more than 500K, I would have kept looking.

That said, I will shop again this year and see what my options are.

good luck.

[TMing]

Originally Posted by superfly10

I bough last year very close to the water and had a tough time finding companies who would write the insurance... but I found a few. one of them was interboro.

I did a bunch of research on them. I was worried they were a little undercapitalized.

Yes, they had problems a few years ago but have since been brought back into good standing and are licensed to sell in NYS. They are backstopped by other companies as well (your broker will probably send you a sheet if you ask for it that will explain how Interboro is backed up by these other companies.)

More important, if the company is in good standing when you make a claim, and go bankrupt afterward (let's say a major storm hits the area and they are too exposed), then NYS also backstops them to 500k (according to the state insurance office I called). If they go bankrupt, lose their standing, THEN you file a claim, you won't be covered by NYS.

So, since my policy was less than 500K, I did go with interboro, because the 2% deductible was much more attractive than the 5%. If I had a more expensive home, and my policy was more than 500K, I would have kept looking.

That said, I will shop again this year and see what my options are.

good luck.

Thanks for info SuperFly. My policy is under $500,000 so I should be OK with them..

[Dudley76]

Originally Posted by LI BraveOne

Well the home buying process continues and now it's on to insurance. Being a renter to this point, I have had no reason to concern myself with homeowners insurance. Being so ignorant to the topic, I am not sure what kind of coverage is needed and want to make sure I am not leaving myself in a bad situation.

1) So, what questions do I need to ask?
2) What do I need to provide in order to get a quote?
3) What are reasonable deductibles?
4) What kind of coverage do I need/don't need?
5) How do I get the best bang for the buck?

Basically, I am looking for a brief starters guide to this. I am in the dark on this topic and want to make sure I am getting good coverage but not being handed a barrel at the same time, if you know what I mean. I would also be open to any recommendations you may have or companies to absolutely stay away from.

We moving to the north shore of LI and out of any flood areas (to my knowledge). The home we are purchasing is around $400k and sits on a quarter acre. Not sure if that helps but I am looking forward to the responses and thank you in advance for your help.

Answers to your homeowners insurance (HO) questions. I numbered them for easy reference:

1) It depends on who you are asking. An insurance agent is typically captive in nature (they can only sell a policy from their company) and will be biased in his/her answers, to say nothing about them being limited in providing with choices. An insurance broker is carrier independent and represents insured's like yourself. They work for you...not a carrier.

With that in mind, the main question I would ask is, "what are the financial ratings of the carriers you work with?" It's good to get plenty of carrier options available to you but only if their financial ratings are sound. Higher than a B++ (as per AM Best) is usually okay but there are plenty of A-rated carriers in New York. Ask the broker you are considering working with to indicate what carrier relationships they have, so you can do some research on them yourself for piece of mind should you get a competitive quote.

2) Every carrier has different underwriting requirements. If you work with a broker, there will be many questions (which are all necessary) such as:

-Year of construction
-Square footage
-Interior feature specifics (e.g. kitchen, flooring, windows, exterior construction, bathrooms, fireplaces, etc.)
-Outside structures (e.g. sheds, gazebos, decks, etc.)
-Pool on the property
-Dogs living in the house
-Trampolines on the property
-Names, DOB's & SSN's for all named insured's being proposed on the policy
-Protective devices in the home (smoke detectors, fire extinguishers, central station alarms)
-Heating type (oil or gas). Where the oil tank is located
-Other questions

3) A "reasonable" policy deductible is a number you are comfortable with should you suffer a loss. If you can afford to sustain a $1000 out of pocket expense as the result of a loss, take a $1000 deductible. Other deductibles available are usually $250, $500, and $2500. Choose a number you are comfortable with.

4) You typically want replacement cost on your home (Coverage A in your policy quote). The insurance carrier you are applying with will run a cost estimator on your property to determine this. After determining the value of your home, make certain the Coverage A amount in your quote is equal to the amount determined in your cost estimator. Ask your broker about this.

Other coverage to consider is:

-Floaters (if you want replacement cost coverage on special items such as jewelry, gun collections, coin collections, etc)
-Increased contents coverage (if the Coverage C limit on the quote is insufficient to replace it all should you suffer a total loss)
-Optional endorsements such as Water & Sewer Backup, and ID Theft Protection

5) To get the best possible policy options, contact an insurance broker as opposed to calling a few company agents. With over 100 property insurance companies in New York, a broker will have many options available to you for a policy. Also, you will want to shop your homeowners policy with your auto policy. Many carriers do not write HO's monoline (by itself) so your options will increase if you package it with your auto

Hope this helps...

[lubby]

If you rent it's a good idea to get renters insurance

[Dudley76]

Originally Posted by Elke Mariotti

5% is pretty standard by now. You really have to look hard to find a carrier with a lower deductible - they're all catching on now

There is no "standard" when it comes to hurricane or "CAT" deductibles. I have written from 2% to 5% on Long Island. It all depends on the individual risk as to what a carrier will allow.

[Ren34]

Can anyone PM me a good homeowners insurance broker's info?

[Dudley76]

Originally Posted by Ren34

Can anyone PM me a good homeowners insurance broker's info?

Check your PM's.

[Elke Mariotti]

Originally Posted by Dudley76

There is no "standard" when it comes to hurricane or "CAT" deductibles. I have written from 2% to 5% on Long Island. It all depends on the individual risk as to what a carrier will allow.

When I said "pretty standard", that meant "on average", not a written standard!
And like everything else, it varies among the different carriers

[Elke Mariotti]

Originally Posted by Ren34

Can anyone PM me a good homeowners insurance broker's info?

Sent you a DM