“Customers? We Don’t Need No Stinking Customers!”

Folks, don’t believe everything you hear about the bad economy. It seems that at least one sector of the economy — insurance business — is doing just fine thank you very much. That’s right, it seems they have waaaay too many customers, and no longer need our patronage. Follow me below the fold for the whole sad story.

After five years of on-time payment and zero claims, our homeowners insurance policy has been cancelled. Just like that. No negotiation, no demand for higher premiums (which were already pretty dang high). After much conversation with Carl at the call center and the agent who sold us the policy, it seems that we just aren’t their kind of clients. Or something. The stated reasons for the cancellation were “abnormal shingles”, “lack of handrail on steps”, and “garden hose across pathway”.

Right.

It turns out that “abnormal shingles” is code for “has moss on the roof”. OK, I’ll cop to having been behind on getting the power-washing folks out here, but really? You’re going to cancel us for a condition that can be ameliorated with a couple of hours of manual labor? I’m similarly perplexed by the handrail business. Our front step is literally less than five inches high. There is one step. I don’t even know how we could install a rail. Both my 76-year-old mother and 1-year-old son can take the step with no problem. The back steps? There’s a wall on one side and fence on the other — not exactly a real hazard, folks. But, jeez, give a gal a chance to run to the hardware store for some railing if it’s really a problem (I should add that the steps have been like that since the house was built in 1935 – it hasn’t exactly a been a pressing issue over the years). And the garden hose? Again, mea culpa. I forgot to put it away. For like a day. It just happened to be the day the insurance guy was lurking around.

My agent told me all the companies were cracking down. Fine, I’m all for running a tight corporate ship. What I don’t get is dropping good customers (with stellar credit ratings, I might add) over penny ante stuff.

I’ll happily take my money elsewhere, but the second I hear any insurance exec whining about tough times, I think my head might explode.

Posted

July 10, 2009

Random

Jen B.

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2 responses to ““Customers? We Don’t Need No Stinking Customers!””

J.M. Prince

July 10, 2009

It’s called ‘rescission’ and it really hits home with the Health Insurance malefactors. That’s when it can kill you. But yes, more and more insurance companies are doing it, just to save some money. Or ‘projected’/imagined money. If you live in one of their newly invented & computer mapped ‘redlined’ areas? They’ll try to drop your coverage. It’s all in their algorithms now.

So likely you did absolutely nothing ‘wrong’ or ‘dangerous’ or even ‘actionable’. They just no longer seek to underwrite in your area or zip code, and suspect that it’s going to be too ‘risky’, and generate ‘above average’ claims doing so.

Ditto for the Credit cards companies. If you shop at Walmart say? Or use your card frequently at bars? Buy the cancer sticks every now & again? You’re deemed downmarket, and they’ll rise your rates (yes, I know this sounds illogical) or cancel your card outright. An estimated 1 Trillion dollars of credit has been withdrawn from the market by these companies pulling back on all sorts of credit lines, even to fully solvent businesses. AMEX did that to us, and for no earthy reason. They’ve done that to many, many small companies who used their corporate cards for a revolving credit lines.

But it all works the same. It’s a contract, and they can and will refuse ‘service’ to you at will. Anytime they like, for whatever (mostly business reasons), at any time. Again, with health care you might be paying into them for decades, and then get cancer, and they’ll find a way to deny you coverage claiming any sort of ‘pre-existing’ conditions.

Which is why we need to publicize their rotten & corrupt business practices, and to rewrite the laws to deny them immunity from prosecution, as they’ve enjoyed for decades. So no, you did nothing usual or wrong. JMP
Bernita

July 10, 2009

Oh good lord, I might be moving in with someone if State Farm starts creeping around my house.

Which insurance company? Aren’t you supposed to call John Oxendine’s office when shady stuff like this goes down?

“Customers? We Don’t Need No Stinking Customers!”

Comments

2 responses to ““Customers? We Don’t Need No Stinking Customers!””

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