USAA is sending an inspector to check my wind mitigation work. Did anyone else get a letter like that?

I've had the wind mitigation work done about 6 years ago and now they're sending an inspector out? WTH? I sent them the paperwork and certification years ago. They say premium credits may possibly be reduced. Are they trying to get more money out of people or what?

Dreams, Citizens did the exact same thing last year -- sent in their own hired inspectors to question the findings of inspections we had paid for previously, and which had been accepted by Citizens in the past.  Very upsetting and frustrating!  

I had to go through hoops to prove we had 100% Class A opening protection, after their inspector indicated our shutters weren't rated.  B.S.!!!!  They also downgraded our roof/deck attachment class because their inspector managed to find one remaining old staple to photograph in our attic space, despite the fact that the entire roof had been redone with
8d nails after Ivan.

We didn't find any of this out until a couple of months after the inspection -- their hired gun was entirely close-mouthed during the visit.  I did chase him down before he left and gave him proof that we had a newer roof, because I knew he couldn't tell that simply by looking (and yet he'd never asked!), but otherwise trusted he'd have seen the same things our own hired inspector had found.  Silly me!

So one fine day we got a letter from Citizens saying our annual premium was going up by a whopping $950 as a result of the inspection, and referring us to a website where we could view detailed results.   We were incensed!

Turns out a lot of other people were, too, and I recall reading at the time that there was a class action lawsuit being instituted by some South FL people (can't recall the specific premise, but everyone had the same thought you did, Dreams, that the inspections were simply a ruse to get more premium money via a cold and calculated decision to give it a try and see how many people protested).

Long story short, we did protest, providing certification from Force 10 as to the shutter specs, and that alone knocked the premium increase down to zero (aside from the standard allowed annual rate increase).  Fortunately, the roof/deck attachment issue became moot, as we had already exceeded the allowable credits via our shutters and other mitigation they didn't challenge (such as our newer roof, which they knew about no thanks to their inspector's efforts).  I say "fortunately," because proving that one staple was not a true indicator of our overall attachment method was likely going to be a hassle, since they go by the lowest common denominator (cheapest method found).

I will say that the department Citizens had set up to handle people like me was pretty efficient, and the employees quite courteous -- but then (1) they were under threat of a lawsuit, and (2) it was easy for them to be magnanimous because (I'm betting) they were still earning lots more premium money from people who didn't challenge their findings.

Will be interested to hear what happens in your case, Dreams -- maybe things will go a lot smoother for you.  I hope so.   I would  suggest trying to talk with the inspector when he/she in on site, see what's going to be reported to USAA before the report goes in, so you can perhaps prevent any mis-statements and/or omissions.  But if you get any nasty premium surprises, don't hesitate to protest!  

Hope this helps you and any others in the same boat.  Sorry it's so long; I'm incurably verbose.

Thanks for responding Linda. I have been concerned as I dropped some of my coverage after USAA went up $300 from last year. I find it fishy they are all of a sudden going to inspect. I had rebuild Northwest Fl do the wind mitigation w/ certified contractors. Did you get the foam insulation? How long did the inspection take? I'm getting fed up w/ greedy insurance carriers.

Dreamsglore wrote:Thanks for responding Linda. I have been concerned as I dropped some of my coverage after USAA went up $300 from last year. I find it fishy they are all of a sudden going to inspect. I had rebuild Northwest Fl do the wind mitigation w/ certified contractors. Did you get the foam insulation? How long did the inspection take? I'm getting fed up w/ greedy insurance carriers.

Do not have foam insulation.  From memory I'd say the whole inspection didn't take more than 20-30 minutes.

Totally agree with you on the fed-up part, and I'm not buying the crapola we're constantly fed that current premiums are insufficient - especially not since they've been collecting them for a solid eight years with no hurricanes hitting here.  Call me a skeptic.

I'm happy to see that they are doing actual physical inspections to confirm that the alleged mitigation has been, in fact, done and done properly. If the work wasn't done properly, it seems the owners should be angry with the tradesman doing the work, not the inspector. That's like getting angry at the cop that stopped you for going 48 in a school zone.

People not living near the coast or on rivers are weary of paying higher premiums because of the loses on homes in high risk areas. Now sink holes are beginning to seemingly become more and more common. If you don't like the rate, and you have no mortgage, self insure. Bet you won't have a loss. Bob can teach you all you need to now about bluffing. If that's not something to your liking, move. Find a safer area.

USAA is trying to get out of the homeowner's insurance business in Florida.  That is my opinion on the experience I've had with them on Florida homes.  They should have done the inspection 6 years ago if they were concerned about it!

We no longer have any homeowner's insurance with USAA.

And there hasn't been major disasters/claims in Northwest Florida over the past couple of years, has there?

Rebuild NW Florida sucks. They have the money for 2500 more homes in Escambia county as of last week, but have run out of money for Santa Rosa? Yep, I went to apply and was told no more money for Santa Rosa. How the hell does that shit happen and they enough for 2500 in Escambia? Seems like they could divide that in half.

Oh and Markle is right, you need to know if the quality of their work was substandard.

When I put on a new roof in 2009 I documented every step with photographs and sent them to my agent . . . . I paid close attention to comprehensive shots of the nail patterns with a tape showing the distance between each nail. I also upgraded to ice shield over the entire roof so if the shingles go there will be a 2nd layer of protection for the interior. My insurance has dropped dramatically . . .

RealLindaL wrote:Dreams, Citizens did the exact same thing last year -- sent in their own hired inspectors to question the findings of inspections we had paid for previously, and which had been accepted by Citizens in the past.  Very upsetting and frustrating!  

I had to go through hoops to prove we had 100% Class A opening protection, after their inspector indicated our shutters weren't rated.  B.S.!!!!  They also downgraded our roof/deck attachment class because their inspector managed to find one remaining old staple to photograph in our attic space, despite the fact that the entire roof had been redone with
8d nails after Ivan.

We didn't find any of this out until a couple of months after the inspection -- their hired gun was entirely close-mouthed during the visit.  I did chase him down before he left and gave him proof that we had a newer roof, because I knew he couldn't tell that simply by looking (and yet he'd never asked!), but otherwise trusted he'd have seen the same things our own hired inspector had found.  Silly me!

So one fine day we got a letter from Citizens saying our annual premium was going up by a whopping $950 as a result of the inspection, and referring us to a website where we could view detailed results.   We were incensed!

Turns out a lot of other people were, too, and I recall reading at the time that there was a class action lawsuit being instituted by some South FL people (can't recall the specific premise, but everyone had the same thought you did, Dreams, that the inspections were simply a ruse to get more premium money via a cold and calculated decision to give it a try and see how many people protested).

Long story short, we did protest, providing certification from Force 10 as to the shutter specs, and that alone knocked the premium increase down to zero (aside from the standard allowed annual rate increase).  Fortunately, the roof/deck attachment issue became moot, as we had already exceeded the allowable credits via our shutters and other mitigation they didn't challenge (such as our newer roof, which they knew about no thanks to their inspector's efforts).  I say "fortunately," because proving that one staple was not a true indicator of our overall attachment method was likely going to be a hassle, since they go by the lowest common denominator (cheapest method found).

I will say that the department Citizens had set up to handle people like me was pretty efficient, and the employees quite courteous -- but then (1) they were under threat of a lawsuit, and (2) it was easy for them to be magnanimous because (I'm betting) they were still earning lots more premium money from people who didn't challenge their findings.

Will be interested to hear what happens in your case, Dreams -- maybe things will go a lot smoother for you.  I hope so.   I would  suggest trying to talk with the inspector when he/she in on site, see what's going to be reported to USAA before the report goes in, so you can perhaps prevent any mis-statements and/or omissions.  But if you get any nasty premium surprises, don't hesitate to protest!  

Hope this helps you and any others in the same boat.  Sorry it's so long; I'm incurably verbose.

I have seen it attributed to many distinguished authors but I have always liked the essence of the quotation.

"I apologize for the length of this letter, but I didn't have time to make it shorter."

Nekochan wrote:And there hasn't been major disasters/claims in Northwest Florida over the past couple of years, has there?

Sinkholes have taken an enormous amount of resources. Why we're having more now than in other years is anybody's guess. Probably the fault of President Bush.

Remember back in March a man was swallowed alive in his bedroom in Seffner, Florida. Located just west of Tampa, apparently Seffner is a small town but has two companies specializing in sink hole repair.

A sinkhole recently swallowed part of a Disney Resort and hundreds of people had to be evacuated.

doubtingthomas wrote:Rebuild NW Florida sucks. They have the money for 2500 more homes in Escambia county as of last week, but have run out of money for Santa Rosa? Yep, I went to apply and was told no more money for Santa Rosa. How the hell does that shit happen and they enough for 2500 in Escambia? Seems like they could divide that in half.

Oh and Markle is right, you need to know if the quality of their work was substandard.

No they didn't run out of money for Santa Rosa. The Rebuild guy told me SR took the money and put it elsewhere. When a county commissioner was out here for a drainage problem recently I asked him about the rebuild money and he said the county commissioners have the right to reallocate that money if they want to although it was intended for wind mitigation.

ZVUGKTUBM wrote:My house is insured with USAA. We did major wind-mitigation work in 2010, certified by a professional engineer (through Rebuild Northwest Florida). Our insurance premium for 2010 dropped by $600. Then it started creeping back up. I just got a .pdf of our new policy for 2014; our premium has now climbed back $800 from the position it dropped in 2010.

That's what they did to me. My rates went up so much I dropped the replacement cost coverage this year. I called USAA today and asked why after 6 years they are inspecting? They said "oh we trying to get you more credits. I said " do you really expect me to believe that? I've been w/ USAA for 25 yrs. and my children are USAA members but I will drop them in a heartbeat if they try to increase my premiums again.

Markle wrote:I'm happy to see that they are doing actual physical inspections to confirm that the alleged mitigation has been, in fact, done and done properly.  If the work wasn't done properly, it seems the owners should be angry with the tradesman doing the work, not the inspector.  That's like getting angry at the cop that stopped you for going 48 in a school zone.

First Citizens told us, a few years  back, to get an inspection done by a licensed contractor or engineer in order to maintain our credits, and so we paid for and did just that (actually I think it was the second time we'd provided and paid for similar proof).  Then they alleged that some people had cheated, using inspectors who overplayed the mitigation factors, so they needed to send in their own inspectors.  It was, I'm still convinced based on the less-than-careful-and-attentive performance of their hired gun, a shameless ploy to grab bigger premiums from those who would fail to protest the blatantly overlooked and/or erroneously reported mitigators.  In our case it had NOTHING to do with incorrect workmanship.

As for telling people "If you don't like it, move," that kind of talk is useless here.

Markle wrote:
I have seen it attributed to many distinguished authors but I have always liked the essence of the quotation.

"I apologize for the length of this letter, but I didn't have time to make it shorter."

Now that's really a good one.  Ha! Gotta remember that!      __LL

Markle wrote:

Nekochan wrote:And there hasn't been major disasters/claims in Northwest Florida over the past couple of years, has there?

Sinkholes have taken an enormous amount of resources.  Why we're having more now than in other years is anybody's guess.  Probably the fault of President Bush.

Remember back in March a man was swallowed alive in his bedroom in Seffner, Florida.  Located just west of Tampa, apparently Seffner is a small town but has two companies specializing in sink hole repair.

A sinkhole recently swallowed part of a Disney Resort and hundreds of people had to be evacuated.

I read that USAA is refusing to pay for some sink hole claims.  

Really, I think USAA just wants out of the homeowners insurance business in Florida.  They will no longer  issue new policies for Florida homes anymore except for the primary residence of active duty members with orders in Florida.   Even if you've been a USAA member for 40 years, they will not insure your new Florida home unless you're active duty with orders in Florida and it's your primary residence.  

We do still have USAA insurance on our cars.  When we moved from Alabama to Florida, our auto insurance rate skyrocketed. We have not had any auto claims/speeding tickets in the four years we've been back in the USA so it's not due to any action on our part.   I am guessing this in not just USAA but that all Florida auto policies cost much more in Florida than in Alabama?    Not sure, but there are some crazy drivers around here...