House Insurance..am I getting scammed?

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Jul 28th, 2021 7:04 pm

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Jul 25th, 2021 5:42 pm

pat_wobbly [OP]: Member; Dec 3, 2008; 301 posts; 98 upvotes; Surrey

Jul 25th, 2021 5:42 pm

House Insurance..am I getting scammed?

Hi I was just wondering what others pay for house insurance. I've got my principal residence at 4800sf and a rental at 2200sf. My house insurance is $5400 per year for both places. They have the principal rez at $3805/year and the rental at $1480/year.

The personal property part confuses me as I don't have jewellery, antiques, etc but they have the coverage at $1.2 million. I only have a couple TV's, computers, regular furniture, some weekend warrior tools, etc. I don't understand how they can have the personal property portion so high. I'm lucky if I have maybe $20,000 worth of junk.

And for the rental property they have 'detached structures' for $50,000 even through the garage is attached and there are no detached structures.

I'd like to know what others have and if this is standard industry stuff or if I've been getting scammed this whole time. If I want to get a quote from another Insurance company they want a copy of my current policy and just quote based off of the one I already have with the high personal property amount.

The details:

Principal Rez - $3805 per year
Section 1 Property coverages
Coverage A Dwelling - $1.5 million
Coverage B Detached structures - $237,000
Coverage C Personal property (replacement cost basis) - $1.2 million <this part doesn't make sense to me
Coverage D Additional living expenses - $395,000
Section 2 Liability coverages
Coverage E Legal liability - $1 million
Coverage F Voluntary medical payments - $5,000
Coverage G Voluntary payments for damage to property - $1,000
Additional earthquake 8% deductible - $3 million

Rental $1480 per year
Section 1 Property coverages
Coverage A Dwelling - $500,000
Coverage B Detached structures - $50,000 <There are no detached structures there
Coverage C Personal property (replacement cost basis) - $5,000
Coverage D Additional living expenses - $50,000
Section 2 Liability coverages
Coverage E Legal liability - $1 million
Coverage F Voluntary medical payments - $5,000
Coverage G Voluntary payments for damage to property - $1,000
Additional earthquake 8% deductible - $560,000

What do you all pay and what is the coverage like? ^Is it like this?

10 replies

Jul 25th, 2021 6:09 pm

kasm: Deal Addict; Nov 4, 2007; 1828 posts; 1221 upvotes; GTA

Jul 25th, 2021 6:09 pm

Mississauga, ON here - Residence is detached 2 storey 2400 sq ft.

Insurer: TD - Primmum Insurance

Premium $1342 per year ($1006 base + $226 Water Damage + $90 Umbrella)

$3 - Million Solution™: A global amount of $3 Million to cover: $3,000,000
Coverage A - Dwelling Building: Your house Included
Coverage B - Personal Property: Your belongings Included
Coverage C - Additional Living Expenses and Fair Rental Value Included
extended water damage / Ice Damming and roof drain backup - $100,000
Coverage E - Legal Liability / Premises Liability - $1,000,000
Coverage F – Voluntary Medical Payment - $6,000
Coverage G – Voluntary Payment for Damage to Property - $6,000
Coverage H – Voluntary Compensation for Residence Employees
Personal Umbrella - $1,000,000

EDIT: also have 2 cars insured here so may have a multi line discount.

+1

Jul 25th, 2021 6:43 pm

pat_wobbly [OP]: Member; Dec 3, 2008; 301 posts; 98 upvotes; Surrey

Jul 25th, 2021 6:43 pm

^Thanks Kasm. I'm going to ask my insurance broker to fix this and refund all excess charges.

Jul 25th, 2021 6:50 pm

jdmfishingonly: Deal Fanatic; Oct 13, 2008; 7115 posts; 3633 upvotes; Durham

Jul 25th, 2021 6:50 pm

Oshawa ... 1800sf detached

$978+taxes ... annual .... Multi Discount (2 vehicles)

16'x11' Living Room 11' Cathedral Ceiling. Hisense 65Q8G. Denon AVR-S740H 7.2 setup. Jamo Classic 10 280W Towers - FR+FL; Polk S35 - Center; Klipsch R51M - RR+RL; Klipsch R14M - Dolby FHR+FHL; Polk HTS10 Subwoofer x2. Unlocked Android Boxes from Taiwan x2

+1

Jul 25th, 2021 7:00 pm

kevv: Sr. Member; Dec 3, 2008; 562 posts; 127 upvotes; Hamilton

Jul 25th, 2021 7:00 pm

thing to remember your land is worth more than the house should'nt be paying price you paid, personal property always over valued you'll never get as much as estimate,same as outside structures your over paying for everthing

kevv

+1

Jul 25th, 2021 7:11 pm

pat_wobbly [OP]: Member; Dec 3, 2008; 301 posts; 98 upvotes; Surrey

Jul 25th, 2021 7:11 pm

kevv wrote: ↑ thing to remember your land is worth more than the house should'nt be paying price you paid, personal property always over valued you'll never get as much as estimate,same as outside structures your over paying for everthing

Principal House/Property is worth maybe $1.6 million and rental $700,000.

Jul 25th, 2021 7:21 pm

pat_wobbly [OP]: Member; Dec 3, 2008; 301 posts; 98 upvotes; Surrey

Jul 25th, 2021 7:21 pm

jdmfishingonly wrote: ↑ Oshawa ... 1800sf detached

$978+taxes ... annual .... Multi Discount (2 vehicles)

Pembridge-1.jpg

^See the personal property portion for yours is $347,000. Do you have $347,000 worth of personal property? Maybe but I doubt it. Makes no sense. This looks like its an Industry thing to justify their prices.

I had Dominion Insurance before and when my yearly premiums went over $4000 per year I switched to Aviva as they were cheaper. And before that the same with Wawanesa insurance when they went over $5,000 per year. The personal section has always been high similar to the dwelling structure on all my policies by the looks of it. I was hoping it was a mistake but it doesnt appear to be..just an industry thing. I'm going to have to shop for someone cheaper.

Jul 25th, 2021 7:44 pm

kimchibowl: Sr. Member; Nov 10, 2019; 755 posts; 825 upvotes

Jul 25th, 2021 7:44 pm

To answer your question, yes! All insurance is a scam

+7

Jul 26th, 2021 10:48 am

Scote64: Deal Fanatic; Jan 21, 2018; 8951 posts; 9977 upvotes; Vancouver

Jul 26th, 2021 10:48 am

Examples from other provinces are not too helpful for rate comparison, as home insurance rates are a local thing.

You should get quotes from several companies to do a comparison. If you visit a broker's office, they will do this, although only for the few companies they work with. Some direct-to-client insurance companies will quote online. You might want to try Sonnet in BC (online division of Economical Insurance) - they usually quote competitive rates and don't require filling out a big questionnaire if they can find your home in municipal records.

Usually coverage for incidentals such as household goods and outbuildings is included automatically as a percentage of the principle coverage, and you only have to adjust that if your requirements exceed the base amounts. They won't give you a discount if your requirements are lower.

You can reduce cost by raising the deductible amount, so that you self-insure minor incidents below that amount. I don't know why people bother with deductibles below $1000. It's a huge hassle to make claims smaller than that, and you'll pay for it many times over in your annual rate. If you make a couple of such claims the insurer will stick it to you with increased rates to make you pay it back to them quickly. No point in changing insurers because they have a central registry where they keep track of your claims and provide that information to all insurers (privacy? what privacy?).

+2

Jul 26th, 2021 2:45 pm

FrostedGlass: Member; Jan 26, 2006; 228 posts; 249 upvotes; GTA

Jul 26th, 2021 2:45 pm

+1 to not comparing cost across different regions. In Surrey, where the OP indicates they are, the premium related to their indicated earthquake coverage will be significantly different from the GTA for example.

Taking a quick look the personal property amounts they are just a percentage of the dwelling value. For the OP it is 80% and for post 4 it is 70%. My understanding is that sometimes these are insurer default and trying to get them lowered is like raising the Titanic. Same with detached structures, but the insurer or broker should be able to explain/confirm.

Keep in mind the dwelling is foundation, flooring, windows, doors. Personal Property would include all contents (including appliances) so its takes in more than you might think it does.

(above taken from graphic on IBC - Home Insurance)

+1

Jul 28th, 2021 7:04 pm

Momentix: Jr. Member; May 15, 2020; 198 posts; 122 upvotes; Thornhill ON

Jul 28th, 2021 7:04 pm

pat_wobbly wrote: ↑ ^Thanks Kasm. I'm going to ask my insurance broker to fix this and refund all excess charges.

The keyword here is " insurance broker". You are feeding someone in the middle which is affecting your amount. Look for an insurance company to work directly with, without a broker.

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