Homeowner's Insurance and guns question

[solloron1]

Hello All! I am in the process of trying to buy a townhouse and need to get homeowner's insurance(condo insurance) for closing. I recently talked with someone at the insurance agency and they asked if I had guns, I said yes. Should I have told them that. Will it affect my ability to get insurance?

Also any good recommendations on insurance while we are on the topic?

 

[atilla]

nationwide does my insurance, said up to 10k of firearms are covered in my basic policy. dude was chill as hell on the phone. they put in a lot of work and even sent me a thank you card for what amounted to a policy for $11/mo.

i however am not certain whether they do business in MA.

 

[AngelKing]

Congrats on the house - I had good luck with Liberty Mutual.

Hello All! I am in the process of trying to buy a townhouse and need to get homeowner's insurance(condo insurance) for closing. I recently talked with someone at the insurance agency and they asked if I had guns, I said yes. Should I have told them that. Will it affect my ability to get insurance?

Also any good recommendations on insurance while we are on the topic?

 

[Navy Moose]

If you qualify for USAA, they are great

 

[Mudfish]

You might as well be honest. If your house burns down and they find you have guns if you said you didn't I wouldn't put it past the insurance company to deny your claim. More likely they are just trying to upsell the policy if you have an expensive collection.

 

[Cowgirlup]

Just changed to Allstate. They didn't even ask.

 

[dhuze]

Most insurance companies have limited coverage on firearms. They treat them similar to jewelry. You have to declare them and they adjust your policy to the value.
It gets expensive. My insurance would more than double if I claimed my guns. You are better off getting a separate policy on your firearms if it is above what your carrier covers from a specialty company such as http://www.collectinsure.com/ You can actually get a quote online with no contact from them.

 

[DarrenL]

Most homeowners policies only cover a certain amount of firearms value as part of basic coverage. Same with jewelry, etc. Mine is either $2500 or $3500. You can get additional coverage for these special items, at some dollar per dollar coverage. Mine was like $3 per $100 or something like that. NRA members also get a free policy up to a certain amount, I forget how much. I also checked, and I can use both coverages simultaneously.

Dhuze is apparently monitoring my computer

 

[Rob Boudrie]

The guns/jewelery exclusion or separate limitation on HO policies is very often specific to theft. Loss to to fire or other natural disaster is often covered up to the limit of household contents, however, loss due to theft, loss or mysterious disappearance is subject to a separate and usually small limit.

 

[solloron1]

Thanks for the replies. Yea it was kind of weird. The company was Amica and she as kinda grilling me on why I have guns and how often do I carry and am I licensed, that's why I was concerned. Maybe I don't use Amica.

 

[bfm]

If you qualify for USAA, they are great

Yup, no problem with firearms when I got my policy.

 

[icyclefar]

I'm awaiting a quote from these folks:

https://www.historicfirearms.com

I am told they are underwritten by Chubb, and have the best pricing around.

 

[Stoutcat]

USAA doesn't do homeowners insurance in MA, at least not on the Cape. We have it for our cars, but they can't do homeowners for us, much as I would love for that to happen!

 

[A1850]

I own a local insurance agency. Drop me a PM.

 

[Cabin Fever]

Thanks for the replies. Yea it was kind of weird. The company was Amica and she as kinda grilling me on why I have guns and how often do I carry and am I licensed, that's why I was concerned. Maybe I don't use Amica.

I'd look for a new agent.

 

[shapiroeric]

USAA doesn't do homeowners insurance in MA, at least not on the Cape. We have it for our cars, but they can't do homeowners for us, much as I would love for that to happen!

I have USAA homeowners and live in MA....must be a Cape thing possibly due to liability from coastal storms....

To the OP....I have extra insurance for my firearms.....I sent pics and replacement info to them.....piece of mind as I have above and beyond the standard coverage...

 

[Artie]

USAA doesn't do homeowners insurance in MA, at least not on the Cape. We have it for our cars, but they can't do homeowners for us, much as I would love for that to happen!

I live in MA and have USAA for my home and car insurance. Got the home insurance in 2003. Wonder if things have changed or are you in a flood area?

 

[10thSFFD]

+1
I used Amica for cars once. Not a good experience.

 

[RImike]

I have USAA and for my 3 AR's, 2 shotguns, and 4 pistols, it only added about $20 to the year total policy. It has nothing to do with liability but rather loss, and the protection of loss, such as if your firearms are stolen and used in a crime, and someone tries to sue you, your insurance will cover attorney fees (that's how the USAA rep. told me how it works on previous instances). The guy asked for the serial numbers on the AR's for some reason, which i responded that they don't have any as I made them myself . Has anyone else had to give out the serial numbers? I took pictures of them and and sent them to him as proof I have them, though I should of had them taken individually rather than me holding them all at once. I bet that pic is posted up in a cubicle somewhere.

 

[shapiroeric]

I have USAA and for my 3 AR's, 2 shotguns, and 4 pistols, it only added about $20 to the year total policy. It has nothing to do with liability but rather loss, and the protection of loss, such as if your firearms are stolen and used in a crime, and someone tries to sue you, your insurance will cover attorney fees (that's how the USAA rep. told me how it works on previous instances). The guy asked for the serial numbers on the AR's for some reason, which i responded that they don't have any as I made them myself . Has anyone else had to give out the serial numbers? I took pictures of them and and sent them to him as proof I have them, though I should of had them taken individually rather than me holding them all at once. I bet that pic is posted up in a cubicle somewhere.

Same with me....my guess is they want proof the guns exist....I sent SN's in as well....Everything is registered in MA anyways so to me it's no big deal.....

 

[cbrxx]

The guns/jewelery exclusion or separate limitation on HO policies is very often specific to theft. Loss to to fire or other natural disaster is often covered up to the limit of household contents, however, loss due to theft, loss or mysterious disappearance is subject to a separate and usually small limit.

As Rob said...
I am familiar with my options, as have worked for an independent agency over 25 years. Not in a sales capacity, so I'm not giving advise, other than I suggest you talk to a qualified agent.
Based on my experience as a consumer. When you answered yes, they should have discussed if the included firearm coverage would be adequate.
Inquire about your options, most companies have specific endorsements that can increase those built in limits on jewelry, firearms, etc., without having to actually schedule the items.
That is usually pretty cheap and give a lot of other extra coverages. Make sure you have enough "contents" coverage to include them with your other belongings in event of a fire, etc.

Thanks for the replies. Yea it was kind of weird. The company was Amica and she as kinda grilling me on why I have guns and how often do I carry and am I licensed, that's why I was concerned. Maybe I don't use Amica.

However, your next post sounds like she was grilling you for potential liability issues. I am not sure the standard application asks for liability reasons, however they can ask their own questions. Amica is a direct writer if I recall, so their "agents" are employees. Better to get yourself an independent agent that represents several companies to get your best deal. Someone else offered in the tread or I could refer you to someone. Otherwise, talk to local friends to find a good independent agent near you.

 

[Mark from MA]

Thanks for the replies. Yea it was kind of weird. The company was Amica and she as kinda grilling me on why I have guns and how often do I carry and am I licensed, that's why I was concerned. Maybe I don't use Amica.

I think at that point i would have told her to F off.

Most insurance just asks for a rider to cover over 10k worth. Its expensive too


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Rider]

I went through DCU/commerce. They never asked, either for primary policy or umbrella. Neither did MetLife before them. You are much more likely to get sued by someone injured on your trampoline or ATV than shot by one of your guns, and so far most insurance companies still follow actuarial tables, not liberal ****shit.

 

[Martlet]

Hello All! I am in the process of trying to buy a townhouse and need to get homeowner's insurance(condo insurance) for closing. I recently talked with someone at the insurance agency and they asked if I had guns, I said yes. Should I have told them that. Will it affect my ability to get insurance?

Also any good recommendations on insurance while we are on the topic?

I have a rider on my policy to cover guns.

 

[mikeyp]

I'd look for a new agent.

And let her know why

 

[Knob Creek]

My renewal form asks me every year if I have guns and asks me to list them and describe how they are stored. Since they give only one line for this I could not list all my guns even if I was inclined to. I simply respond yes I have guns and they are stored in a Massachusetts approved safe.

 

[92G]

nationwide does my insurance, said up to 10k of firearms are covered in my basic policy. dude was chill as hell on the phone. they put in a lot of work and even sent me a thank you card for what amounted to a policy for $11/mo.

i however am not certain whether they do business in MA.

in mhy experience w homeowners insurance they often describe a large coverage for firearms which sounds nice, but for me i foudn they would only cover a certain $ per firearm. so basically like a $10k total coverage was for only like $300 per firearm..

this required that i have each valuable firearm appraised and scheduled within my policy. it's really not that hard but basically the insurance companies look for methods to not reimburse you for a $2000 rifle.

in summary, read fine print VERY closely and don't assume that a $10k coverage means you're all good to go. I keep my firearms appraised for this exact reason.

most FFLs will do appraisals (while I don't know about MA but the free state where I originated it was common).

 

[Len-2A Training]

Thanks for the replies. Yea it was kind of weird. The company was Amica and she as kinda grilling me on why I have guns and how often do I carry and am I licensed, that's why I was concerned. Maybe I don't use Amica.

I seem to recall someone here was refused coverage by Amica because they owned guns. I've heard mixed reports about them for many years. At one time I belonged to a gun club where one of the officers was an Amica employee . . . I tried to get him to ask officially what their policy was but he never did it.

Amica has no agents, you deal direct with the company.

+1
I used Amica for cars once. Not a good experience.

Amica allegedly used to be very good, but I've heard that customer service has gone into the toilet once they started to heavily advertise and take all comers! They used to be very picky and basically you had to be referred by a current customer to be considered, but that was ~30 years ago.

It is a LOT cheaper to buy your gun coverage thru NRA or Historic Firearms (Eastern Insurance) by a factor of 2-4 vs. a rider on your homeowners insurance.

 

[solloron1]

I seem to recall someone here was refused coverage by Amica because they owned guns. I've heard mixed reports about them for many years. At one time I belonged to a gun club where one of the officers was an Amica employee . . . I tried to get him to ask officially what their policy was but he never did it.

Amica has no agents, you deal direct with the company.




Amica allegedly used to be very good, but I've heard that customer service has gone into the toilet once they started to heavily advertise and take all comers! They used to be very picky and basically you had to be referred by a current customer to be considered, but that was ~30 years ago.

It is a LOT cheaper to buy your gun coverage thru NRA or Historic Firearms (Eastern Insurance) by a factor of 2-4 vs. a rider on your homeowners insurance.

Yea I actually got an email this morning from the lady I spoke with saying that they would not cover me because of the gun. So F--- amica. They will never get my business in the future. Thanks for all the recommendations everyone. I was able to get a hold of someone at Liberty Mutual and they have taken good care of me. Thanks!!

 

[Pete85]

Yea I actually got an email this morning from the lady I spoke with saying that they would not cover me because of the gun. So F--- amica. They will never get my business in the future. Thanks for all the recommendations everyone. I was able to get a hold of someone at Liberty Mutual and they have taken good care of me. Thanks!!

You should probably email her back (and cc her superivsor if you know his/her email) and thank her for making your decision not to do business with Amica that much easier. Amica lists guns as something you can buy additional coverage for on their site, so it's possible that you're dealing with an employee that just didn't want to do business with you because you own guns.

Some property, such as jewelry, stamps, coins, guns and silverware, has special limits​ specified in your policy. You may be able to purchase a scheduled personal property​ endorsement on certain valuable items in order to be more fully covered.

http://www.amica.com/claim-center/frequent-questions/reporting-home-claims.html

However a Google search does show several instances where they have listed gun ownership as their reason for denying a policy, so it's probably not just a single employee making up their own company policy.