bobe Posted October 8, 2008 Report Share Posted October 8, 2008 Not sure if this is the right place to post this? Question: Has anyone had experiance with forced insurance? We purchased some property and now the bank is forcing us to purchase flood insurance. Acoording to one apprasiers report we are not in a flood zone. Advice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denita Posted October 8, 2008 Report Share Posted October 8, 2008 I don't know where you are, but here is the link about flood insurance:http://www.fema.gov/business/nfip/Not all flood zones require flood insurance. The very first thing is to find out your flood zone. It will be on the elevation certificate attached to your survey (also your insurance company can check out the designated flood zone for your property). Flood insurance is USUALLY very reasonable unless you are in a risky flood zone. Forced placed insurance by the lender is always much more expensive than if you provide it yourself (can be 300 or 400% more than what you would pay). The lenders do that to make sure you keep coverage.Step 1) Find out your flood zone.Step 2) Find out if your lender requires coverage for that particular flood zone in your area.Step 3) Call your insurance company to get quotes (FEMA is the underwriter but you purchase the insurance through your regular homeowners insurer)Sometimes lenders make mistakes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Methuss Posted October 8, 2008 Report Share Posted October 8, 2008 Sometimes lenders make mistakes.Heh. More often than not.This isn't something you want to mess around with, get an attorney to assist you. You could spend years going rounds with a stubborn mortgage company and be stuck paying for their force-placed coverage -- which usually costs about 20x what it would cost for you to get it yourself.If you are not in a flood zone, and your mortgage documents say you only need flood insurance when the property is IN a flood zone then you have no obligation to obtain or pay for that coverage.But like I said, get a lawyer to deal with it. This is your home...take it seriously. They can foreclose if you don't pay what they bill you for. They have a gaggle of overrated, underpaid lawyers on hand and unless you are well versed in real estate and tort laws you don't stand a fart's chance in a pig pen of winning such a battle on your own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sooray Posted October 9, 2008 Report Share Posted October 9, 2008 we got cancelled by allstate after filing a hurricane claim. since our roof was over 80 years old, nobody would insure us without having the roof replaced. the force placed insurance came out of escrow and our mortgage payment went from $1500 to $2300 a month! take care of this as soon as you can! we are still trying to recover! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BMN Posted October 9, 2008 Report Share Posted October 9, 2008 You may want to call your state's Attorney Generals Office and ask them about this scenario. State and federal agencies are going to really start coming down on mortgage companies that cross the line with bogus fee's and inflated charges, but you would have to have proof. Read your mortgage and title papers carefully to see if you can find any loopholes or pay for a visit to a real estate attorney. It would be far less costly in the long run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denita Posted October 9, 2008 Report Share Posted October 9, 2008 we got cancelled by allstate after filing a hurricane claim. since our roof was over 80 years old, nobody would insure us without having the roof replaced. the force placed insurance came out of escrow and our mortgage payment went from $1500 to $2300 a month! take care of this as soon as you can! we are still trying to recover!Did Allstate pay for a new roof yet? Has it been completed? You can contact Citizens if your roof is on now. If they dropped you before or during the claim process, I think you have a different issue that requires a real estate attorney and private insurance adjuster. The force placed Homeowners insurance is extremely high. The bank will only drop the forced placed insurance with proof of coverage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freak Posted October 9, 2008 Report Share Posted October 9, 2008 Keep in mind too, the USGS and the Army Corp. of Engineers just completed new flood plain maps in several areas; you may be affected by one of these changes. This is especially true if your survey is more than a few months old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sooray Posted October 9, 2008 Report Share Posted October 9, 2008 hey denitawe were dropped in the middle of the claim. they paid for it (well, most of it), but since we had an old asbestos tile roof, it was EXTREMELY hard to get someone to come out and remove it. the claim was from damage in 2004, but the roof wasn't completed until the spring of 2008. we have since gotten insurance, although the name of the company escapes me. i can't tell you what a sigh of relief this was!thanks!suz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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