Insurance Issues

Just a note to pass along cautioning any members that may be leaving our fine profession. Check your insurance policy very carefully. My old Royal Insurance E&O policy had a clause in it that only covered my for a year after I stopped paying premiums. I sold my business and obviously dropped my insurance. Unfortunately in Canada we can be sued up to 6 years after an inspection. Well guess what…now I’m on the hook for my own lawyers fees from a frivolous claim…:frowning:

It seems like the insurance co. would have to cover that, because the inspection happened when you were covered.

I think you have been reading things differently then I and most other Home Inspectors .
My insurance ends midnight the day I do not renew.

Cookie

I know that roy, that is not what i was saying.

Ken.

Try this on for size…

You arrive at your inspection location. As you pull into the driveway, your foot slips off the brake pedal and your truck hits the corner of the garage. Luckily, there is no damage to the garage, and only a scratch on your truck. The seller is sitting in his rocking chair on the front porch. He comes over to you and says, no sweat, no damage done…

A few months later, you sell your truck (can’t handle the scratch defacing your beloved truck). You cancel your insurance…

A few months go by, and you receive a call…the seller is suing you for “whiplash” (hows that for frivolous?)…

Do you think your ex-insurance should cover the claim?

Jeff

Jeff,
Actually that is a very real possibility as long as any statute of limitations have not been exceeded. The insurance company that had coverage at the time of the incident would be on the hook so to speak.

Think about it this way. You get into a wreck which is your fault, total your vehicle, cancel the insurance, buy a new vehicle with new insurance all in a span of 3 days. The person who you hit doesn’t get a claim filed within that time frame. Do you really believe that will absolve the insurance company from paying?

Thats tricky, call another insurance company, and ask them a “hypothetical question” and see what they say. Now you want me to read my policy, but mine insurance company (York) works w/this field alot, so I am hoping that is not the case.

Andrew…okay, I probably didn’t use a very good example, so I’ll let it be…:wink:

Steve…there has been alot of discussion on this board about this very subject (tail coverage)…here’s one thread… http://www.nachi.org/forum/showthread.php?t=13830&highlight=insurance

Jeff

Thanks Jeff but I dont have sufficient privileges to access those threads. Any ideas how I could get at them. Steve

Hey Steve,

Sorry, but it looks like most of the threads discussing Tail Coverage is in members only…you would need to become a member.

But…there is some limited discussion in the public forums…use the search feature and use keywords ‘tail coverage’. It will give you some info.

Good luck,

Jeff