Covered Perils

[John Shishilla]

Inspectors may be more likely to be sued because of this little change.

As required by Florida Law, Citizens will begin offering the Citizens Homeowners 8 – Modified Coverage Form (CIT HO-. This policy will be available effective February 28, 2013.

Agents are expected to be aware of the coverage restrictions in the CIT HO-8 and be able to explain them carefully and fully to prospective policyholders. Failure to do so could result in an applicant not fully understanding the significant limitations of the CIT HO-8 policy and increased E&O exposure to the agency.

The HO-8 policy is a named-peril policy that covers dwelling repair based only on common construction materials and methods as required by Florida Statute 627.351(6)(c)1.g. The new CIT HO-8 policy provides highly restrictive coverage that will pay policyholders significantly less in the event of a loss than the traditional CIT Homeowners 3 (HO-3) policy. This means it is most appropriate for homeowners who have the financial resources to cover a larger portion of a potential loss.

Although HO-8 policies can cost significantly less than traditional HO-3 policies, Citizens recommends extreme caution for homeowners considering purchasing the HO-8 policy strictly for the cost savings. Because of the policy’s major exclusions and lower payouts, there is the potential, in the event of a major claim, for increased costs to homeowners which could far outweigh any premium savings.

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Critical Coverage Provisions
The following is an overview of the more critical coverage provisions in the new CIT HO-8 policy form. It is important that this information be communicated thoroughly in your discussions with any person applying for an HO-8 policy.

· Water Exclusion
The HO-8 does not provide coverage for the peril of water, which accounts for roughly half of all Citizens’ homeowner claims. This means the following occurrences are not covered:

· Accidental discharge or overflow of water or steam from within a plumbing, heating or air conditioning system
· Accidental discharge or overflow from a household appliance
· Sudden or accidental tearing apart, cracking, burning or bulging of a steam or hot water system, air conditioning system, automatic fire protective sprinkler system or water heater
· Freezing


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If their perils are not covered they may look elsewhere for remedies.

[Kevin Hunt]

So you saying if we miss a leak during an inspection someone is going to sue us? How? If this is a home inspection then it was already occurring. We don't warranty or guarantee any plumbing fixtures or appliances... Not really seeing the angle on this I guess.. also these policies will probably be quite rare.

[John Shishilla]

Originally Posted by khunt

So you saying if we miss a leak during an inspection someone is going to sue us? How? If this is a home inspection then it was already occurring. We don't warranty or guarantee any plumbing fixtures or appliances... Not really seeing the angle on this I guess.. also these policies will probably be quite rare.

I am saying if they can not claim it on insurance, they are going to look somewhere.

[Michael J. Meeker]

I believe they will be as common as can be.
I see people loosing their houses daily because they cannot pay the con folks at Citizen's.

Now they are going to pay every bit they can thinking they are doing their family good an poof everything and all their assets and credit will be gone.

Another way for Citizens to get as much money as possible and pay out as little as possible. It should not even be called insurance with those restrictions.

[William H. Smith]

Originally Posted by jshishilla

Inspectors may be more likely to be sued because of this little change.


If their perils are not covered they may look elsewhere for remedies.

You have a point here. Prepare and publish your report correctly and you can eliminate many of potential suits. You can be sued for anything but it is an ignorant lawyer that fights a losing cause. Yea, I know, bunch of them out there also.