Travelers Insurance - Cancelling - No Claims

[Justin Holley]

For several years I have had Travelers for many of my out of state self managed properties.  After years of on time payments and no claims I receive a letter stating unless I send them verification of professional management they are cancelling my policies at month's end.  I received this letter 4 days before month's end.  

Has anyone else had this experience?

Who are the most competitive insurance companies in Indiana for regular landlord insurance?

Thank you.

[Bjorn Ahlblad]

I have not had that experience. Farmers has worked well for me you might give them a try.

[Chris Davidson]

@Justin Holley I have not had that issue, but what do they deem professional management (does 4 years self management qualify as professional status?) I would look up insurance brokers in the area you invest and get one of them to quote you. The nice thing about them is they are like a middle man and agent except they find who has the best rates and set up the policy for you. Since going to brokers it has saved me time and money. Also 4 days and like 2 business days that is ridiculous.

Best of luck!

[Suzanne Player]

Not a bad time to shop the rates either 

[Jason Bott]

@Justin Holley If you can name someone local as your PM, they will probably keep the policies in force.

Insurance companies want to see local management in place.  The common guideline is if the owner lives more than 75 miles away, they want a local 3rd party PM.

This hasn't been enforced the last few years, but with the insurance market for rental properties getting tighter, the underwriting guidelines will continue to harden.

[Bo Bond]

Justin,

There could be a whole slew of reasons why a carrier might do something like this in my experience.  Below are just a few of those reasons.  I'm not saying any of these apply to your specific situation, but any of these could be the case if you're being non-renewed and haven't had any losses and don't know why.  That said, if you ask your agent, they should certainly be able to find out.  Now whether the reply makes any sense at all to you or your agent is another story, and in most cases it doesn't have to make sense as long as the carrier gives you ample amount of notification (30 days written notice in most states, 60 in some).

* They no longer have an appetite for residential landlord type exposures.

* They've been burned in your area (city, county, state) writing landlord policies.  This is more about their overall loss ratio when it comes to landlord policies and exposures, and not about your specific account (with no losses).

* They like to jump in and jump out of certain types of niche markets every few years or so.  If this is the case, they may build up their portfolio and then back away from any new business going forward, or even start to non-renew accounts in certain areas that are more prone to certain weather related events.

* New director/VP of underwriting who's had a bad experience with the landlord policies in general, and has brought that hesitation to the company.

* Something material has changed about the account (values have exceeded their acceptable threshold, total insured value is too large for all properties combined, liability issues have arisen in the area where your rentals are located, etc.).

* Carrier gets uneasy about an exposure at one of your properties (you allow certain dog breeds, you don't require tenants to carry renters coverage, you have a pool at one of your rentals, etc.).

* Carrier inspected some of your homes and didn't like the exposures or condition of the homes (roof is too old, plumbing/electrical concerns, overgrown trees around the home, other hazards, etc.).  In most cases they might send you a request to fix these items before they send a non-renewal.  Some may not.

 * Carrier might send a non-renewal if you haven't sent them any updated details or information about your properties/exposures that they've requested.  

* Due to a hardening insurance market, carriers might be looking to non-renew clients/accounts that they feel have a higher probability of filing claims than other clients/accounts.  This isn't based off your current loss history, but more about the industry you're connected to.

Hope this helps.

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Justin Holley:

It's illegal for them to cancel coverage with such short notice. I would contact them, explain when you received notice, and ask for a 30-day extension to find a new provider.

[Gloria N Gear]

Talk to Ted King with Goosehead Insurance -- he is a broker so can shop the rates for you.  He is an investor himself and a go-to for hundreds of investors in the Central Indiana area.  He increased my coverage, added an umbrella policy and saved me about $2000 a year on my properties. (His team is fast, so hopefully you won't have any gap in coverage).  I will PM you his contact info.