Normally, you know when those inspections are coming, so you can prepare your home. But increasingly, insurance companies are using less visible tools to check out the exterior of your home, employing drones and satellite imagery to check that your roof is in good shape, that you’re doing proper maintenance to the exterior walls and landscaping, and that you’re not using your property in a manner that conflicts with your policy agreement. And you need to worry about this because it changes the core dynamic around home inspections. Here’s what you need to know—and how to react.
Unreliable. The images secured via drone and satellite are usually pretty low-quality. A man living in Florida had his insurance canceled when a drone photographed his roof—he described the photo as looking “like it was taken in 1936.” These images are often plagued by shadows and artifacts that are misinterpreted as damage, and insurers are sometimes picking up satellite images that are years out of date and using them to justify rate increases or policy cancellations.
Lack of warning. These inspections often happen without your knowledge, so the first time you hear about them might be when you receive a notice that your rates are rising or your policy won’t be renewed. At that point, it might be much more difficult to fight the decision if the physical state of your house has changed. And it removes your chance to make adjustments in advance of the inspection if you’re doing something with the property you know could be misunderstood or misconstrued.
Cancelation notices: Know the notice requirements for cancelations in your state. If your insurer is relying on an automated system, you might receive a cancelation notice without the proper notice, and you can fight that.
Review the exterior. You might not even be aware of aspects of your home’s exterior that could be flagged on drone footage or satellite images. If your roof is in good shape but has moss growing on it, for example, that could be flagged. Consider what your home looks like from above.
What to do before (and after) you receive a rate increase or cancelation
One way to avoid surprise events resulting from drones and satellite photos is to stop waiting for inspections to do necessary maintenance. If you normally wait until your homeowners insurance announces an inspection to get roof repairs and other work done on the house, well, stop doing that. Regular maintenance and repair of the exterior of the home will insulate you from nasty drone-related surprises.
You can also hire a home inspector to submit a report. If the drone inspection showed signs of disrepair or roof failure, a certified inspector’s report stating the age and condition of the roof may be persuasive.
If you know there are aspects of your house that might be flagged by a drone or satellite review of your property—a pool you didn’t inform your insurer about, or that aforementioned trampoline—there’s one final rule: Don’t try to hide it. Covering things with tarps or other camouflage won’t work, and in fact might lead to a policy cancelation all by themselves as they might be seen as red flags.
If you’re concerned about something on your property in regards to your insurance coverage, it’s best to either get rid of it or see if you can add coverage for it to your existing policy. Trying to hide it from the eye in the sky will almost certainly backfire.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( How Insurance Companies Use Drones to Raise Your Rates (and What to Do About It) )
Also on site :