HOLIDAY, Utah (ABC 4 News) - With no warning a Utah woman lost her homeowners insurance…for a strange reason.
Patricia Hanson has been with the insurance company for over a decade but in May it canceled her policy because of chipped paint and weeds.
If someone were to drive by and take a picture of Hanson’s home they may think it was in bad shape. Hanson agrees, but says what you’re seeing is renovation in progress. Many other Utah homeowners are doing the same thing and she doesn’t understand why her insurance company has ditched her.
Hanson has been planning the upgrades to her home for some time now but before she had the chance to get them done her insurance company pulled the plug, cancelling her homeowner’s policy, she claims, without any notice.
“I didn't have a call from anybody, no contact, I don't even know who drove by, just came out of the blue,” says Hanson.
Hanson says she got this letter in may after making a payment to renew her policy. She was stunned that it was explaining the reasons for cancellation. The one paragraph letter says, "Peeling paint on all portions of the dwelling. Overgrown vegetation…peeling paint on garage siding, window sills missing paint."
Hanson explained work is being done to fix it.
“If you look around you will see that most of the paint is on the ground here because we've been power washing,” says Hanson. “I'm getting rid of this, all the grass, going to a zero-scape so this is all covered to kill any of the grass that was left.”
Hanson’s insurance agent is out of town but did say on the phone they do give advanced warning when cancelling a policy. He said he will re-instate Hanson when the fixes are made and find her other coverage in the meantime.
Brad Tibbitts with the Utah Insurance Department says he’s heard of cases like this but they’re uncommon.
“The insurance companies have the right to find out whether or not the house is in good enough shape to be eligible for the premium rates,” says Tibbitts.
He says they have to give a client 30 days notice before cancellation. Homeowners are not required to notify their insurance companies before remodeling or upgrade work but it's not a bad idea.
