I Guess I Will Never Be Hired Again

What I am hearing here is that you were honest about past history on an application because it asked about any lawsuits. Most insurance questionnaires when referring to lawsuit history say in the last five years, or something to the effect of have you ever been sued over a claim on your property, or some other language to the same effect. Did your application specifically list a number of years past or not? If not, was the question specific to property claims? I think someone at the insurance company simply did not do their job, and based on the fact you state there was a lawsuit history, they made a judgment in processing that resulted in a denial for you. I would contact the insurance agent once more, and ask to fill out a new application, and if you must list the lawsuits because there is no other choice, then I would put a supporting statement in there that there was no connection with a property claim on these suits. If this results in a second denial, I would file a complaint with the State Insurance Board citing discrimination. Your lawsuits are of a personal nature and have nothing to do with property claims.

Grace,

I recently requested copies of my credit report. No, there is absolutely nothing on any of them (from all 3 major reporting agencies) about lawsuits.

Here is the reply I received from the insurance company:

The main purpose of the Liability Profile Questionnaire is to determine if
there are any past, present or potential liability exposures. The decision
to increase the liability limits is based on the responses to these
questions. We thank you for your honesty. However, we must adhere to
specific guidelines that apply to this particular situation. These
guidelines apply to all customers who request increasing their liability
to $500,000. Again, we apologize for any inconvenience this has caused
you. Should you have any further questions, please feel free to contact
our customer service department at"

Well, yes, I certainly did email them past and questioned their underwriting guidelines. Remember, I have been a customer for eight years with that company, I have excellent credit, I have never filed any kind of claim with them, I have always paid my bills on time. I lived in the house for 6 years and have rented it out for the last 2. I further let them know that the employment lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice (I would be the meaing that neither party can pursue further legally), and threatened to contact the insurance commissioner. I also let them know that any company would be happy to have me as a customer, based on my record as listed above. I think this is absolutely crazy. I am shopping for another policy, I am just furious that this situation occurred.

Taxgirl,

The liablity questionnaire I filled out requested information on "all lawsuits, past and present." And, no, it was not specific for property claims. Now, I am wondering, if they can even legally ask that kind of question. I had a lawsuit in 1972 when a drunk driver totalled my car and I experienced whiplash. An ambulance chaser got me started in the process. Now, was I supposed to write that down too? I guess so, according to this form.

It was a yes/no checklist, and it allowed about three short lines on the form to explain circumstances. No space was available to explain much of anything. It seems they had no interest in circumstances, but just wanted to screen out anyone with any kind of history, based on the format of the form. That's my impression, although I cannot know for sure.

I sent an email to the company (there is no agent) and explained circumstances to augment my initial checklist.

The more you post, the more I understand the insurance companies position. They are wary of why you want to INCREASE your coverage to a half a million dollars.
From their side of the proverbial fence, it is a red flag especially for someone who has what THEY consider to be a history of lawsuits.

Why is it necessary to increase your coverage?