Furious with me and my insurance company

[telleutelleme]

When my wife was alive, she handled the accounting, the money, the bills, my allowance. She also chose the insurance providers; including bundling home and auto. When she passed and I sold her car I removed it from our auto policy. Pretty much kept auto-paying the home and auto each month.

Started getting the usual ads for cheaper home and auto with some cost estimates. Home was the same but the auto was significantly cheaper, like 1/2. I started looking, found the policy online and noticed my wife was still listed as a driver on my truck. Oh damn forgot to take her off. Called them up, explained that she had passed a year ago, but was still listed. Lady said no problem we will take her off and you will get a refund for the remaining balance.

I in my simple mind said, can I apply the refund towards next years' insurance given I have been paying double for a whole year. The lady then explained they would only give me a refund for the month of notification and that amount would cover me for the rest of the year. I said I could provide any documentation needed to show she was not a driver during the whole year. Not an insignificant amount of money paid in. Nope that was their policy. Angry I hung up knowing I would not use them for next year.

So today in the mail I received an envelope with their "How to grieve" publication, full of information about dealing with a death in the family. To say this has made me even madder is an understatement. I won't mention the company name as I suspect they are all the same, but greed has an amazing way to show its ugly nature. Not sure how this "upon notification" rule is protecting them in any way.

Sorry had to rant on this.

 

[Toto'sDad]

When my wife was alive, she handled the accounting, the money, the bills, my allowance. She also chose the insurance providers; including bundling home and auto. When she passed and I sold her car I removed it from our auto policy. Pretty much kept auto-paying the home and auto each month.

Started getting the usual ads for cheaper home and auto with some cost estimates. Home was the same but the auto was significantly cheaper, like 1/2. I started looking, found the policy online and noticed my wife was still listed as a driver on my truck. Oh damn forgot to take her off. Called them up, explained that she had passed a year ago, but was still listed. Lady said no problem we will take her off and you will get a refund for the remaining balance.

I in my simple mind said, can I apply the refund towards next years' insurance given I have been paying double for a whole year. The lady then explained they would only give me a refund for the month of notification and that amount would cover me for the rest of the year. I said I could provide any documentation needed to show she was not a driver during the whole year. Not an insignificant amount of money paid in. Nope that was their policy. Angry I hung up knowing I would not use them for next year.

So today in the mail I received an envelope with their "How to grieve" publication, full of information about dealing with a death in the family. To say this has made me even madder is an understatement. I won't mention the company name as I suspect they are all the same, but greed has an amazing way to show its ugly nature. Not sure how this "upon notification" rule is protecting them in any way.

Sorry had to rant on this.

I'm sorry that this has happened to you. In today's world, if you are doing business with someone, they send ALL of your correspondence to a place out near the sun where they broadcast it to the universe at large! I am most likely going to disconnect from my insurance company this year because they simply will not leave me alone. I am inundated with emails offering to hook me up with anything you can imagine to buy, and some I haven't and wouldn't have thought of.

My wife has always paid the bills, but the post office has become so unreliable in mail delivery, that I am trying to pay everything I can with a credit card. Some autopay some I have to pay every month. It's quite a job, I much preferred our old arrangement where my wife took care of everything.

Every time I say things used to be better someone says that isn't true. Well, it may be untrue for them, but for me, it is absolutely true.

 

[Timbresmith1]

When my wife was alive, she handled the accounting, the money, the bills, my allowance. She also chose the insurance providers; including bundling home and auto. When she passed and I sold her car I removed it from our auto policy. Pretty much kept auto-paying the home and auto each month.

Started getting the usual ads for cheaper home and auto with some cost estimates. Home was the same but the auto was significantly cheaper, like 1/2. I started looking, found the policy online and noticed my wife was still listed as a driver on my truck. Oh damn forgot to take her off. Called them up, explained that she had passed a year ago, but was still listed. Lady said no problem we will take her off and you will get a refund for the remaining balance.

I in my simple mind said, can I apply the refund towards next years' insurance given I have been paying double for a whole year. The lady then explained they would only give me a refund for the month of notification and that amount would cover me for the rest of the year. I said I could provide any documentation needed to show she was not a driver during the whole year. Not an insignificant amount of money paid in. Nope that was their policy. Angry I hung up knowing I would not use them for next year.

So today in the mail I received an envelope with their "How to grieve" publication, full of information about dealing with a death in the family. To say this has made me even madder is an understatement. I won't mention the company name as I suspect they are all the same, but greed has an amazing way to show its ugly nature. Not sure how this "upon notification" rule is protecting them in any way.

Sorry had to rant on this.

Name the company. Unless this kind of behavior is made public (and there are economic consequences) they never change.

 

[trandy9850]

I just love it when some corporation tells me how I should feel.

How the hell would they have any idea what I might be going through?

Geesh….what idiots.

 

[teletail]

So you forgot to take your late wife off the insurance policy and you’re mad at the company because they won’t back date it. Then a company actually listens to you, tries to show some compassion by sending you a pamphlet on grieving and you’re mad at that too?

OK.

 

[telleutelleme]

So you forgot to take your late wife off the insurance policy and you’re mad at the company because they won’t back date it. Then a company actually listens to you, tries to show some compassion by sending you a pamphlet on grieving and you’re mad at that too?

OK.

Agreed, I forgot to take my dead wife off the policy as a driver. All my fault.

I caught it a year later and their compassion was to send me a pamphlet on how to handle my recent loss & grief? You bet I'm mad.

Why wouldn't they back date it? Nothing out of pocket to them? They had zero risk of my wife getting in a wreck or making a claim. Free money to them for a year. Yes, I don't think their reaction showed any interest in either my financial loss or the loss of my wife.

 

[TomBrokaw]

So you forgot to take your late wife off the insurance policy and you’re mad at the company because they won’t back date it. Then a company actually listens to you, tries to show some compassion by sending you a pamphlet on grieving and you’re mad at that too?

OK.

I wouldn't have phrased it that way, but I have to agree. Sounds like misplaced anger rooted in grief. I don't blame ya OP - who thinks about car insurance when their spouse dies? - but I can't agree that the insurance company is to blame for anything here.

 

[t-ray]

First of all, it sucks to lose your spouse, a situation I found myself in. I wish you all the best but it is a rough road. Hard to understand how companies can’t figure this out, that it is other people that they are selling their stuff to.

 

[57joonya]

When my wife was alive, she handled the accounting, the money, the bills, my allowance. She also chose the insurance providers; including bundling home and auto. When she passed and I sold her car I removed it from our auto policy. Pretty much kept auto-paying the home and auto each month.

Started getting the usual ads for cheaper home and auto with some cost estimates. Home was the same but the auto was significantly cheaper, like 1/2. I started looking, found the policy online and noticed my wife was still listed as a driver on my truck. Oh damn forgot to take her off. Called them up, explained that she had passed a year ago, but was still listed. Lady said no problem we will take her off and you will get a refund for the remaining balance.

I in my simple mind said, can I apply the refund towards next years' insurance given I have been paying double for a whole year. The lady then explained they would only give me a refund for the month of notification and that amount would cover me for the rest of the year. I said I could provide any documentation needed to show she was not a driver during the whole year. Not an insignificant amount of money paid in. Nope that was their policy. Angry I hung up knowing I would not use them for next year.

So today in the mail I received an envelope with their "How to grieve" publication, full of information about dealing with a death in the family. To say this has made me even madder is an understatement. I won't mention the company name as I suspect they are all the same, but greed has an amazing way to show its ugly nature. Not sure how this "upon notification" rule is protecting them in any way.

Sorry had to rant on this.

Insurance companies have been on a sharp decline for at least 20 yrs . They will take advantage/ rip you off any way they can. In my experience. That’s why I just dropped my workers comp policy

 

[Tim S]

So you forgot to take your late wife off the insurance policy and you’re mad at the company because they won’t back date it. Then a company actually listens to you, tries to show some compassion by sending you a pamphlet on grieving and you’re mad at that too?

OK.

I take it you’re not a widower? (I always questioned some decisions my dad made when he became a widower. 12 years later when I became a widower, I then understood completely)

My sympathies to @telleutelleme . I’d be PO’d too. The insurance company’s response wasn’t heart-felt, my guess is that response was a checkbox on a list that legal drew up.

 

[Danb541]

Sorry for your loss OP.
The "that's our policy" line is often one that creates anger for me too, but I get why they say it. They'd probably need an entire department to refund/backdate policies like this. It's probably common.
I'm not sure why you take such offense to the mailing they sent. I can't imagine their intentions were to upset you.

 

[bender66]

Somewhere in the chain someone had to set that in motion. Imagine being the idiotic punch drunk that thought THIS will help your burden. So inappropriate.

I'd make sure they knew why I wasnt using them in the future. I'd also make sure I was talking to someone on the phone, if you get my drift.

 

[CCK1]

Sorry for your loss As for the insurance company, “You’re in good hands” Yeah, right…

 

[Winky]

When my wife was alive, she handled the accounting, the money, the bills, my allowance. She also chose the insurance providers; including bundling home and auto. When she passed and I sold her car I removed it from our auto policy. Pretty much kept auto-paying the home and auto each month.

Started getting the usual ads for cheaper home and auto with some cost estimates. Home was the same but the auto was significantly cheaper, like 1/2. I started looking, found the policy online and noticed my wife was still listed as a driver on my truck. Oh damn forgot to take her off. Called them up, explained that she had passed a year ago, but was still listed. Lady said no problem we will take her off and you will get a refund for the remaining balance.

I in my simple mind said, can I apply the refund towards next years' insurance given I have been paying double for a whole year. The lady then explained they would only give me a refund for the month of notification and that amount would cover me for the rest of the year. I said I could provide any documentation needed to show she was not a driver during the whole year. Not an insignificant amount of money paid in. Nope that was their policy. Angry I hung up knowing I would not use them for next year.

So today in the mail I received an envelope with their "How to grieve" publication, full of information about dealing with a death in the family. To say this has made me even madder is an understatement. I won't mention the company name as I suspect they are all the same, but greed has an amazing way to show its ugly nature. Not sure how this "upon notification" rule is protecting them in any way.

Sorry had to rant on this.

Sorry to hear about this. I'm curious as to why having your wife signed on as a driver would increase the premium significantly in the first place. In my experience a large premium uplift generally only applies to young (i.e statistically terrible, terrible high-risk drivers) drivers signing onto a policy held by an older (and statistically safer) person (such as their parents or carer).

 

[Winky]

Insurance companies have been on a sharp decline for at least 20 yrs . They will take advantage/ rip you off any way they can. In my experience. That’s why I just dropped my workers comp policy

Insurance is a poverty trap. It takes advantage of people who can't afford to carry their own risk.

On an associated tack, I actually think people insuring their own car against the damage they cause to it should actually be made illegal. Third party insurance to cover the damage drivers cause to others is all that's really needed. If someone crashes their car, the only costs that should be "covered" are those borne by others. The damage they did to their own car? That's on them. People would drive MUCH more carefully if there were any real financial consequences to the distracted, impatient, incompetent and negligent driving that is seemingly standard practice these days...

 

[Mjark]

Oh damn forgot to take her off.

I'm so sorry for your loss but I don't understand why you're upset with your insurer. It was your (understandable) error not theirs. As for the pamphlet well, it shows they were listening.

 

[dogmeat]

whenever insurance comes up I like to throw in a couple experiences. Hartford is the worst. they actually helped a guy commit fraud by paying his fraudulent claim against my wife. they did not look at the "damage" that was supposedly done to either car (they hit mirrors... neither broke), (it was a scam setup from the start). they did not ask me or my wife any questions, in fact they did not even contact me. they paid this guy 5k, then upped my rate. so, I got a lotta words for Hartford (and AARP) and none can be posted here. the other is the "good hands" guys. pipe leaked and filled the downstairs bathroom ceiling. it collapsed, etc. I call the insurance and he says right up front my rate will increase if I file. well come look and tell me if its worth filing. "if I come out your rate will go up". even if I don't file? "even if you don't file"

 

[emu!]

I have two trucks.
I'm the only driver listed for each.
I don't understand why I have to pay for insurance on both autos.
I can only drive one at a time.

 

[bottlenecker]

So you forgot to take your late wife off the insurance policy and you’re mad at the company because they won’t back date it. Then a company actually listens to you, tries to show some compassion by sending you a pamphlet on grieving and you’re mad at that too?

OK.

It's insult to injury. He didn't receive the product he paid for, and they won't refund it because they're thieves.

 

[boris bubbanov]

Name the company. Unless this kind of behavior is made public (and there are economic consequences) they never change.

I agree, name them.

But I don't think anything will change. Insurance Companies and most other Large Corporations make a practice of stiffing their customers, in all sorts of situations.

I can't recall the name of the company my friend was talking about right now, but he'd bought insurance on his boy's car, a car to be used there at college. Paid for 4 years' worth of coverage when it turns out, the boy had donated the car away to charity, in the middle of his sophomore year, just hadn't told his folks. That's right: Ins. Co. accepted payment for 2.5 years' of coverage there was no way they could have provided. No recourse. This company could have determined that the car was no longer registered to the family, but they have no incentive to do so.