American Water sewer Line insurance program

I had to re-post after my original post in 2013\. I mentioned that I had the insurance for several of my investment homes and had onr experience which worked out great. I have experienced a completely different company since. Two of my other houses have been denied repair work for a sewer. The said it was pre existing, how could the tell? I had the Insurance for over 18 months and called in my first sewer complaint. I have gone back and forth for months with no success. I was also denied a repair for my main water line, they told me that the pipe was too rusted and the pinhole leak was not new. I am not going to stop here! I knew this was too good to be true and continue to speak to others with the same experience.

brandonser

in About Brooklyn 10 years and 5 months ago

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gpoint | 10 years and 5 months ago

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Any ideas about what you can say to get them out for an evaluation of the line?

helluvajob | 10 years and 5 months ago

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I declined the insurance because of this exclusion: “Repairing any Sewer Line connected to a non-conforming drain line, such as a basement or storm drain system.” Virtually every house in NYC, since the City uses a combined sewer system, puts roof storm drainage into the sewer system. The company would not give me a clear answer as to whether this exclusion would apply.

slopefarm | 10 years and 5 months ago

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And here are the terms and conditions. http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/awr-slpp-terms.pdf See particularly paragraphs 6 and 7, for what is and is not covered. I asked whether damage from tree roots is within “normal wear and tear.” No answer either way. This thread concerns pre-existing conditions – unclear how one determines that. For example, if the pipe rusts through, is it from the time the rust started, or the time the pipe began to leak, etc. Lots of room for disclaimers. Cate – perhaps worth a brownstoner story trying to interview someone at the insurer and get some answers as to scope of coverage and how they address these issues. it has come up a lot on the forum.

dorkofwindsor | 10 years and 5 months ago

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@eileengray – this IS the insurance offered by DEP: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/html/service_line_protection/index.shtml

slopefarm | 10 years and 5 months ago

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Insurance is probably the only sales product where the business model depends on not giving the customer what the customer bought. When the DEP-sponsored program was first offered, I called the insurer and asked about the scope of coverage. I asked specifically whether the policy covered damage to the sewer lines caused by tree roots. No one would tell me. I declined to buy the coverage because IO thought the policy was vague and left a lot of wiggle room to disclaim.

eileengray | 10 years and 5 months ago

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I believe that the water/sewer insurance offered thru DEP is better than that offered by private companies. Too late for the poster now.

dorkofwindsor | 10 years and 5 months ago

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city is complicit with their endorsement of said company and program. To me the key evidence is that if the company has provided its rationale for it being a KNOWN pre-existing condition. No insurance company is going to go into business soliciting adverse selection. For example, home warranty companies do a home inspection to note what is pre-existing. If there is indeed evidence that you knew about the defect them yes, it is expected that they would reject. So that point is key. Technically most waste and water lines do erode gradually over decades, but if you were not aware and get rejected there seems like there should be a problem that should be elevated. You can not offer insurance for which everyone can technically be excluded coverage. Nothing should be done formally over the phone, he/said she/said “misunderstandings” etc. Put it in writing and let them turn you down on the record. Fine legal print does not trump consumer rights in each state, but verbal communication can not be proven. Having said that maybe @brandonser can provide more detail on how the company alleges that she/he knew of the condition before signing up for insurance.

eman134 | 10 years and 5 months ago

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It always sounded like a scam to me…the preexisting condition clause looked like a way to deny all claims

dorkofwindsor | 10 years and 5 months ago

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this should bread and butter stuff for the attorney generals office. the city endorses this company to insure sewer and water mains, and does not want to pay. it is also a nice story for the newspapers. technically nearly every customer is a pre-existing condition (!!). this sounds like fraud, plain and simple. you need to contact the attorney generals office and then let American Water know who you spoke with there. then let them know that the next move will be to the press and a class action lawsuit. don’t be a wuss! they are counting on it (literally – counting their money) Anyone who googles this thread should post any similar experiences so we can gauge critical mass of this problem.

landlord | 10 years and 5 months ago

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Sue them