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#16 Thursday August 14, 1997
Dear Brefni I view your site with interest from time to time. As an insurance broker, I am somewhat dismayed by the apparent intended direction of the site and the lack of positive comment. I do not dispute for one moment the validity of the facts which you have stated regarding your claim. However, I must state that your experience is not the norm. The majority of claimants in Canada who have claims such as yours for the first time, are in absolute amazement at the care, concern and generosity offered up by their insurers. Those people however, seldom publicize their delite as it seems that for many people it is much more pleasurable to complain than compliment. I would venture to say that if you had an Email from all of the happy insurance claimants in Canada, you would need to buy a few more servers to handle the volume on your site. I have dealt with upwards of 10,000 individuals in my 30+ year career and other than the occasional difference of opinion on values of certain items, I am pleased to report that I have had very few unhappy clients. Those that were unhappy were generally those who misrepresented their situation at the time they applied for insurance and found out later that honesty and full disclosure of facts by the buyer are paramount to the success of any insurance contract. Human beings tend to want to "get a deal". The "what they don't know won't hurt them" theory of business does not work with insurance. One of the basic and mandatory tenets of insurance is "utmost good faith", both by the buyer and the seller. When one of them breaks that rule, the process deteriorates. I am not suggesting for one moment that you are guilty of violating the "utmost good faith" rule, but I am willing to suggest that a good number of unsatisfied claimants are. Since I am very proud of the Insurance Industry and the good value that it provides to both Canadian individuals and the Canadian economy, I am going on record to state that Insurance Companies are not bad...They are good! They save thousands of Canadians from bankruptcy every year and keep hundreds of companies who would die without claims settlements on their losses from going bankrupt. Hence, they keep roofs over the heads of individuals and they keep others gainfully employed by allowing companies to stay in business after their businesses burn down, blow up, or get washed away in floods. Think what would happen if lets say, an auto manufacturing plant in Ontario blew up , or a sawmill in BC burned down...Where would the employees go to work if there was no insurance? Remember the Exon Valdeez oil spill. Who paid for the clean up?... An insurance company. Remember all of the hurricanes all over the world? Who pays for the damage?... Insurance companies do! Hospitals all over the world are full of people injured in traffic accidents with an insurance company standing solidly behind them paying the bills. Billions of dollars are paid out by insurance companies every year for events that would have disastrous results for victims without the benefit of insurance. The rotten sods. How dare they do these good things without getting any good publicity for them?!! Getting back to your specific problem, I suggest that something went awry. However, we have only heard one side of the story. If in fact everything you say is absolute fact, you need a good lawyer. An insurance policy is after all, a contract. If the contract is broken, the issue can be resolved in a court of law. If a judge or a jury of your peers feels that you are right and the insurance company is wrong, then you win. There should be no problem, based on your statements. You might want to have a chat with your broker about his involvement as well. If one of my client's claims starts to go bad, I take over from the adjuster and get the thing settled. I get paid by my clients to provide a good product and I expect that client to get good value. If he /she doesn't (get good value) I become quite annoyed and pull out all of the stops. That is the mark of a professional broker and one who has earned his commission. Please don't misconstrue my comments. If in fact your side of the story is the only correct side, then you deserve satisfaction. My point is simply that Insurance Companies are generally solid, upstanding businesses who deserve a good deal of respect and gratitude.
David Romfort, Insurance Broker
not for publication
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Brefni's Response
Thanks for your input. This site will have a diminished value if it becomes simply a complaints forum. Input from people who are delighted with their insurance claims experience would be most welcome and I would be happy to deal with as much input as I can within my limited resources. It would be far more preferable to deal with an insurance company, broker, adjuster, contractor, etc. that will provide satisfaction. No one needs added problems when they are faced with disaster of any kind. As a general observation input from brokers seems to be that there is a high level of satisfaction among consumers, yet the input from consumers is that they are not satisfied with their claims experience. Information on this site linked to individual insurance companies and service companies shows a wide range of satisfaction. Some companies are highly regarded and others have a very high level of consumer dissatisfaction. Consumer feedback would indicate that there is a difference between companies, that there are companies that are likely to deal fairly and others that are not. Again thanks for taking the time to add your input to the site.
#15 Monday July 21, 1997
In 1988 we suffered a total constructive loss of our home due to fire. I had at one time worked for an insurance company and was familiar with the contract. Our greatest horror turned out to be the restoration company sent in to help. Canadian Fire Restortation of Burlington, ON, Canada. Their dishonesty was overwhelming. About six months into the claim we realized many discrepancies on the contents salvaged - as a great deal had survived undamaged. We were prevented access to our contents and eventually had to buy an outbuilding so we could recover the contents and evaluate the extent of the loss ourselves. After video taping unpacking of all returned items it was apparent that several thousand dollars of items were missing and we had to report this loss to the police. Afterwards, we learned from other people working in the insurance industry that this restoration company had a known reputation for theft from other insurance claimants.
Janice Downton, Software Development
visoft@worldchat.com
Hamilton, ON, Canada
Brefni's Response
Thanks for taking the time to share your experience. I know how painful it can be going over a bad experience. We also reported our experience to the police. They advised us to try and work matters out with Commercial Union and get back to them if we didn't get satisfaction. It is something we are likely to have to do. If you would like to share the name of the insurance company that used this company the CUCF consumer survey is now up and running. By sharing your experience you are helping others avoid the same pitfalls.
#14 Tuesday June 24, 1997
The existance of a site like this is proof of the low level of consumer confidence and satisfaction with the manner in which the insurance industry handles claims. We all need insurance; indeed in many instances it is mandatory in order to partcipate, eg. car insurance. When will the insurance industry as a whole, start to accept the fact that the low opinion consumers have of their industry is based upon the consumer experience? Has someone who actually works in the insurance business ever experienced the frustration and disillusion of making an insurance claim? There is a high degree of self regulation within the insurance but very little commitment to consumer satisfaction. Perhaps there is a fear of change on the part of insurance company employees and management. As for ajusters. What is the job of an adjustor? Who does the adjustor work for? If you have ever had to deal with an adjustor didn't you feel a conflict of interest on the adjustor's part? What do you do with a less than satisfactory offer to settle? I had a claim for which I was not satisfied with the workmanship. I refused to sign a waiver and assumed that I would then hear from the adjustor. Not so! Never another word! Did the insurance company pay the contractor for all of the work, that I the insured, the client, refused to accept as satisfactory? I will never know. Time is of the essence for insurance disputes; but what does this mean? Delay and the associated costs and stress of trying to resolve your own affairs!
S.T.Owen
stowen@globalserve.net
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
#13 Sunday June 22, 1997
Glad to see the Consumer's Forum continuing to develop!
Ken
ken@2shoes.com
Two Shoes
Belleville
#12 Monday June 2, 1997
Financial Adviser is an FT publication. They have a web site at www.iii.co.uk/ftmags I think.
Ian Dickson
ian@iand.demon.co.uk
Moneyweb - www.moneyweb.co.uk
na, UK
Brefni's Response
Thanks for the continuing interest and contributions. Visitors to the guest book may have noticed earlier contributions beginning to disappear. The Guest book can only accomodate the ten most recent contributions. Contributions beyond the current 10 will be available in a guest book archive as soon as I can manage to accomplish the task. It's on the list after children and the laundry. A very kitchen sink way of doing things and I apologize. The link to the article is www.iii.co.uk/ftmags/fa/ Anyone who has seen the photographs of our house on the home page of this site will realize that our house didn't burn down.
#11 Sunday June 1, 1997
Thanks for your note and the information about the site to check out!
Amy Desson, Internet Producer
talkback@wvit.com
na, na
Brefni's Response
Thank you for your attention and interest. The Commercial Union Consumers' Forum is not meant to be a substitute for my family's day(s) in court. Our family is one of hundreds of millions (if not more) of families around the world that depend on insurance in time of need. Securing our rights throught the courts is a poor substitute for an insurance policy that is readily and willingly honoured. I believe that consumers have to right to know not only the kind but the quality of insurance they are purchasing and that insurance agents and brokers have an obligation to be informed about not just the kind of insurance they are selling but also the quality. Threats of law suits can only discourage already vulnerable families from speaking out if they feel they have something to say. If there is any value in this site I beleive it should be measured against the goal of making these peoples' experiences widely and readily available.
The next 10 earlier entries can be accessed in the next page of the guest book archive.
Help others to make an informed decision
.....If you are interested in sharing your claims experience with others take the time to add your story concerning an insurance company, adjuster or contractor to our guest book or Consumer Survey. In the past this individual experience has been unavailable with a few exceptions, other than as part of a statistic on consumer satisfaction. Become more than a statistic by sharing your experience with others.
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