Home insurance
 

I am looking to hear your recommendations and/or red flags about HOME INSURANCE companies and agents in TV. Any details regarding rates and/or claims for a 2 bdrm, 2 bath mobile home would be helpful.

We have Progressive through The Villages Insurance. I found progressive's pricing to be very competitive and remember when comparing prices the amount of coverage you have for liability and contents contributes to the cost so be sure to compare apples with apples. That being said, I would not recommend The Villages Insurance and will most likely keep progressive but change agents at some point. TV Insurance has very pool customer service, at least with my experiences with the, and many times you have to wait 24 hours or an entire weekend to talk with anyone over there. Most independent agents will get back to you quickly.

The OP is asking about a mobile home. Does Progressive insure mobile homes? Shopping for mobile home insurance is completely different from other homes.

According to their website Progressive does write policies on "mobile" homes.

We are shopping to replace our current homeowners insurance. We are working with Villages Insurance and they have been responsive and helpful. VI had presented us with quotes from two companies that are considerably less than our current. It appears that insurance companies are starting to require Wind Mitigation Reports for houses built before 2002. I am not sure if this requirement would apply to mobile homes.

We have Progressive in The Villages but had to get Foremost for our lake mobile home in Georgia. Satisfied with Progressive and Foremost so far.

We got a letter from AIG this month stating they were changing our deductible for roof replacement from $500 to $15,000 deductible. This is for wind and hail, however hurricane is still $500. They stated the reason is because they are having to replace a lot of roofs in the Villages. They then say if you still want the $500 deductible their new rate for that is $2000/year which is double what we were paying. Reminds me of years back when State Farm dropped insuring homes in The Villages due to too many hurricane claims in Florida.

We found Allstate a little cheaper than Village insurance and went with them.

When we got the renewal a few months ago the increase was a lot smaller than I was thinking we would get.

No claims so no idea how well they would be handled.

Roof age can and eventually will be an issue regarding price and insurability. Also be sure to find out insurers coverage for catastrophic and non-catastrophic sink hole coverage.

Florida homeowners insurance
 

The Wall Street Journal had an instructive article about the soaring increases of home insurance possibly cooling the housing boom in Florida. Increases in the range of 20 to 60 per cent or more are becoming the norm if the carriers will even renew the policies. Sham roof claims and litigious activities were cited as causes for huge losses accrued to the insurance companies beyond the recent hurricane losses. Sounds like big insurance hikes are coming.

Mobile/manufactured homes are tricky. They represent a big hurricane risk to insurers. Insurability often depends on year built (the building codes got more restrictive for later built homes), and the tie down system securing the homes. Many insurance companies dropped them from their insurance portfolios. Many people that own manufactured homes opt to only carry renters insurance, which covers the contents of the home, but not the home itself. The reasoning for this is that the risk is minimal relative to the cost of insurance. Most of the actual value is the land the home is built on and the contents of the home, not the home itself. Of course, if there is a mortgage on the home the lender will require homeowners insurance to protect the value of their collateral.

Thanks for all the comments so far.

I purchased a preowned home in TV and a relative recommended the Allstate, Bascom Agency. Excellent Customer Service, Patiently answered all of my questions, returned phone calls, emails. I would recommend highly. 352-753-1177

Insurance Recommendation
 

Garrett Johnson of the Southern Insurance Group has saved us money on our auto and homeowners insurance for the last five years.

Insurance
 

We have Progressive Insurance through AAA. They are an unbiased group. Watch out for No-Name insurance peddled by The Villages insurance. They tried to sell me insurance that no one ever heard of - no history of claim payment, not rated by BBB & not listed in JD Powers website. YES, they were cheaper than other companies.

The Villages Insurance recommended Progressive.

After checking with other companies on our own, they were the cheapest, by far...

Interesting replies, I have TVI, and they told me Travelers was the lowest quote. So that's whom I went with.

My sister just recommended this co to me. She said their price was a little bit better than others, full coverage, speak directly to a person who knows the plans instead of a broker who goves back & forth with info.

Have not used them myself, but i might.
If you call them, please let us know what you think.


Kin Insurance Achieves $100 Million Premium Run Rate in 1.75 Years

When we bought 20 years ago the insurance company did not mention when mitigation reports. This is for a stick build house not a mobile home however and we did not realize the huge discount was available when we found out from a new company about them it was about $50 to get the report and we could save about $200 a year I was really mad about the original company agency not talking to me after all they're supposed to represent me aren't they.

Insurance companies
 

Please keep in mind that there are well over 50 or 75 insurance companies operating in Florida. You should really contact the State department that handles insurance and get a list or go online. Something I never realized is that there is some companies it only handle insurance for a certain groups, like companies or or Banks for armed forces, or firemen. You should also go and get as many quotes online as possible as the rates can vary 100 or 200%

You should also know that rates vary according to your credit report scores and that if you or your partner have a better rate you should apply in that person's name first, the same goes for auto insurance

We are actively getting quotes for our new home and not only did State Farm give us a quote, they were one of the lowest.

Do you know of any other Progressive agents?

Callie Bridges
Frank Slaughter Insurance Agency, Inc
Phone: (352)748-2221
Fax: (352)748-0342
callie@frankslaughterinsurance.com

I used her for a mobile home in FL. She went through foremost. They are a major mobile home insurance carrier. She was great.

Every one will have someone. Each is different. Just start calling you will find your home.

Talk to an agent at AAA in Spanish Springs or at Sumter Landing. I changed from the Villages Insurance to working with AAA. What have you got to lose?

Insurance is interesting. There is no shortage of companies to sell you insurance. If, you have a loss, a claim, only then do you discover how good is what you have been paying for.

My mother worked for an insurance broker. It was amusing to hear about the nonsense claimants would pull. Later, not in Florida, we had a neighbor who was an insurance investigator. Similar tales. At the time, I was into fishing. Some guy put in a claim for
several stolen fishing rods valued at about $100 each complete with a paid receipt for them. Only trouble with the claim is the fact that the store never sold equipment in that price category.

All insurance companies are rated. Auto insurance for example. Your car is totaled.
You are completely innocent, your car was legally parked at the time. The insurance company offers to pay you $$$$$$. You will find you cannot buy the same car you had for that little. Or, again you are completely innocent. Your car is damaged and you have it repaired. Later you go to sell that same car. It is worth less because it has been repaired. You never recover that loss. For that matter you never recover for the time to complete the forms, time on the phone. letters etc. It can and usually does cost you hours.

NO, I've not had a claim in over 25 years. That one my car was legally parked. Someone
decided they could squeeze by I was there at the time. I had a film camera with me-pre cell phones. I got the name phone number from the repair guy who was up on a ladder at the time and was laughing at the stupidity of the driver who hit my car. The company was GEICO. Took them over a year to recover my deductible. I had rental car coverage.
I went through hell to get that money paid and they used this as an excuse to dramatically raise my rate. Some nonsense that due to their error I was paying too little.
I am still amused that they call me trying to sell me insurance. You would not want to be some poor snook calling me to sell me GEICO insurance.

We tend to think I've been with this company for xxxxxx years. So if there is a claim they will know I am a loyal customer. Only a small percentage of customers shop and change.
When, you shop around you will likely find a better deal. They need to attract new customers. A loyal customer will likely be rewarded by paying more for the same coverage.

I have TV insurance. I live in Buttonwood. It has gone up $450 this year. YIKES !!! They said it went up because so many people got new roofs

also if you go thru the villages they prohibit you from contacting the insurance company directly. that is put into your file at the insurance company.

It's pretty easy to find cheaper insurance rates but it's how they treat your claims if you happen to have one. I don't think I've heard anybody say they've had a good experience with their claim issues yet.

Insuring a mobile home is different than a house. Progressive is a company that Insures mobile homes. I also think AllState insures them also. Best thing to do is just start calling different companies. If you Goggle your question you may find more companies. Good Luck!!

Best quote
 

I found the best price for my manufactured home at Brightway Insurance Agency | Get a Quote
Have never filed a claim so don't know about that.

ins
 

Southern Ins Group is good. I just got Tower Hill Insurance thru them at a pretty reasonable rate.

Include me in (though not about insuring a mobile home). ! I had a "good experience" with a claim with AAA South—one of the many roof claims we hear about lately. Friends recommended their roofing company, explaining what a superb job they had done on their new roof. I just contacted their roofing company.

The roofing foreman walked our roof and said there was damage, and I realized two things: First, no matter what the roofing company rep says, it's still up to the insurance company adjuster who, in fact, did approve it. Second, a neighbor asked the roofing company rep to check her roof while he was here, and after examining the roof, the rep said he didn't think her home would qualify, that there wasn't enough damage to warrant it—and he was right—that is, the roofing company is not saying that every roof needs to be replaced.

I've heard enough nightmarish stories of people having to confront their own insurance company—and getting nowhere. I could not have been more pleased with AAA South's fair coverage!

Try WEINSURE located on 441 lady lake
Manager is Megan Kashman.

Tel# 877-677-4063
email: csr@weinsuregroup.com

The Villages Insurance steered me to an unstable home insurer (American Integrity) who would not pay a claim, the doubled my premium. Very disappointed. I switched to Farmers, using an Orlando agent. Much more reasonable premium, much more stable company.

Yep - I got a home/auto bundle with AAA. Not only did they beat everyone's rate, but even factoring in the cars it was less expensive than any competitor.

They told me this directly, and as long as I get a good competitive insurance quote, I’m ok with it. If the insurance company they recommend doesn’t live up to par, guess who is going to get the really bad PR for it?

Like when you shop around for a car, you need to do your own diligent research, including evaluating and researching each insurance company you would consider. Go into their ratings, reviews, BBB and history etc, be your own insurance agent, it’s your money. Actually, it’s more important than a car because you may depend on the insurance company in case of a claim and you need to know if they are going to be there for you. I don’t just go with the cheapest, I look for best value, myself.

Insurance is just a piece of paper... until you have a claim. Only then will you know if you made the right decision. Price is not the end all.