[KEVIN & JOSIE]

Would this be an insurance covered sinkhole or an out of pocket sinkhole? Would the house have to have damage to be covered by insurance? Thanks



The sinkhole on Galesburg Court is about 15 feet across and fairly deep.

[Bjeanj]

I think that everyone’s homeowners insurance covers catastrophic sinkholes- meaning they order you to evacuate your home.

In this case, the people would have to have an additional ground subsidence endorsement to their homeowners policy. And there is a separate deductible for this type of thing.

Otherwise they are out of pocket.

[graciegirl]

I read in the news source that is not mentioned, that this is the second on that property, the first occurred after the avalanche of rain during Hurricane Irma in September.

Bad luck for those poor people.

It is an anomaly of nature and causes all of us to be jittery and some of us looking to blame something or someone.

[Lottoguy]

What is the date of this hole? Recent or old?

[KEVIN & JOSIE]

Todays Villages News

[villagetinker]

My understanding (I may be wrong), your standard homeowners insurance has a clause and coverage for catastrophic ground collapse, which comes into play if your house is condemned. It does not cover sinkholes that do not cause the house to be condemned. This is covered by a supplemental policy , aka sinkhole coverage. Depending on your insurance carrier, you may or may not be able to buy this coverage, and the deductible apparently can be very low, or up to 10% of the value of you house.
IMHO, call your carrier, confirm what you have and what you have access to in additional coverage.

[KEVIN & JOSIE]

Is it true that only new homes are being offered the sinkhole coverage with high 10% deductibles? If you purchase a resale you can not get this additional coverage?

[villagetinker]

Originally Posted by KEVIN & JOSIE

Is it true that only new homes are being offered the sinkhole coverage with high 10% deductibles? If you purchase a resale you can not get this additional coverage?

You need to talk to your insurance agent, I do not think this has anything to do with the age of the house.

[manaboutown]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

I read in the news source that is not mentioned, that this is the second on that property, the first occurred after the avalanche of rain during Hurricane Irma in September.

Bad luck for those poor people.

It is an anomaly of nature and causes all of us to be jittery and some of us looking to blame something or someone.

Although they obviously mostly are natural occurrences sink holes can be human induced through ground water pumping, construction and property development as revealed toward the end of this short article. Sinkholes, from USGS Water-Science School

[EdFNJ]

Originally Posted by KEVIN & JOSIE

Is it true that only new homes are being offered the sinkhole coverage with high 10% deductibles? If you purchase a resale you can not get this additional coverage?

We bought a resale and our agent told us (last year when we purchased) that "VERY FEW companies are writing any sink-hole policies at all now". She did have one that did and it was just way too expensive. My location is very low risk so I decided to take a chance. The odds are quite low so I guess it depends on how risk averse one is. We are almost on top of a hill so I figure if there is a S.H. here our house would roll down the side so our homeowner would cover it.

[Boomer]

Originally Posted by KEVIN & JOSIE

Is it true that only new homes are being offered the sinkhole coverage with high 10% deductibles? If you purchase a resale you can not get this additional coverage?

The new-home-coverage-only thing is how it was for a while.

(I think that went into effect after there were so many claims for things that were not really sinkholes, but were cracks from normal settling, etc.

I always figured it was Claims-Milkers and litagators and a powerful Florida insurance lobby, and who knows what other kind of lobby, that resulted in what looked to me like a knee-jerk reaction from insurers that made it impossible for those who wanted to buy pre-owned homes to get anything beyond catastrophic ground collapse, even if they were willing to pay the higher cost.)

During that time, those who already had sinkhole coverage could still renew it.

BUT, THEN, somebody must have run the odds and decided it was worth it for insurance companies to get back into the biz of selling sinkhole coverage for pre-owned homes. Expensive though it may be, the last I heard, it could be had. That has been a relatively recent change, like maybe just a year or two ago. I assume that change back is still in effect.

If I were you, I would call one of The Villages Insurance offices, on-site, and get direct info. They know the territory, literally, as well as figuratively, and will give you far better and more accurate information than I can. (I am just some woman typing away on TOTV this morning because I am trying to avoid gathering up all our income tax stuff.)

Always, always, consider your source of information.

[Chatbrat]

It is a NO brainer for those who can't afford $100k layout to fix a sink hole that doesn't affect the HOUSE, but whacks your driveway or land

The insurance is available if you shop--if its not available -good look selling your house to a person on a tight budget or a scaredy cat who can't get the insurance or can't spring for the premium

[ukbill70]

We live in the Village of Glenbrook and 2 weeks ago I checked with AAA and the Villages Insurance about obtaining Sink hole Coverage. Both agency's entered our address into their computer and we were told Sink Hole coverage is NOT available in your area. When we moved here in 2012 we thought we would be here for the rest of our days, now were considering moving again which is the last thing I wanted to do.

[ricthemic]

In today's other on line news regarding glenbrook new sinkhole someone commented they just saw 3 new sinkholes on Markridge Loop in Pennecamp. The commenter added he/she was surprised there has been no news coverage. Just curious too

[Tom C]

I do not live in TV (yet), but I am interested in why sometimes these are deemed "Sinkholes" and other times "catastrophic ground collapse". I would bet it has some legal or other connotation reference that one or the other party is trying to avoid (meaning, it is bad press for someone).

Are these both roses that smell the same?