California couple is dropped by long-time home insurer over photo from space - and it could happen to you

A California mates was dropped from their location security program past period due to the fact that of a outer photograph of 'moss' connected their extortion - but the owners said it was conscionable star panels.

The Colemans, who unrecorded successful the Bay Area suburb of Fairfield, got a missive successful the message from Liberty Mutual telling them that their argumentation wouldn't beryllium renewed aft September 5, 2024.

The crushed fixed was the 'condition of the property.' The 112-year-old insurer claimed the extortion had algae, mildew, mold and/or moss 'that negatively impacts' its structural integrity.

Liberty Mutual provided a outer photograph successful their connection to the Colemans, and the mates was shocked to larn that their insurer of 20 years appeared to confuse moss with the star panels connected their roof.

'I wasn't definite from the representation that they sent what circumstantial country they were talking about,' Janice Coleman told CBS 13, earlier explaining that the 3 rectangular achromatic spots connected her extortion were successful information star panels.

'For being customers of 20 years, this is simply a truly atrocious mode to beryllium treated,' Janice added.

Liberty Mutual told CBS it doesn't 'publicly sermon the details of an idiosyncratic underwriting decision.'

Anthony Coleman, Janice's husband, said helium believed the institution canceled their argumentation to prevention money.

'I consciousness they made a determination based connected exertion conscionable to trim their portfolio and to offload our spot arsenic they are doing with thousands of others successful the authorities of California,' helium said.

The Colemans person since recovered different institution to screen them but astatine a higher cost, CBS 13 reported.

Karl Susman, an security broker for the past 30 years, said insurers request to springiness their customers an enactment to hole the occupation and fto them reason their lawsuit if a mistake was made.

The Colemans said they hired a roofer to beryllium their extortion was sound, yet Liberty Mutual inactive refused to reverse its decision. 

'They don't privation to get slammed by the Department of Insurance,' Susman explained to CBS 13. 'And judge me, they volition if they're not renewing you for a crushed that doesn't exist.'

Susman added that security companies each implicit California are searching for reasons to driblet customers due to the fact that it's hard to crook a nett successful the state.

'Oh, they're efficaciously losing money,' helium said. 'A batch of money.' 

An probe of information from the 10 largest location insurers by the San Francisco Chronicle revealed that much than 100,000 Californians mislaid their location security from 2019 to 2024.

Californians who person non-renewal notices, arsenic the Colemans did, bash person rights and options they tin exercise.

For instance, California passed a instrumentality successful 2018 that enactment successful spot a one-year moratorium connected companies canceling location security policies of customers' who were affected by wildfires.

With this tool, residents tin cheque whether their zip codification qualifies.

If this isn't an option, homeowners tin besides record a ailment with California's Department of Insurance if they judge their insurer has breached the law.

Residents and businesses alike tin besides use for security done California's FAIR Plan if they can't find sum done accepted brokers.

As of 2020, the FAIR Plan, a backstage entity created by the authorities but operated by security companies, covers little than 3 percent of Californians.