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Manufactured Homes

insurance void if additions or changes made

13 years ago

I was told by State farm & Allstate if I replace siding with brick or add on, my policy would be voided. Any changes to the outside finish or roof line would void the policy. If I did it without asking and ever had a claim they would not cover it. Anyone else heard of this stupid rule? Any insurance companies that will cover it?

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Comments (4)

christopherh
13 years ago
Your homeowner's policy covers certain things. And if you add to the home, you notify your insurance agent, and s/he makes the necessary changes to cover your additions/changes.

When we installed a woodstove in our new modular we had to notify the insurance company. Because if we didn't, and had a fire, it wouldn't be covered. So a phone call to the agent, along with the certs of a professional installation was all we needed to do. And our premium went up a whole $3 a month. But when we get an old fashioned New England Nor'easter in winter, the wind is howling, there's 40 inches of snow on the ground, and the power goes out for 3 days, that stove is heaven, and well worth the extra three bucks a month!

Now you may have a policy for a manufactured home, and you want to make some changes to make it more "permanent", so you might just need a different policy, that's all.

It's really not that big a deal.
kenmax
Original Author
13 years ago
Thats what we thought as well, but after speaking to both insurance co. we were told that in Tennessee we could not make changes to the outside with a manufactured home policy and could not get a regular home policy because it was a manufactured home! Makes no sense to me. Now we can make changes inside like adding a stove with no problem. Just wondered if anyone else has been told this by Allstate or State Farm? They said even with professional installation, inspection etc would not matter.
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Thanks again everyone. So here's my update. I had no luck getting In touch with the agent we had used originally, and wasn't willing to drag my two kids along to go to the office. So I passes the issue off to dh who walked into the office without an appointment and asked to speak to someone. ( he makes a good squeaky wheel lol). The agent I had been dealing with was not available so he got someone else. She gave him the same song and dance about "a cabinet is a cabinet, a door is a door" etc. except having looked closely at our policy we knew we were covered for the option of "similar construction" for replacement cost, not standard construction. (It's extra). So, he pulled out receipts and photos etc. finally she agreed to open up the software they use, and spent 20 minutes with him going over the details of the house and the material used. That brought the replacement value up $60,000 (as opposed to the original $17,000). Quite a difference. We will be photographing and storing receipts just in case. So, the moral of the story, your agent should be thou rough, not lazy. Know your policy. And make noise if needed. Thanks again for all the advice!
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christopherh
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Walk into an independent agent in town that writes for various companies and tell him/her what you want to do.

Our homeowner's policy isn't with any of the major companies.

You just might find a small Tenn based company that suits your needs just fine.
jessicacope
11 years ago
Try Farm Bureau. I'm in TN as well. My parents added on to their mobile home and never had any issues. Also put in a wood stove and again, no issues. Good luck!

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