Freebies from my insurance company
5 years ago
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run-in with insurance company!
Comments (11)No, long grass doesn't "attract rats." That's an entirely bogus excuse for town officials to impose their personal sense of aesthetic acceptability upon those who are more enlightened or innovative. I encountered that same scheme on my property. On my five rural acres, during construction of the house, I was served notice by the county health board that my "weeds were providing harborage for vermin" and I had five days to "cut and remove" the offending vegetation. I took the citation to the chief sanitarian and inquired what this was all about. He told me that the weeds on my property would "attract rats" and it was illegal to allow rats to persist in such untidy environments next to houses. I told him that I was a graduate field biologist, and that there is not a shred of scientific evidence that rats can persist in "weeds." I therefore invited him to set as many rat traps as he would like in my prairie "weeds," as evidence to be used in the court case I said I would pursue if he persisted in pushing the matter. He know full well that rats donÂt inhabit weedy fields, prairie or otherwise, and I asked him how many of these citations does the health department issue each year. He said over two dozen, and he gets 100% compliance. I asked him what the rate of compliance might be if an appeals court were to rule that the law is unreasonable, crushes my free speech rights, and therefore could no longer be enforced (as was determined in a previous case in another Ohio jurisdiction). At that point, the health officer knew that I had both scientific evidence and a court case on my side. He then volunteered to "overlook" my "violation," to preserve the health departmentÂs ability to coerce citizens to conform to landscape conventionality  whatever that might have to do with public health. Case closed. I continue to have OhioÂs tallest front yard, with 7-ft tall prairie grasses. Not a rat in 25 years....See MoreAny reason to be 'brand-loyal' to my insurance company?
Comments (14)Switch!! I used to work for a Major Insurance Company at their national claims office. Many people assume incorrectly that their loyalty really matters. It plays a very small roll; more accurately, the number of claims in any given amount of time is what is really important. There is a national database that tracks all insurance claims for all major companies, and any new company you are with will look at your lifetime claim history, no matter who you were insured with at the time. People also assume that their personal relationship with an agent matters. It doesn't really... only in a feel good way. Any problems you have with a claim usually require that you work with the national claims office and you will spend your time on the phone with the claims office. Your agent will not really represent you. They can't "give you a good deal" or make concessions for you. I have found that the greatest benefit of having a local insurance agent is that I can fax documents to the national claims office for free, lol. The only advantage I have found with being with the same company long term is that we are grandfathered into some coverage that we couldn't get at this time (we get roadside assistance -100% for lockouts, dead batteries, flat tires- for $2.67 every 6 months). Oh, and all our insurance (including our business insurance, workers comp and liability) is through the same company. Great way to get discounts for multiple policies....See MoreAppealing your insurance company? LONG
Comments (13)I have to take exception to Monica's assertion that this is often a scam by the hospital. I can't even fathom how a hospital would implement such a thing.... Those who would "work it" would have to know ALL the "ins & outs" of each & every insurance co. as well as the the different variations within the various policies they offer, to say nothing of the ins. co. simply being the administrator of those who have "company" plans. THEN, these scammers would have to plot how they're going to "misrepresent". So, NO, don't believe this or any hospital has such a "scam". And further, there's no way a hospital operator, on the weekend, could possibly know all the ifs, ands, or buts of each & every insurance company's idiosyncrasies. They look in a data base & give the best answer they can. If anything, I think it's an example of the tactics the insurance companies employ methods to NOT pay.... (they skipped telling you the importance of using the word "railroad"... heh!) Back to the question,,,, if all of your contact & discussions have thus far been over the phone, then you haven't exhausted your appeal rights and it is probably more of a "low level" decision rather than an actual ruling by those who have more power & probably knownledge/clinical expertise. So yes write out your appeal. I would NOT mention, nor use as part of the appeal, the fact that the dr was paid. (Maybe that was an erroneous payment(?) & you should let that sleeping dog lie.) You should call the hospital's billing dept & explain the situation (that you are appealing & why, etc) & they will put a note on your bill so that you won't be deemed "late" or "non responsive". Keep them in the information loop. You may have more than one level of appeal, & you should exhaust them all. If it all fails, then speak to the hospital billing dept. about negotiating the bill to a lower price. This happens more than you would expect. They WILL work with you, I believe. Hospitals are not in the business to scam people. And as someone else said above..... we need health reform and this is a tiny example of WHY!!...See MoreInsurance Companies and Kitchen Remodeling
Comments (7)Get a bid from a couple of cabinet companies for what you had not what you want. The insurance company is only going to pay for what you had. You can then change it once you settle on the amount for what was was in place. Also the bid needs to include removal and installation. The adjuster is simply writing an estimate out his estimating program which is most likely Xactimate. Usually the estimate will get adjusted once you get bids or have a contractor in to write an estimate. Don't bother with a public adjuster, keep the 10% fee and just call your adjuster and discuss it with them. Most are flexible and will make adjustments as needed. Very rarely can a job be done without some kind of supplement. If you don't get anywhere call the supervisor. Is the bid for all of the upper cabinets to match or just the lowers? Usually if the lowers are pulled and cant't be matched then they all get replaced. Avergae prices in Xactimate run about $130 per lf for lowers and $100 per lf for uppers for removal and replacement. For premium grade they get over $200 per lf. This doesn't include countertops, knobs, sub top, pull out drawers etc....See More
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoRose Pekelnicky thanked floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK- 5 years ago
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoRose Pekelnicky thanked raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio- 5 years ago
5 years ago- 5 years ago
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