Copies of Insurance Policies- Do you have a copy of yours?

Would you buy a car or house sight unseen? Most people wouldn't but when it comes to purchasing insurance, that's exactly what most people do.

Jonathan Stein, a fellow plaintiff's attorney in Northern California, posted a very interesting article on his blog (California Personal Injury and Insurance Blog http://www.calpiblog.com/) which really captured my attention. Here's Jonathan's post in part...

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"This is a fascinating topic for me. It came up in the course of an interview I gave to a reporter on a topic. (I will leave that for another time, after the article is published.) We discussed how you get a copy of an insurance policy.

I called the California Department of Insurance. I asked for a policy. After all, they keep them all there. The answer: The DOI does not give you copies of policies. Why? Because they don't know which policy, if any, you would get from a specific insurer.

So, I called some local agents. These were agents for some of the major insurance companies. I asked for a specimen policy. I was told that I could not get a specimen (sample) policy.

It is fascinating to me that insurance companies sell a product but they will not let you see the product before you buy it. Imagine buying a car without test driving it. Or buying a house sight unseen. You would never do that, but insurance companies won't let you see what you buy until after you buy it. Amazing!

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I believe Jonathan was an insurance claims adjuster before becoming a lawyer and his insight into this disclosure issue should be taken seriously. We strongly suggest that you contact each of your insurance companies and ask for a recent and updated certified copy of your policies. When you get the policies... read and make sure you understand all of the terms and conditions!