NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) -
A major insurance company in Tennessee is changing its policies regarding roof repairs.
Dan Batey of Farm Bureau Insurance said Wednesday that his company paid more in claims over the past four years than it brought in from premiums.
Because of this, Farm Bureau appealed to the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance to change its roof policy.
"The roof coverage is going to work now a lot like car insurance. If you bought a $20,000 car 10 years ago, and today it's worth $3,000, you're not going to get a check for (what it was previously worth.) You're going to get a check for the value of the car today," said Batey.
"My message to consumers is to check your policy," said Julie McPeak, the commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance.
McPeak said the agency approved the changes to avoid exorbitant rate hikes. She said homeowners still have options.
"Consumers can still get replacement coverage from other insurers in the marketplace. They just need to know their coverage and then need to choose whether they want to have full replacement coverage or the actual cash value," said McPeak.
"We feel like this a good balance between what is affordable the premiums by what we can afford to bear ourselves," said Batey.
So, if you have shingles meant to last 20 years, and they've been on the roof 10 years, the Farm Bureau will pay half the cost to replace the shingles, plus labor. The rest will come out of the homeowner's pocket.
Homeowners won't see the changes until their policy renews.
To find out more about how this change may affect you, contact your insurance agent or the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance.
Copyright WSMV 2012 (Meredith Corporation). All rights reserved.
