This question is more a curiosity than anything. I have a dead 25-30’ tree leaning towards my house and an arborist confirmed it is an imminent to my home and must be removed. When I contacted my homeowners insurance, they said they would only cover damage to my roof if the tree fell, but wouldn’t cover the removal of the tree. What’s the logic behind this? I’m sure some actuary determined it just cheaper to deal with the roof, but the face value cost of replacing likely my entire roof versus the cost of removing the tree it seems like a no-brainer. I’ve already accepted that I’ll need to pay for it, I’m just curious if any insider insurance folks can clue me into the reasoning here. Thanks! ETA: Okay, I get it now. Thanks to all the folks who gave helpful responses, it cleared up a lot and might have saved me from a big headache!

Last Sunday, I was having dinner with family when a drunk driver left the restaurant parking lot and decided to take my parked truck with him. Thankfully, nobody was in the vehicle, but the damage was significant — around $6,000 according to the repair shop. The other driver's insurance accepted liability and is covering the damages to my truck, which is good. But here’s where it gets frustrating. I live alone in a rural area and have no other transportation. I work weekend shifts (Friday–Sunday) with regular overtime (usually two extra 12-hour days). Because I had no vehicle, I missed work this weekend. The truck was towed to the shop, but they can’t begin repairs until *two Mondays from now*. The insurance company told me they won’t cover a rental car until repairs actually begin, even though their policyholder was 100% at fault and drunk. How is that fair? I'm out two weeks of transportation and potentially $1,800 in lost wages because of this. I’ve never filed a claim before, and I feel totally lost in this process. Some questions: 1. Can I push the insurance company to cover a rental now, not just when repairs start? 2. Is there a way to claim lost wages due to this incident? I have no PTO, and this is directly affecting my livelihood. 3. Should I be speaking to an attorney about this, or is there another route to escalate the claim? Any advice or guidance would be really appreciated. Update- I live in Maine but the accident happened in new Hampshire if that makes a difference.

Hey friends, I got rear-ended while waiting for the highway exit. It is pretty clear the other party is liable. The other car was a Nissan car and is insured by this Infinity Selected Insurance Company. The insurance company acknowledged the liability, looked at the photos of my damage, and just sent me a check. But they also said I can reach out to any bodyshop for repair. I did, and the bodyshop found more damage inside and the repair fee is a lot higher. What to do next then? The bodyshop said they will send the inspection report and photos to the insurance for an increase amount. I also think the bodyshop might be exaggerating a bit regarding their quote. Is this normal practice? What should I do to make sure the insurance don't deny the claim. It's a brand new 2025 car so I don't want to pocket the money. I just want the car to be repaired properly. Any suggestion is highly appreciated. Thanks a lot. \-- Alex PS: I live in Bay Area, CA.

I'm in a pickle with a doctor's office billing after insurance says they paid. What are my next steps? Appointment in Sept 2023 with a verified in-network provider. Doctor office submitted an insurance claim under a different OON provider who I never met/saw/knew about when I went to my appointment. Insurance didn't pay but applied it to my OON deductible. Then a couple weeks later Doctor office submitted a new claim (NOT A REVISED ONE) for the same date but listed an in-network provider. Insurance covered it 100% less copay. Even though it was under a different provider, I know he works closely with the PA I saw so figured it was accurate enough for insurance purposes. I thought this was settled. From my view of EOBs it looks like insurance paid my bill and I paid my copay. Fast forward to now, I get a bill from my doctor office saying you owe us for the original appt. I had no idea there was a balance and I've been to this practice about 30 times since the original appointment in Sept 2023. I told them I have EOBs showing that they were actually paid by insurance, I forward them to them to verify. They are sticking to their guns saying I owe. I called insurance. They said it is too long ago for them to re-work the claims but from their point of view, they believe I should not owe anything beyond the initial copay. Doctor's office billing will not go over details on the phone. They want all communication to go through email, of which I've sent 2 (one with the 2 EOBs and one asking them to please look again at the second EOB which shows they were paid for the appointment), both emails they responded "please pay your bill". Where do I go from here? Insurance doesn't seem interested in stepping in to help since it's an almost 2 yr old charge. And doctor office is being very difficult to deal with. ETA: if it matters the doctor's office was recently or in the process of being bought out by a private equity company from a different state when I went in 2023. The OON provider they initially billed insurance with is the owner or CEO or something with the private equity.

My car was totaled at the beginning of July, it was the other drivers fault and she has Fred loya. I have been completely out of a car for 3 weeks and I can’t get through to anyone. I don’t know what to do. The car isn’t worth a lot, it’s a 2005 Subaru Outback, but in my area (Colorado ) I should get at least $4,000 for it, they offered me $2,200 and after I sent a bunch of comparables over they’ve been ignoring me. I have 2 jobs and I go back to school next month, I need a car. Any advice on how to get them to pay attention to me? I’m pretty poor so getting a lawyer feels out of the question, but I’m also getting desperate. Thank you in advance

I am trying to understand my Farmers insurance homeowners liability coverage and farmers isn’t being helpful at all. Basically what happened is while my wife and I were out of the country, my child accidentally kicked my sprinkler line near the drip system and broke it. Long story short, it flooded a room in my neighbors home over about a 7 day period. They just kept mopping it up and hoping it would stop. I’m not sure why they let it go on for that long but they did. Anyway it ruined some of the floor and caused some moisture to settle into the drywall. It was about a 15 ft x 15 ft area of water damage. Will my homeowners liability insurance cover the water damage in this situation?

The main pipe in my apartment building was backed up, causing some flooding in my unit (living room, kitchen, laundry room, bathroom, bedroom closet). The only thing that got completely ruined was my living room rug, so I tried to use my renters insurance to see if I could get some compensation for that, but they said something about not covering damages that don’t meet my deductible ($250). Some other things got wet due to the flood (some of my shoes, some clothes I had on the ground) but generally dried up decently the next day. They told me to call back if I saw there were other things that were damaged, but i’m not sure what falls under that label. Is it only things that are completely unsalvageable?

Should I file a claim on a plumbing/mold issue in home? Long story short- the stack going to an upstairs bathroom needs to be replaced ($2,500). Realized problem when we found water in basement. Mold remediation will be $3,000. Tile wall will need to come out in bathroom to make repairs. No idea the cost of this cosmetic issue. It’s original 1959 tile, so probably a decent amount of money to take it all out and replace on entire bathroom. Our deductible for homeowners insurance is $3,000. I’ve heard horror stories about insurance denying claims (especially due to plumbing/mold), and policy premium still going up. Also trying to gauge exactly how much our policy goes up even if the claim is handled by home owners. We have the cash to do the repairs. Is it worth it to make the claim and save the money? Or not in the long run? Thanks

About a week ago, I was stopped in traffic when a woman rear-ended me. I won’t go into all the details, but she was a bit evasive at the scene. She did give me her insurance information, though. I only have liability coverage through my own policy, so I filed a third-party claim with hers. I called her insurance today, and they told me she hasn’t responded to their attempts to get her statement. The evidence is pretty clear - she had a license plate cover on the front of her car, and the text from it literally left an imprint, like a stamp, dead center on the rear bumper of my car. I really need my car, but my rear bumper is sagging, and I don’t think it’s safe to keep driving it like this. Based on her behavior at the scene and the fact that she’s now ghosting her insurance, I have a strong feeling she’s just going to keep evading responsibility. Given this, I’m wondering: is it okay if I pay out of pocket to fix my car now and then sue her in California small claims court to recover the cost? If so, what kind of evidence should I gather to make my case? For example, should I ask the auto body shop for a written statement detailing the damage and cost to repair? Thanks in advance.