Mistyped date leaves Blair couple without insurance coverage after suffering tornado damage

BLAIR, Neb. (WOWT) – It’s called the “Arbor Day Tornado Outbreak,” which Fred and Cindi Perchal is fitting because of where they saw it coming.

Bạn đang xem: Mistyped date leaves Blair couple without insurance coverage after suffering tornado damage

“I looked between out evergreen trees and the tornado was right there,” said Cindi. “We immediately took off and went downstairs.

They came back up to find their home and outbuildings in tact, but large hail had caused roof leaks.

‘it was a pretty good stream coming straight down,” Fred said.

Water spots dot the ceiling in several rooms, and they filed an insurance claim estimating about $35,000 in damage.

Xem thêm : California issues temporary ban on home insurance cancellations for Palisades, Eaton fire areas

“We paid our premium and we expected to have our coverage,” Cindi said.

But instead, they say Battle Creek Insurance dropped them and back-dated cancellation to when they bought the police in 2023, meaning damage from the April 2024 storm isn’t covered.

“I think they found a technicality to possibly not have to pay,” said insurance consultant and neighbor Lynn Siedlik.

Lynn is retired after 48 years in the insurance industry, but she offered her insight. She says Battle Creek canceled the couple based on a mistyped date. The agent who sold them their policy typed in 2022 for their last roof replacement, instead of the actual year — 2012.

“From my personal experience and knowing other agents, if there was an error made, usually the insurance company will step in and pay, but in this case they’re not, and that doesn’t seem right,” Lynn said.

Battle Creek Insurance canceled the Perchals because of fraudulent information on the application.

Xem thêm : Animosity towards health insurance is nothing new, expert says

“It is not fraudulent, it was human error,” said Cindi. “We all make mistakes. That’s all that happened. Plain and simple.”

The Perchals say Battle Creek Insurance has made the issue even more complicated. Not only has this dispute left the couple without coverage for the tornado damage, there’s a new twist now. They received a letter from the same company canceling their auto insurance.

The couple’s agent has insurance for errors and omissions, but that separate company isn’t paying the claim, so all the Perchals have from Battle Creek is a $4,700 refund of their premium — leaving them more than $30,000 short of what they need to repair their roof.

“I don’t want a refund, I want my house fixed,” Cindi said. “I want the repairs done like we paid the policy to have done.”

Because the couple believes their agent made a human error, they worked with that same agent on getting new coverage. Battle Creek insurance sent an email saying it has to protect policy-holders’ information and is unable to make a statement to First Alert 6. The omissions and errors carrier hasn’t responded to request for comment.

The Perchals say they plan to file a complaint with the Nebraska Department of Insurance and potentially hire an attorney.

Copyright 2024 WOWT. All rights reserved.