Denied umbrella policy due to horses

[Hiddenspot]

Hey folks,

I just got a call from Statefarm stating I was denied an Umbrella liability policy due to “hunter showing” and “horse transport.” I reiterated these activities are not for money and still denied. They also won’t do it with an exclusion for the horses. Has anyone had this happen? I was doing this mainly for slip on the ice or dog bite…things in my house.

But it got me thinking and now I would like coverage in case someone fell off my horse when they were hacking for me. I have teens ride him when I am busy. Most of them ride better than I do but you never know.

Thanks for any thoughts!

[La_Gringa]

There are policies through USEF and Horse Insurance agencies for that.

[horsepoor]

Interesting. We have an umbrella policy through State Farm and they are well aware of my having and transporting horses (including insuring the trailer). But I don’t show, so that’s one difference, although can’t see why that affects it.

I have previously had equine liability through the same providers of my horse mortality /medical insurance, so you might check with equine insurers. It was relatively inexpensive as I recall, but the number of horses owned affected the cost IIRC.

[twelvegates]

I also have an umbrella policy through State Farm and they are well aware of my horses.

[HungarianHippo]

Me too. Sure hope they don’t do this to me!!
But to the OP, yes, you absolutely have to have good liability. Have the teens’ parents signed a release?

[IronwoodFarm]

I have had an umbrella policy for years through State Farm. The horses are not an issue, but my premium went up with IF Jr became a licensed driver. I have a commercial policy for my farm, because it is a business, and that would exclude it under my personal umbrella. Of course smart lawyers can find a way to go after both a commercial and personal policy. I am not expecting to use my umbrella, but I am happy it is there.

[AKB]

We have our umbrella through Nationwide and they are aware we have horses. My daughter has her umbrella through State Farm. Let us know what happens. If State Farm is not going to issue umbrella policies to horse owners, we all need to start some insurance shopping.

[SPF10]

Our umbrella is through Erie. Both agents are well aware of the horses, they own horses too.

[trubandloki]

We had our home owners with umbrella policy to cover the horse liability thru Travelers cancelled because of the horses. We had the policy for several years with no claims and then one year they said they would no longer cover us.
We are now insured thru Farm Family.

[SonnysMom]

I also have an umbrella policy with State Farm. They insure my horse trailer so should know I have horses.
When DH and I decided to add an umbrella policy we specifically discussed what happens in I am riding my horse at the park, I fall off, he runs in the road, is hit by a car and kills the driver scenario. I was assured it would be covered.

There was an incident that I was indirectly involved in that was very similar to the scenario above that made me think getting better/more coverage might be a good thing.

[NoSuchPerson]

Mine is with Farm Bureau Insurance. As you might expect, they have absolutely no problem with my having horses, mules, or livestock of any kind.

I’ve also got my car and trailer insurance with them and they are by far the best, easiest to deal with insurance company I’ve ever dealt with. I’ve had a number of vehicle and homeowner policy claims over the years and every one has been handled promptly and fairly.

[airhorse]

@Hiddenspot;7864904

Hey folks,

I just got a call from Statefarm stating I was denied an Umbrella liability policy due to “hunter showing” and “horse transport.” I reiterated these activities are not for money and still denied.

Do you have a business on your property, or board any horses? Do you have a website? We were told by State Farm that if we take in $1, our policy is void. We also had trouble getting insurance because we have a website. A subsidiary of Farmers got it done for us, but we will probably have to go back to ANPAC next year when we start hosting clinics.

BTW, they are very thorough in their research. Internet, Facebook, and Twitter can all be used to deny your policy.

[akor]

As to the ‘research’ part, I had a weird call one day from my farm, or at least the caller said they were at my farm, from a woman asking if I did boarding and said it “looked like I did boarding” - when I started asking questions, something seemed odd, and long story short, I have never had that happen, and was a bit interested as one has to be a bit careful and not let things like that “go” - when I brought it up at work, the consensus was that it was very likely to be the insurance company, checking up on my situation. This was right about the time my main agent had retired and they were reassigning accounts. Correlation is not always causation, but sometimes, it is.

I am a private farm, have not much to offer anyone else really, and have no intention to take in $ or be public.

[merrygoround]

Try Farm Family

[airhorse]

Our neighbors were denied coverage due to the poor condition of their fencing.

[merrygoround]

I second Farm Family,we tried Nationwide, but they seemed clueless, at least their agent was.

[IronwoodFarm]

@airhorse;7865925

Do you have a business on your property, or board any horses? Do you have a website? We were told by State Farm that if we take in $1, our policy is void.

Absolutely. A personal umbrella will not cover a commercial exposure. I have a personal umbrella and it covers me, people who might drive my cars (like 20 year old IF Jr), losses associated with my rental properties and my residence, and personal liability. State Farm expects all underlying primary policies to be insured for a certain limits. They know I have farm coverage on the commercial exposure, so while they would not cover it, the chances of some clever lawyer creating a personal liability claim is seriously mitigated. Ironically, State Farm has lousy farm policy coverage and rates, because I would have kept the coverage with them on the commercial end. They were way too expensive.

[airhorse]

@IronwoodFarm;7866179

They know I have farm coverage on the commercial exposure

Who are you using for your farm coverage?

[drmgncolor]

@SonnysMom;7865810

I also have an umbrella policy with State Farm. They insure my horse trailer so should know I have horses.
When DH and I decided to add an umbrella policy we specifically discussed what happens in I am riding my horse at the park, I fall off, he runs in the road, is hit by a car and kills the driver scenario. I was assured it would be covered.

This is my experience with State Farm as well.

I used to have a liability policy strictly for my horse through one of the equine insurers. State Farm suggested I move to an umbrella policy which would cover the horse (which I believe they classify as a pet) and all the other incidents as well. It cost about the same so we took out the umbrella and dropped the equine liability policy.

My agent is a horsewoman. Perhaps you need to talk to a different agent.

[HungarianHippo]

[QUOTE=SonnysMom;7865810]
I also have an umbrella policy with State Farm. They insure my horse trailer so should know I have horses.
When DH and I decided to add an umbrella policy we specifically discussed what happens in I am riding my horse at the park, I fall off, he runs in the road, is hit by a car and kills the driver scenario. I was assured it would be covered.

There was an incident that I was indirectly involved in that was very similar to the scenario above that made me think getting better/more coverage might be a good thing.[/QUOTE]

THIS. I’ve done the same thing–try to think of the worst thing that could happen and ask my insurer to outline the coverage that applies. People who hide information from the insurer because they want to avoid paying a higher premium are nuts. It’s a good way to 1) find that you don’t have adequate coverage when the worst actually happens, or 2) have your policy voided for misrepresentation.