57601. bUSSA auto insurance/b claim-comprehensive coverage
My partner has had a problem over the last 6 months or so with a rat-- or rats--building nests on his engine block using twigs, found materials and engine insulation. He's trapped several rats and finally thinks he's solved the problem (we've been afraid to put the car in the garage lest the rats follow as has happened to our next door neighbors) and has decided to file a claim with USAA for the damage to his car. Not to be alarmist, but many times rate increases are not necessarily the problem- possible non-renewal is. The operating adage is "frequency breeds severity"- multiple small claims are looked upon by insurers in many cases far less favorably than a single, large catastrophic loss. The idea is that small claims are potentially avoidable Theoretically. However we've been dealing with this over a year. He traps one, nothing happens for a month or so, then another takes up residence. We're now parking the car away from the house-- and juniper bushes that landlord and neighbors insist upon-- and hope the problem is solved. Several neighbors have rats in garage and house so we don't want to move car into garage. There's a real epidemic of rats in the SF Bay Area right now --I know a t least a dozen folks with problems some 20-30 miles away. I hope you're not being sarcastic and that's its just you haven't heard of these kind of things. Google it and find out--not just rats but squirrels. So far, we *think* its going to be confined to mostly insulation--almost all the firewall and hood insulation has been torn out over this month long period. We're waiting to hear back from the adjuster on the estimated several thousand dollars for that and once the car goes in, the electric supply wires-- a favorite target--will be inspected. The USAA adjuster says he's had quite a few claims involving wiring that cost $10,000-$15,000 and USAA paid. Not to be alarmist, but many times rate increases are not necessarily the problem- possible non-renewal is. The operating...
