A friend of a friend had a 97 f150 with about 8" of lift
The insurance company denied his claim because he didnt tell
them he lifted it... Opinions?

They basically said he made it more likely to have an accident and
werent covering it.

Rand

 

i know with my insurance, state farm, i never have to tell them if i do anything to my truck or any other vehicle. just as long as i keep the reciept and have a pic to prove it was on there then they cover it. i dont see how they can reject a claim. i would talk to a lawyer.

 

You misunderstood him.

You are talking about getting the insurance provider to pay for additional investment lost if the truck is crashed.

Rand is talking about the insurance provider denying to pay for a crash because the trucks suspension/frame/etc was modified from its original form, thus deeming it less stable/more likely to wreck.

I don't think your buddy has a chance, honestly, it sucks but they have a leg to stand on in the fact that a lifted truck, with big tires, and a high center of gravity is statistically more prone to loss of control and/or crashing.

 

Just another way for the "insurence" company to deny you money.

 

being thats its THAT big, its hard for an insurance company not to notice, it its just a mild lift they probably wouldnt have said anything


but id ask ryan or jey who insures their SAS rangers

 

ive asked this question in another thread. im pretty sure their vehicles are insured as a stock ranger.

if you lift it and get in a wreck its just a hit you have to take i guess, but they should still pay for whatever it would cost to fix if it was stock.

 

When I bought my Topper, I had the salesman say I should tell my insurance about the topper, so they will cover it if it gets damaged. I e-mailed them pictures and a serial number and I told them that I paid 1600 for it. The responded with an e-mail that states that any accesory I install is covered as long as it is bolted to the truck, so don't bother letting us know. They did say my topper isn't covered if it is off the truck and it gets wrecked. I saved that e-mail to use if they ever give me any trouble. I have American Family.

~HJ

 

If they deny the claim due to the lift, I would tell them to refund the premiums I had paid since the lift was installed.

 

would that work?

 

hmm..thats a good point...

 

I don't know but it's worth a shot. Obviously they have no intention to cover you. They would not have covered you since the day the lift was installed. Your premiums were going to non-coverage therefore you should be refunded.

 

i like your thinking. im gonna remember that. just incase.

 

Insurance agents job when it comes to claims are to save the company as much money as possible. You have to go into this aware of this fact. Keep detailed receipts of everything you do to the truck. If you add a really expensive mod, get it appraised. usally about $50 and well worth it.

My friend Trevor over at the General Lee website had a 69 Charger that he had spent a about 5 years of his life restoring and countless amounts of manhours in little details. He had it appraised before it ever saw the pavement. A week after he drove it he got rear ended by a F150 that never saw him and realy totalled his car.

The insurance company tried to say ti was just an old car, here's $12,000 what we think it was worth. He countered with his appraisal and all the money he lost in fees to show his car that he had allready signed contracts for. (His car was done a few months before the movie came out and was supposed to tour movie theatres for Warner brothers) Not to mention the mony that he paid to get his trunklid signed by the remaining cast.

after all that, the insurance co. had to fork over $45,000. If he wouldn't hav had the receipts and the appraisal he would have been out a small fortune. The good news is he took that money and bought a new General that is one of the nicest Generals I have ever seen.

 

I'd go with what FireRanger said. Or get a lawyer, because my insurance covered my truck when it rolled, and it was lifted. With a little bit of fighting, they even paid partly for my lift and tires also.