Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My homeowners insurance was just cancelled due to reptiles in the home.

I was at my State Farm Bureaus office to add a new vehicle to my automobile policy when the underwriter and I engaged in small talk regarding our kids and animals. I mentioned my son has 3 leopard geckos and we have some snakes. Three weeks later I received a cancellation letter from the State Farm Bureau stating "due to an increased risk" my homeowners policy policy will be cancelled in 30 days.

I called and they told me it was for the reptiles. Evidently it does not matter if its one gecko, iguana or snake or several. Any reptile is not allowed. Either way I am considered a "risk" by the insurance company even though I am still not sure what that risk really is?

I did some searching on the net and discovered this has happened to others. I also found out most insurance companies do not allow reptiles in the home. It is usually discovered when herpers call their insurance company to discuss the possibility of insuring their collection and then the insurance company cancels them. In my case I did not want to insure I just made the honest mistake of not knowing this was in their policy.

I tried to reason with them about how common it is for people to have reptiles as pets these days and that reptiles are sold in pet shops all over the country. I also said we would get rid of the snakes and geckos asap. But it did not help as the final decision came today and my policy will remain cancelled.

What state are you in? Some states are putting up bills to make it illegal for insurance companies to discriminate based on dog breeds. If such a bill is coming up in your state, you might want to see if it could be ammended to include reptiles.

You might also want to talk to your district representative to see about having such a bill submitted during the next legislative session in your state.

Katrina

So you are saying that some insurance companies discriminate against certain dog breeds like a Bull Mastiff or pit bull terriers? I had know idea that they had the RIGHT to cancel on such whims.

How (or rather who) do I check with to see what if my state has anything like this on the books?

Thanks Katrina !

It is happening to many people with dogs, ferets and reptiles. Take your letter to your state representatives and ask what can be done. The dog community is fighting this but ASPCA and HSUS will not fight for us. WE Must Fight!

Cindy

The ASPCA is a bunch of bull. They're just a offshoot of PETA.
People see the SPCA part of it and think of the SPCA, they have total differnet agendas.

I've seen the damage that PETA's liitle offshoots (ALF & ELF) cause.

Israel
The truth about peta and they're little offshoots

This has happened to me twice. For proponents of licensing schemes that are supposed to guarantee that only qualified persons can buy/sell/keep animals as a means of stopping animal abuse or illegal collection/possession, it is a good idea to keep in mind that many states have open records laws, which means that anyone can request whatever info is on file for any licensee, such as what animals you have, and the address where they are located. This could be used as a database for insurance companies to find this type of information and cancel policies.
It could also be used by collection thieves to find targets.
There are lots of other reasons posted on these forums why herpers should unanomously reject and oppose any type of licensing for private individuals minding their own business in their own homes.

We need to build a webpage with this info as the dog people are.
Check out the ASPCA.org site. People need to band together. It doesn't take much to get an amendment to the breed discrimination insurance. The insurance companies have money, but there are more pet owners in the US than insurance agents.

The Louisiana Reptile & Amphibian Task Force formed a committee to recommend language for a new state law requiring permits for constrictors over 12 feet and venomous snakes. One concern was liability. All State Insurance told us that the insurance companies could not refuse or cancel insurance just because reptiles were on the premises because owning reptiles is not against the law. If a state or local ordinance forbid reptile ownership then they could cancel or refuse. This would also be the case if you were maintaing a reptile business; it would not be insured under home ownership unless you had a business rider.
However, if your reptile(s) became the object of persecution or a lawsuit, then they could cancel after the first claim was paid. The gist of it was that an insurance company cannot refuse unless the activity is illegal. You may need to file a complaint with your state insurance office. ~Bill~
Link

I brought my insurance companys cancellation letter today to the State Commissioners Office. I told them I wanted to file a complaint against Farm Bereau Insurance Co. for cancelling my Home Owners insurance. I met with a representative and sat down with him. He told me the underwriter of the insurance company makes the decisions and they can base their cancellation on whatever their guidlines are. They said they could not force the Insurance company to cover me. I asked him what the guidlines are and he said its not published but some dog breeds are not allowed. It really depends on each situation that constitutes a "risk". In my case having geckos and some small snakes is considered a risk.
In the mean time I have been advised not to lie about being cancelled by my previous insurance company when shopping for a new one. That this will stick with me for the rest of my life and that the snakes and/or reptiles will probably have to go if another Insurance company is to accept me.

This just sounds incredible. It is time to mount calls to your local state representative and complain. Believe it or not, this works. Have you spoken to an attorney? Insurance companies also dislike bad press, a letter to your local paper may be in order also. Ask how can it be possible for an insurance company to make an arbitrary decision about an activity that isn't unlawful.
What will be next? Red cars because that is the color most often involved in accidents? ~Bill~
Link

Yes I called my attorney righte away and he said he can't do anything because they have a right to cancel it for anything they consider a risk in the home. Its part of the policy you sign when applying.

Remember snakes also include large pythons and venemous. The insurance companies are not going to get into distinctions of species with snakes or lizards.

According to the people who watch over the insurance companies practices said they are allowed to discriminate. It is very common these days that homeowners lose their policies due to certain types of dog breeds. People also get their policies rewvoked if they have several cars in their back yard and sell cars or something of that nature. Which I can understand is a increased risk for the insurance comapny because certian zoning laws are not followed. BUT a snake or gecko? Com'on!
It seems that the world has not caught up to the hobby. We are looked at as freaks. When I talked to the state commisioners office the rep was an older black man in his 50's. I told him my son had geckos...he looked at me puzzled and with raised eyebrows and asked "what is a gecko" I said its a lizard ... kinda like the commercials for GEICKO insurance ? He just looked at me like I was from mars. I knew I was in trouble when trying to just explain that one.

Do try Loyd's of London. It will be pricy.

Lloyd's of London is not an option. They insure events like ships at sea and when someone may not be able to play sports again or kidnap insurance for a trip. I believe that this is a state problem that needs to be addressed by residents. ~Bill~

This IS a state problem and it needs to be addressed, but one needs insurance in the mean time.

LLoyd's of London was the one that insuranced our rescue/educational group with reptiles. ANd...they are offering homeowner insurance.

http://experts.about.com/q/1544/2932584.htm

In Florida, Allstate and Progressive seem to sneak in an extra charge on your car insurance if you own a red or silver car, or if you mention racing, they can cancel it. I went with my roomate to get insurance on his new car, a red eclipse that the prev owner used to race, and when the company asked about the car, he mentioned the prev owner... The rep said that due to the "true" purpose of the car, they cannot insure it.

As far as snakes go, my roomie's parents had a state farm rep come into the house to appraise some water damage, and he wanted to charge extra for having a terrier since there were "reports of children getting bit by terriers" and then he saw my snake that my roomie was holding for me for the week I went on vacation and he said he would contact them on the cancellation. I went into the local office with the snake, and a newspaper article that stated "Pit bull terrier attack child". I slammed the article on the desk and pointed out the fact that pit bull terriers and a rat terrier are two different animals, and the snake belonged to me, not them. And if they go as far as to cancel the insurance due to that, I told him I would haunt him till the day he died.
the next day he drove to the house to confirm the snake was gone, and formally apologized for his "idiocy".
Yes I know bulldog tactics are bad...but sometimes ya gotta do it for family.
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