Home owners insurance

BlackWidow

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Hello I need some advice on a "What IF' situation.

Rundown: Husband and I inherited our home from a deceased relative. The deed to the property and home are in our name. Due to the circumstances at the decedents time of death we were unable to gain the mortgage on the home. we knew our credit wasn't good enough. at the advice of the estate attorney we used, we were told that mortgage companies really don't care where the payments come from as long as they are paid and on time. That has not been a problem for us at all for the last 2 years. the home and property insurances along with taxes are paid by the mortgage company out of Escrow. Mortgage is still in decedents name along with the Insurance. Here is my question:

If something (heaven forbid) were to happen, say fire, storm damage,etc.. How could we access the Insurance to have our home repaired? Would it even pay out because its not in our name? Some one told us to just "Reopen the Estate" and then it would be no problem.. Can you actually do that after a period of time?

Any helpful answers or advice would be great! Thanks
 
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Well, cases like earth movement and floods can really be in need for insurance claims for restoration of property.
 
If you or your husband were named the trustee of the estate, you should be able to change the Named Insured of the insurance policy to the name of the estate & trustee. Depends on KY law.
 
It depends on the policy language and the interpretation of that language. There are courts and carriers that would say that there is NO coverage on the dwelling. Most homeowners policies cover the dwelling "where 'you' reside." The word "you" refers to the named insured and, even if not named, the resident spouse of that insured. Since the deceased named insureds do not reside there, one argument is that there is no coverage. Since you are not the named insureds, there is also an argument that you are not a "family member" and, as a result, not entitled to any coverage for your personal property, nor do you have any liability coverage. The policy should be in your name.
 
How could we access the Insurance to have our home repaired?

You can't. You are not the Named Insured.

Would it even pay out because its not in our name?

It would pay the estate and the mortgage company. Then the representative of the probate estate would handle getting the money to repair the damage.

The problem with the potential damage claim is bad enough but if you get sued by somebody injured on the property, you'd be in big trouble.

You need to get a copy of the policy and determine who the agent is. Then contact the agent and get this resolved.

The quickest way is to take out a homeowner policy in your own names with the mortgage company as Loss Payee, pay for the policy and submit it to the mortgage company.
 
If the deed is in your name, cancel the existing home policy and get one in your name. Have the mortgage company as a Loss Payee.

Be prepared for the mortgage company to ask a few questions. They may not, as long as they have the replacement policy before the current policy is cancelled.

Dan
 
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