Umbrella policy and pool in the woods

[lilranch2001]

Why would you want to insure an umbrella?! j/k

ever seen how many umbrellas get screwed up in storms?

 

[boggen]

if it is just mud / dirt for walls and bottom, i would most likely not even hesitate to call it a pond.

if it has concrete sides or some sort of re-enforced metal or like sides. then you may be boarder line.

different states, different counties, different townships. all have there own "classification" of what defines a pool.

there are plenty of folks that have "ponds" with koi, to goldfish to other animals. but are able to classify it as a pond. and not a pool. but again it comes down to regulations / laws. and some may claim what you have as a pool and has to be treated as such.

for me living out in middle of no were, there really are no laws beyond fedral, state, county. and most of them are fairly relaxed. as soon as i get into a city / town. it is a completely different story.

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if something happens, you will most likely looked at. so do what you think ya need to do. to cover your own rear.

a fence is fairly cheap to install, and put some signs up, of no trespassing, no swimming, or like. if you put signs up. again double check your regulations / laws. for me i think no tresspassing signs need to be put up like every 50, or 100, or was it 150 feet?!? *i do not remember*

 

[kenmac]

When I got my policy. My pool wasn't the problem. It was the diving board & slide. I had to pay more from a different ins. company to get umbrella coverage.Your agent should be able to answer pool, pond, nothing

 

[wesmann]

Thanks aczlan,
I'll put up a better fence. The sides are vertical. It is a liability.

 

[meburdick]

I have owned this property for 24 years, and had the same carrier all this time, aint no way in
H E DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS I would remember what they aksked me 24 years ago

You might not, but they do.

The Homeowner's policy is [almost?] always where liability "starts". An umbrella policy covers beyond the HO policy and also extends to events occurring off of your own property. Many companies regulate a ratio of some sort for holding liability coverage between an HO policy and an umbrella. The umbrealla coverage is often a little less per dollar of coverage, so they require a minimum % of total liability to be on the HO policy.

In very simplistic terms, if you don't tell them of a risk on your property, and there's an event involving that risk, it isn't covered. No, you don't have a pool. Period. But, you do have another "open hole" on the property that needs to be written in as a risk. A good agent will be able to help you define that risk.

Anything that you do to mitigate risk with that particular item should meet minimum building codes AND minimum requirements for the policy. Look into other things that might assist you with lowering premiums like an actively monitored home alarm or similar items - again, a good agent will be able to help you understand what things you can do to manage premium while also ensuring that you're covered from a loss.

Side note: I have to carry a reasonably sized umbrella property for liability purposes because of property ownership. One of the things that I like very much is that the policy also gives me an excellent amount of coverage for things like hauling my tractor around behind my truck. My tractor could slide off my trailer and crush five Ferrari's and I'd be covered.

 

[Jstpssng]

You might not, but they do.

The Homeowner's policy is [almost?] always where liability "starts". An umbrella policy covers beyond the HO policy and also extends to events occurring off of your own property. Many companies regulate a ratio of some sort for holding liability coverage between an HO policy and an umbrella. The umbrealla coverage is often a little less per dollar of coverage, so they require a minimum % of total liability to be on the HO policy.

In very simplistic terms, if you don't tell them of a risk on your property, and there's an event involving that risk, it isn't covered. No, you don't have a pool. Period. But, you do have another "open hole" on the property that needs to be written in as a risk. A good agent will be able to help you define that risk.

Anything that you do to mitigate risk with that particular item should meet minimum building codes AND minimum requirements for the policy. Look into other things that might assist you with lowering premiums like an actively monitored home alarm or similar items - again, a good agent will be able to help you understand what things you can do to manage premium while also ensuring that you're covered from a loss.

Side note: I have to carry a reasonably sized umbrella property for liability purposes because of property ownership. One of the things that I like very much is that the policy also gives me an excellent amount of coverage for things like hauling my tractor around behind my truck. My tractor could slide off my trailer and crush five Ferrari's and I'd be covered.

I handle that part a little differntly; my tractor is on the same commercial policy as my truck so if I am headed down the road from my house to my garden and some putz hits me at 60 my insurance company will defend me.
Slightly off topic. However, your first commemts are the best advice I've read. At the very least take pictires of anythong whoch you're not sure about, and let them decide if they wamt to pursue it further. I once went 16 rounds on my worker's comp policy becajse they claimed I wasn:t doing what I said I was going to and tried to extort another 2K or so from me.It finally went to collection and when they threatened to take me to court I said "be my guest... I'll be bringimg with the origonal policy; a year's worth of invoices; and that year's tax returns.That will show ypu that I did EXACTLY what I said I was going to be doing When I win I'll turn around and sue you for my time."

I never heard another word from thm.

 

[meburdick]

I handle that part a little differntly; my tractor is on the same commercial policy as my truck so if I am headed down the road from my house to my garden and some putz hits me at 60 my insurance company will defend me.
Slightly off topic. However, your first commemts are the best advice I've read. At the very least take pictires of anythong whoch you're not sure about, and let them decide if they wamt to pursue it further. I once went 16 rounds on my worker's comp policy becajse they claimed I wasn:t doing what I said I was going to and tried to extort another 2K or so from me.It finally went to collection and when they threatened to take me to court I said "be my guest... I'll be bringimg with the origonal policy; a year's worth of invoices; and that year's tax returns.That will show ypu that I did EXACTLY what I said I was going to be doing When I win I'll turn around and sue you for my time."

I never heard another word from thm.

It seems you would fall into the "Commercial Entity" category, and that would make sense for you to handle it that way. As a homeowner, my options are a little more limited.

I never used to rely on an agent. But, in the recent years, I have had a variety of different needs in insurance and my agent has been fantastic to work with. She quotes out all of my policies every year with something like 20 carriers to make sure that I'm getting 100% of the coverage I truly need at the right total cost for everything. And, she takes the time to understand what kinds of protection I really need so that she can find a matching policy / carrier to get it for me. I've learned a LOT from her... Mostly, that I just need to let her handle the majority of this stuff and pay the bill when it comes.