Griffin-Owens and Associates

I often get asked by clients who are involved in a claim settlement if they should sign a waiver for the insurance company who is settling their claim.  A waiver is a legal document that usually states that you, the claimant agrees to waive all future rights to recover from the other party in your claim and their insurance company.    Generally, I tell customers that it depends on whether they are certain that their loss has been settled to their satisfaction.  I also refer clients to an attorney if their case is more complicated or involves bodily injury.  A good rule of thumb when faced with signing a waiver is to just say “No” until you get legal advice. 

Every once in a while, I hear about a case where an insurance company will tell a customer that they will not get their claim settled until the customer signs the waiver.  I am not sure if that is a legal practice, but it certainly seems like an unethical practice.  If an insurance company is pressuring you to sign a waiver, that is a clear sign that you should get some legal advice before you do anything.  Don’t allow yourself to be bullied by a claims adjuster.  If you are unable to retain an attorney, you can also report the incident to the state’s Bureau of Insurance.  The Bureau of Insurance is tasked with making sure that insurance professionals act in accordance with the law.  Infractions by insurance companies or their representatives can result in serious penalties including fines, loss of licensing and even jail time. 

So, the short answer is, “Just say no to waivers!”  At least until you fully understand all the implications of signing one.  You have nothing to lose by taking your time.  However, if you sign a waiver just so you can get your check now, you may regret it one day.

Working for Griffin-Owens means that you don’t get a “Snow Day”.  When the weather turns bad and threatens our clients property and safety, that’s when we get to work.  However, the challenge of having 3 feet of snow on the ground with un-plowed parking lots and side streets presented us with a real problem.  Fortunately, [...]

“You get way you pay for”.  That’s it.  These famous words have lived as a part of our vocabulary for as long as anyone can remember.  Another one is “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is”.  Recently, a major insurance company has been selling the idea that it’s customers can name [...]

Normally, I reserve this space to write about insurance issues that effect the general public.  I like to think of it as a public service and try not to promote our agency or our companies too blatantly.  But, today I must make an exception.  The reason is that we are in a unique position to offer [...]

Saturday, December 19:  The office will be closed because of the snow. 
During holiday hours Nationwide policyholders can reach Nationwide by calling our office and selecting prompt 5.  You will be able to make payments and changes to your policy.  You can also access your accounts on line at www.mynationwide.com .  If you have a claim, you [...]

With the cold weather and the holidays often comes the increased risk of suffering a homeowners loss due to fire or freezing pipes.  Now is the time to turn off the water to those water faucets on the exterior of your home.  During prolonged periods of sub freezing weather the water trapped in those pipes [...]

Have you ever parked your car in a shopping center parking lot only to return to find that your car was damaged while you were shopping?  It can be very frustrating and it is important to know how your car insurance can respond to these kinds of losses.  There are three very different coverages on [...]

There are few topics that are more boring to most people than the contractual differences between one homeowners insurance policy and another.  Unless, you have just suffered a loss and discovered that you don’t have the right coverage or you don’t have enough coverage.  Not all homeowners policies are the same.  Different companies will offer [...]

Technology has given us many opportunities and access to many resources.  However, there are limits to what you want to attempt on the internet.  For example, if you were really sick, you would not seek treatment from a computer based process on the internet.  Even though you might be able to gain some insight to [...]

Many homeowners use the warm months of the year to work on home improvement projects. Some projects are just a little too big for the average homeowner so we call upon local professionals to help us out.   Most homeowners don’t realize that they need to ask their contractors for proof of insurance before allowing work [...]