On Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:02:28 +0000, Orchid XP v8 wrote:

>>> Sure. But I also know that an insurance company's job is to not pay
>>> out under any circumstances whatsoever. Their entire business model is
>>> based on preventing customers getting the money they're due. The fact
>>> that insurance companies are all doing so well indicates that they
>>> must have got very, very good at this.
>> 
>> That doesn't mean that they never pay out, though.  In cases of
>> catastropic events, they're required by law to pay out.
> 
> Sure, they're legally obliged to pay out. But if you've just lost your
> house and you are now penniless... what are you going to do? Sue them?
> Oh, wait, you have no money. :-P

If they don't pay out, you take it (in the US) to the district attorney 
and let the state prosecute it.

>> If they never paid out, then people wouldn't buy insurance.
> 
> Maybe I'm just bitter. I paid £900 for a moped. When it was stolen, they
> gave me £25. Later I paid $1,200 for a car. When it was crashed, they
> gave me £75. I mean, seriously, it was *so* worth paying £700 per year
> in insurance premiums for that.

It seems that you didn't have very good coverage.  I can see that that 
kind of payout would make you bitter about it; the reality for most 
people is generally different - though it sometimes does take time, 
energy, and work to get them to pay out at an appropriate level.

I live not far from a very large fault line, and we're late for "the big 
one" (earthquake) by about 20 years.  Earthquake insurance is a required 
part of our policy, and if it does hit, the company will take care of 
things for us.

Jim

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