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William & Patti Dunton v. Teachers Insurance Company

Held December 10, 2008 - Docket No. INS-08-2116
Decision Issued: December 15, 2008

The insured requested a hearing regarding the company’s intended nonrenewal of a property insurance policy on his residence for “failure to maintain upkeep on the premises.” At hearing, the company provided evidence of several specific conditions revealed in an inspection.

Held: For the insured. 24-A M.R.S.A. § 3051 requires the reason or reason for the intended nonrenewal to accompany the notice of nonrenewal, and requires that reason to be explicit so that the insured is clearly informed of the reason prompting the company’s action. The evidence showed that the insured was unable to determine from the notice what issues were concerning the company. In addition, the company made no attempt in its testimony to explain how those conditions affected the insurability of the property, and also did not provide a copy of the policy to demonstrate that any potential increase in hazard was relevant to the coverage provided under the policy.