Cancellation / Nonrenewal : Docket No. {$docket_number} Decision : Bureau of Insurance

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Ronald and Coleen Laprise v. Vermont Mutual Insurance Company

Held January 5, 2012– Docket No. INS-11-2119
Decision Issued: February 1, 2012

The named insured requested a hearing to contest the cancellation of a homeowners insurance policy for failure to comply with loss control recommendations within 90 days. The company did not demonstrate that 90 days for compliance was provided.

Held: For the insured. Both the Maine Property Cancellation Control Act and the subject policy contract allow cancellation if the insured fails to comply with reasonable loss control recommendations within 90 days. This particular contract’s wording, “within 90 days after you receive notice of the loss control recommendations from us,” obligates the company to establish that the insured received the recommendations. As the company did not affirmatively document the mailing of the loss control recommendations, and the insured denied knowledge of them prior to receiving the notice of cancellation for failure to comply with the recommendations, the earliest receipt that could be established was with the cancellation notice itself. Although sufficient notice of the cancellation action was provided, the evidence on the record indicates the insured was given only 32 days to comply with the recommendations, therefore the cancellation action is premature.

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