Meth or P related - it goes here, please.

[Perry]

Everything Meth or P related in one thread, please.

[mechatronic]

insurance that covers damage from Meth / P

Hey everyone,

Im currently getting insurance organised for a rental property, and was wondering if there are any insurance policies that cover damage by P. The broker i spoke to says its classified as illegal activity and is not covered, well atleast by NZI which is what i was thinking of getting.

Does anyone have P cover in their insurance, or are all landlords at risk of having this problem occurring in their rental property

I did a search on this forum and found something about not getting covered if I let illegal activity continue on after being aware of it, thats fair enough, noone should let illegal activity carry on on their premises.

But say hypathetically if the property is managed by a property manager and and they send in a rookie staff member for inspections and they dont notice any signs of P from their amature experience. and this carries on for a few months and later the tennants get busted by police and the clan lab says it needs to have the insides gutted rebuilt.

1)would i be covered by gradual damage cover,
2)would the property manager ever be liable for their negligence for not noticing it.

Cheers

Mech

[kingkong82]

I don't see how this cannot be insured because you do get insurance for theft (which is an illegal activity) .

[mlkmnz]

Where's the:

3) Don't buy a roachtrap in a slum

option?

I don't see how this cannot be insured because you do get insurance for theft (which is an illegal activity) .

One's a crime occurring constantly within a property vs. one being committed against a property.

[Green Fish]

mechatronic: It all depends on the policy. So get hold of the actual policy wording (and not the "summary" that is often provided by brokers).

If in doubt, raise the issue expressly and in writing with the intended insurer, requesting a written response.

This can be done via the broker (who is, usually, the insurer's agent), but the safest course is to bypass the broker.

[mechatronic]

keep in mind its not just houses in roach trap slums that have P-dealers, there have been reports of p being manufactured in desirable locations aswell.

Mech

[kingkong82]

One's a crime occurring constantly within a property vs. one being committed against a property.

so what happens if the property is constantly burgled...lol....

[mechatronic]

Thanks Green Fish, i will do that.

[drelly]

Check your policy. Most of them don't cover for chemical damage. I believe Tower does.

[Wayne]

I asked Tower and basically they cover it unless you should have known it was happening. Not doing an inspection for a yr or so would void the cover as would not noticin the large stack of chemical drums out the back. AMI was the same really.

Came down to what a reasonable owner could be expected to do and see but I suspect the definition of reasonable is flexible - this is insurance we are talking about after all!

[Tan]

I am covered through Crombie Lockwood and have been assured it is in there somewhere. The policy is called monument rental property insurance (NZI & Vero).

Contact details at: http://www.crombielockwood.co.nz/

[mlkmnz]

so what happens if the property is constantly burgled...lol....

Then your premiums go up.

[Rosco]

$30,000 clean up cost and 10-30% reduction in property value

I’ve just been talking to a business that specialises in reducing Meth risks for rental properties. I thought you might be interested in the following brief summary.

Insurance companies are changing their criteria, and your property might not be covered for Meth damage.

The average cost to clean up a property after a Meth problem is $30,000. Ouch!
Plus worse still, then no one wants to buy a property that has had Meth issues. This commonly reduces the value of the rental property by 10-30%. So if you have a rental worth $300,000, the total real cost in terms of clean up and lost value could amount to over $100,000! If banks hear about Meth issues they then relook at LVR ratios, which can make the borrowers life difficult.

The Company I was talking to:
- Provides a buying service for $99, where you can check to see if the house has traces of Meth. Gives a simple Yes/No – I think this is a no brainer and you should be obtaining some kind of report before purchasing to ensure your next rental does not have a Meth issue. Also you should be asking the vendor and the agent about Meth.
- Provides a monitoring and testing service for around $500 per year to ensure the property is kept Meth Free. They feel that being Meth free is a bonus, and that if advertised well might get the landlord $10 extra per week which then pays for the monitoring cost.

www.methminder.co.nz contains further information as well!

Ross

[jimO]

maybe its time to hold the meth industry responsible for the cost od clean up

[essence]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10879548

Patsy Haigh, five doors from the P-house, said: "This is supposed to be one of the top addresses in New Zealand to live, then we have something like this. It's quite bizarre.''

LOL