Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  01/08/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  In 2023, I paid my home insurance premiums to Oudomsouk's agency totaling $1371.00. Aerial photos were taken of my private residence and home business by Oudom's agency without my knowledge or permission. In October, the photos were used to put my policy in a state of non-renewal in ****. I own a structural steel company and store materials in the back field of my property. I was told to clean up the "scattered debri" (Oudom's words not mine) and send pictures of my property back to the agency if I wanted to keep my home insurance policy active. When I asked to see the aerial photos that were taken of my property so I could determine what exactly needed to be done to keep my policy, I was denied by Oudom saying he does not have access. I asked for an agent to physically come to my property and tell me what the issue is; Oudom and his wife obliged, came to my property, took photos and said in person that they didn't see anything of concern. I called weeks later to follow up and when I asked a woman at his agency to be more specific about the scattered debri and give me a written guideline of what was considered hazardous at a private residence, I was denied. I had to ask several times what was in the photos and finally she told me about a wood pile that was in the underwriter's comments, proving they did have access. I was denied a written response, a written explanation and she hung up on me. Next day, Oudom called; when I asked for, in writing, specific examples of things in my yard to be moved or scrapped; I again, was denied. Oudom did try to get a written response from the underwriter but did not produce that response till 12/26/23 after the intitial non-renewal notice. I have a copy of that response. Oudom's agency illegally took photos of my property, avoided me, lied to me about not having access to the underwriter's photos and comments, bullied me about my residence and the better business bureau needs to know about this so he cannot do it to anyone else.

  Business response

  01/16/2024

  I am writing to address the complaint filed against Oudom Insurance Agency LLC and assigned Case #********. We appreciate the opportunity to provide clarity on the concerns raised by the ******** family.

  
  Payment Details: The last payment received for the client's homeowner insurance was on 12/13/2022, covering the term 1/15/23-1/15/24. No payment has been received in 2023, as implied by the client.

  
  Captive Agent and Underwriting Process: As a captive agent of Farmers Insurance, I operate under the company's rules and guidelines. In this case, Farmers Insurance has decided to non-renew the client due to "scattered debris on premises creating an increased hazard." The underwriting process, including the use of aerial satellite images, is conducted independently by Farmers Insurance in partnership with *******, a legal company following all FAA regulations and Washington state laws.

  
  Proactive Client Assistance: Our agency has been proactive in assisting the client. We notified them of the non-renewal before the official notice on 10/9, demonstrating our commitment to transparency.Despite verbal abuse directed at our staff during client interactions, we continued to offer support. On 11/2, we visited the client's property to take photos, as they had refused to do so themselves. The client admitted to the debris on the property but expressed reluctance to address the issue. We provided these photos to our back office for confirmation of the specific debris that needed attention.

  
  Communication and Specifics: To ensure accurate information, we requested specifics from our back office, which were then provided to the client almost three weeks before the non-renewal date. This proactive communication aimed to give the client sufficient time to address the identified concerns.

  
  Conclusion: Our involvement in this matter is aligned with Farmers Insurance's decision, and our efforts have been focused on assisting the client within the framework of the non-renewal process. We appreciate the Better Business Bureau's role in facilitating communication and remain committed to resolving this matter. If the ******** family has further questions or concerns, we encourage them to contact us directly.

  
  Sincerely,
  Oudomsouk Vongthavady
  Agency Owner
  Oudom Insurance Agency LLC
  ************

  Customer response

  01/18/2024

   
  Complaint: 21072239
  
  I am rejecting this response because: it is a complete farce and a deliberate attempt to save face with a play of words. No one in your office had been verbally abused by us and no attempt was ever made to be transparent about what debri needed to be dealt with. We were never reluctant to handle the issue as we were never told specifically what the issue was. We didn't refuse to take photos; we were never told what photos to take, what portion of our property to photograph or what specific "debri" to photograph. I'm not sure what you meant by that "we even admitted to the debri on the property and were reluctant to deal with it." It was never a secret that we own a structural steel company. The word "debri" implies trash or garbage but the "debri" on our property is steel and wood. The truth is that you handled this situation poorly and without respect. Now in your response you are somehow trying to make me seem like I was a difficult and trashy customer. I've paid Farmers nearly $20000 over the past 3 years as a customer and the agent before you would have never treated a customer this way. Your supervisor apologized profusely to me for your conduct. I read him the last and only email you have sent me about my home insurance policy. You sent that final/only email over a month after I had spoken to you on the phone in November when you told me you would get back to me in 5 days. I responded to that email; the same email in the picture and you still haven't responded back. I responded to your email days before I reported you to the BBB, your supervisor and ******* At the time of my response to your email, I was still a customer and my policy had 3 weeks left. I mention this because you ended your response saying that you would prefer me to contact your office directly. In my response I told you I was going to find another insurance company, that I didn't believe you had gotten into a car accident and that I was going to report you to as many agencies as I could. You never responded. The point is, don't act like you made a legitimate effort to keep me as a customer.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *******************************

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩