A California woman has revealed that her insurance company spied on her with drones while she was doing renovations, then used the footage of “clutter” to sever her coverage.
Joan Van Kuren said she was stunned when CSAA, her insurer of nearly 40 years, took the drastic decision to remove her as a customer because of “dangerous” construction debris they saw in her yard.
The Modesto, California, resident had been renovating her home for more than three years and had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars updating her kitchen, bathrooms and driveway, she said. CBS News.
However, she claimed that when almost all the work was completed, the CSAA sent her a letter reporting “hazards” and unsanitary conditions on her property that posed a risk.
According to Van Kuren, the insurance company used drones, a growing tactic in the industry, causing a number of homeowners to lose coverage without knowing their properties were being watched from above.
California homeowner Joan Van Kuren said she was stunned when her home insurance was canceled after the insurer took aerial photographs of her house without her knowledge
Van Kuren said she was finishing a $200,000 renovation of her home (pictured) when she learned her insurance had been canceled
Van Kuren said being contacted by her home insurer ruined a joyous moment as she was nearly finished renovating her home.
When asked what it was like when the finishing touches were being put on the whole thing, she said it was “amazing.” “It was fantastic because it took forever.”
But after receiving a notice that her coverage would be terminated, Van Kuren says she called her insurer, claiming that her home was not messy and that there was only construction debris that would be cleaned up.
“(The company) said they were flying a drone over the house,” she claimed. “It almost feels like someone is looking in your windows, you know, when they tell you they flew a drone over your house and they’re looking at it. It’s like, whoa.”
CSAA told Van Kuren that aerial photographs showed debris to the left of her home, where final renovation work was being carried out on the property.
CBS News reported that when contacted by the CSAA, the company stated that it does not specifically fly drones, but does use aerial imagery captured by satellites and third-party fixed-wing aircraft.
The California woman insisted that her home is not cluttered and that there was only temporary construction debris in her yard
Van Kuren said she was shocked when the insurance company flew over her. She said it “almost feels like someone is looking through your windows.”
Insurance companies flying drones is a growing tactic in the industry that has led to a number of homeowners losing their coverage without knowing their properties were being watched from above.
Van Kuren says she is furious about the way she has been treated by her insurer, saying she has paid them more than $80,000 over the years.
The incident led her to abruptly cancel her car insurance, which she also had with CSAA, in protest, and to take her business to a competitor.
“The gentleman asked me, ‘Is there a conversation possible where we can detain you?’” she said, recalling her conversation with a CSAA staff member.
“I said to him, ‘That’s really not possible.’”
Experts say this is more common than people think. Amy Bach, executive director of the nonprofit United Policy Holders, tells CBS News that homeowners have certain rights if this happens to them.
She said people can ask their insurer to send them the images mentioned in their insurance cancellations, as insurers can make mistakes.
Experts say homeowners have certain rights when their homes are being searched by drones, including requesting the footage captured to identify errors or misunderstandings.
“Sometimes those images are blurry,” she said. “And so, you know, assuming that the image shows a damaged roof, when in reality it’s just a roof with a skylight or solar panels.”
Van Kuren claims she requested her images from CSAA but did not receive them.
Bach added that it’s important for homeowners to know that insurance companies must give their customers 75 days’ notice before terminating coverage.