Bluewater Insurance

[conchcruzer]

For those on the board that have or are considering Bluewater Insurance, I feel obligated to report another, and hopefully final, case of bad service from them.

I have had Bluewater Insurance for the past three years. My policy was set to expire today, November 1st. However, due to general poor service and a loss of trust in the owners and employees of the company, I chose to go with another carrier.

The owner of the company sent me a short email stating that my coverage was about to lapse. I replied with a very short email as follows:

"Thanks for your concern. I have elected to take insurance for my vessel with another provider.

Regards,
Dan Forter
S/V Eventyr"

I recieved a reply back almost immediately that said:

"If you are still in the Caribbean and you passed up the offer we gave you with Santam Insurance Company with the coverage and security we offered, you made a mistake. If you are not in the Caribbean, then, you didn’t give us the opportunity to quote one of our excellent coastal markets. When we are not given the opportunity to compare the coverage we offered to current customers with that offered by others, we don’t forget it. Your file will be noted accordingly."

I don't know who this guy thinks he is, but I think his service is terrible and level of professionalism is unacceptable.

Anyone following this thread that has some ideas of how to respond, I am open to suggestions. I don't have an axe to grind with this guy or Bluewater, never had a claim, etc. I just wish I had known what I know now before I ever did business with them.

Cheers,
Dan
S/V Eventyr
Island Packet 40
www.ipphotos.com/eventyr

[AjariBonten]

Don't respond. This thread was enough. He said everything that needs to be said, did he not?

Also, I would probably leave it at that for libel issues as well. (Hey lawyers, don't razz me on libel/defamation, whatever; you know what I mean. )

How unprofessional can you get; but not uncommon.

Here's a website that has tons of similar stories; and good consumer strategies to boot:

http://consumerist.com/


Thanks for the heads-up!

Fred

[sailingdog]

Hmm.. sounds like he was blacklisting your in their files for merely switching insurance companies.... that's a pretty ethically questionable tactic...

BTW, it wouldn't be libel or slander, as long as the OP is quoting the e-mail verbatim. It is a statement of fact and truth is a defense for libel or slander actions, at least in the United States.

[camaraderie]

They have been dissed over at SSCA as well:

Run as fast as you can from Bluewater. We and many other SSCA member have dealt with them in the past and problems from payments not being applied to claims not being settled and much more have been experienced by many of us. One good issue is you may not even get them to reply to a request for a quote.

I have no personal experience with them other than a pretty sneaky snail mail letter disguised as a renewal invoice! So...I would suggest caution and due diligence in dealing with this company.

[AjariBonten]

I know SD. The original post, with the quoted email was totally professional; way more so than what the insurer put out

Like I said, that itself says all it has to about the professionalism of the agent under discussion. I was just advising against anyone going off on a rant that could get themselves in trouble; posting on a public and googleable board.

Originally Posted by sailingdog

BTW, it wouldn't be libel or slander, as long as the OP is quoting the e-mail verbatim. It is a statement of fact and truth is a defense for libel or slander actions, at least in the United States.

[Sailormann]

What goes around comes around...

[billyruffn]

Make sure you keep of your emails with them. I know insurance companies trade information on policy holders the way credit card issuers do...they have something similar to credit reporting agencies that keep track of consumers claims histories, etc. One would hope his comment "Your file will be noted accordingly" has to do with their internal files and not the ones they share with other insurance companies. You have a right to know what's in the files used to determine your credit rating and your insurance risk rating. If you have any trouble getting insurance for your boat in the future you should inquire as to information the quoting company relied upon in making their decisions. If it has anything to do w/ the email you quoted, your next stop is your lawyer's office.