Sewer Line Insurance

In my area the electric company is pushing water line insurance only. The water line from the meter to my house is 100% PVC and I have replaced 100% of it. That insurance is a definite no for me.

Sewer line is a more expensive and complicated issue. Be sure to look at all the fine print. Also, you should know if your sewer line is cast iron, PVC or something else. Cast iron is going to fail but there is probably fine print limiting your payout.

Bingo.

Here in the Baltimore area, I have seen this as well. After seven years of paying premiums, I would have put in more money into this scheme than I could get out of it based on the maximum payout in the fine print.

I'd call it a rip-off.

Like you say, we would be much better off to put these 'premiums' into an investment account and use to pay the bill "if' it ever happens.

Think about it: the INSURANCE industry is like the CASINO industry...they ALWAYS win or they would NOT be in business.

..."Clay sewer pipes can typically last for 50 to 60 years. PVC (polyvinyl chloride) pipe was designed to last for long periods of time, typically over 100 years.Feb 4, 2013"...

..."The average lifespan of cast iron drain/sewer pipe is 50 to 65 years. It is easily recognized by the thickened female “hub” at each pipe segment connection.Jul 6, 2018"..

https://www.howtolookatahouse.com/Blog/Entries/2018/7/what-is-the-average-life-expectancy-of-cast-iron-pipe.html

http://www.canclay.com/htdocs/Comparative%20Properties%20and%20Service%20Life%20of%20Pipes%20Used%20as%20Sanitary%20Sewers.pdf

Put $15 per month into a savings account to use towards emergency repairs, if needed, and hope it becomes part of your retirement account.

BTW, when I get calls from people who want to insure my almost 20 year old Jeep I thank them for calling explaining that with each call I get on this topic I put $500 into an account to replace it when it does break down. Waste their time and they are less likely to call again.

This is like cancer insurance, basically a scam. If your normal homeowner's insurance doesn't cover this already, then it too is a scam.

I thank everyone for the advice, seems the consensus is forget about insurance and

put the money in the bank.

oilcan13

Hire a local sewer inspection company to come in and run a camera down your sewer line to the main sewer connection (in my area the cost runs about $150). If the camera inspection shows problems, buy the insurance for long enough to get the repairs done. If the camera inspection shows no problems, forget the insurance as you will likely never need it.

I did have a camera inspection done in 2017 for the purpose of lining the sewer.

the only problem they found was a tap for a drain in the crawl space that would need to be removed before they could reline the sewer line. did not make sense to me because the drain tap was capped many years ago.

The maple tree has a notorious rambling root system.

I would buy some root killer to avert future growth of roots into the drain line.

It is available at most hardware stores or Big box stores,something like Zep root killer.

It dissolves roots already in the system,and should be used once a year.

When you buy an insurance policy,you are betting the insurance company that something bad is going to happen.

They are betting you it won't happen.And you hope they win the bet.

Think about it.

Buying insurance is like betting that your sewer line will break.

I have an old house too.

I bought the insurance, but it was only $80.00 a year.

Insurance is pretty much a loser, unless you have a good reason to anticipate problems within the timeframe of overpaying the maximum payout.

@ putting $15 in the bank per month, $180 per year, it will take you a bit over 11 years to put away the nominal half cost of $2000. So if you have reason to believe it will likely fail within 6-8 years, and certainly fail in the time frame of 11 years, read up the fine print in you homeowner's policy first and then in the insurance offer, and place your bets.

The clincher though, if you bet on the failure and get the insurance and then it doesn't happen in the anticipated time frame, you have no choice but to keep paying the insurance or else you completely lose all that money you paid in without making a claim! Every year that you continue to pay, after reaching the maximum payout amount, is their profit and your loss. They easily take this kind of gamble and profit from it, because of the volume of their betting. Not all pipes will fail, winners cover losers and the rest is raked in. The losers who have to keep paying after max payout amount are basically captive until the day they have an actual pipe failure and reason to claim.... so they keep on raking.

Banking the money keeps it in your control. Bank yourself a payout that will cover the actual cost, and use the interest to throw yourself a party when you pass the 11 year date without pipe failure...

Most insurance is a scam... ever seen an insurance company go bust?
They just keep thinking of new things to scare you with.
Del