Couple frustrated after nightmare ordeal with home insurance company: 'It's the emotional stress and fear'

A South Carolina couple has been stuck in limbo as its insurance company has refused to pay for needed repairs following a catastrophic storm, according to Greenville News. 

What's happening?

Marisa and Stu Wells have had their Greenville home since 2022. That house took a beating from Hurricane Helene in September 2024, as a nearby tree crashed into the roof and pushed the wall out of its framing. 

The Wells hired a contractor who estimated the cost of the damage to be $139,000. The Wells submitted the estimate to their insurance provider, Travelers, which provided $10,000 a month later and committed another $5,000 once construction started.

"We were like, what is this?" Stu Wells said, per Greenville News. "At fifteen grand — I can't even get a contractor out."

Over the course of a year, the couple brought in new contractors and legal support to get the coverage they're owed. Worse still, these insurance delays caused the damage to spread. The dislodged wall was creating new cracks.

"This could have been resolved months ago and all this other damage wouldn't have even happened," Marisa Wells said, per Greenville News. "Here we are almost a year later and we're still dealing with this — living in a house that's broken."

Why is home insurance important?

The insurance industry is in a state of crisis due to increasingly destructive weather events exacerbated by atmospheric pollution. Homeowners are either having their premiums increased or having their insurance coverage pulled altogether.

Meanwhile, the insurance industry has been dealing with increasing losses. The Senate Budget Committee has said these forces could cause a housing crisis akin to the one in 2008.

The toll on the Wells has spread beyond dollar signs. 

"It's not just what happened when the tree hit, it's the emotional stress and fear that's tied into it," Stu Wells said, per Greenville News. "The reality of it is, you're thinking that you're getting that protection and you're not. You think that they're going to have a sense of urgency and they didn't."

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What's being done about housing insurance?

The Wells have involved an umpire in their case who would set a final figure that the insurance company is legally required to pay out. They're still waiting on that final judgment.

"You can't move on," Stu Wells said. "You want to close a chapter and be able to move onto the next segment of your life."

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