Racial Discrimination in Home Insurance

A recent study shows that homeowners living in minority neighborhoods find it difficult to get private home insurance and if they do get any insurance it dose not provide adequate coverage. The minorities also sometimes have to pay more for insurance policies than the white people living in posh neighborhoods. The study reveals that the reason for such differences of policies among the minorities and the white people is due to the discrimination against the minorities who are seeking for home insurance on the part of the insurance agents.

There are various policies and practices carried out by these insurance agents who totally restrict or deny insurance coverage needed by the African American and other minority groups in order to repair or rebuild there homes. Many of such intentional practices are:

1. Charging black people more for the same policy offered at a lesser amount to the white people.
2. Applicants living in minority areas are asked to provide additional background details.
3. Replacement cost coverage is offered to the white people but not to the black people.
4. they maintain minimum age restrictions
5. Inspection of homes in the minority areas is done more frequently.
6. Not giving return calls to people living in minority areas about the providing quotes to people living there.
7. And also giving the callers from minority areas reference of other insurance companies.

The result of these discriminatory practices carried on by these insurance agents is that many houses in the urban and minority areas are not covered against any loss. There are many commissions like the NEOC working in order to check for such practices carried on by the insurance agents and also trying to provide the homeowners in the minority areas adequate insurance coverage as provided to the white people living in posh localities. The major aim of these commissions is to provide the minority homeowners access to the insurance policies which provide adequate coverage for replacement of both the structure and the contents without considering the age or the value of the house and also persuading the insurance agents to provide all such policies equally among the minorities and the whites.

Thus there is a strong need to take major actions against the insurance agents who discriminate among the blacks and the whites so that the minorities enjoy equal rights and a better standard of living.