Chinese drywall insurance policy bill advances to Senate for full vote January 26, 2010

The thousands of homeowners who have been dealing with the hardships associated with Chinese drywall may find some satisfaction in learning that a helpful bill has advanced to a critical stage in the Senate.  The bill, if passed, will ease homeowner insurance woes.

On Monday, January 25 2010, a vote was held by the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor.  The proposed bill is now headed to the Senate where a full vote is expected to take place.

The bill would have the following effects:

• Insurance companies would be barred from canceling insurance policies of Chinese drywall victims
• Insurance companies would be barred from refusing to renew insurance policies of Chinese drywall victims
• Insurances companies would be barred from increasing the rates of a policy based only on the reason that the home contains Chinese drywall

Click here for full text of the bill in .pdf format, as well as status updates.  The bill tracker system is an efficient tool homeowners can use to keep themselves educated on this quickly developing situation.

WAVY News in Virginia has investigated the situation in Hampton Roads since early 2009, and has reported that dozens of victims exist.  Senator John Miller is a major proponent of the bill, and is quoted as saying;

“The best estimates are that 350 homes in 48 communities in the Commonwealth [of Virginia] have been found to have Chinese Drywall, many of them in Newport News and on the Peninsula.”