DE
Dustin Elkin
Sep 25, 2026
After 20+ years, I am done with this Allstate agency.
I have been an Allstate customer for more than 20 years. After what happened with my basement and, just as importantly, how this agency responded when I desperately needed help, I will be moving my insurance business elsewhere.
Last year, I specifically called this agency after finishing my basement because I wanted to make sure the basement was properly covered. Fast-forward to this year: while I was out of town on vacation on a cruise, I learned that my basement had flooded.
Imagine being hundreds of miles from home, on a ship, trying to coordinate emergency water mitigation, determine what happened, protect your home from further damage, and figure out your insurance coverage remotely. I was incredibly stressed and looking to the insurance agency I had trusted for more than two decades for help and guidance.
Instead, I felt like I was essentially on my own.
Then I discovered that my water-backup coverage was still limited to only $5,000.
When I questioned the agency, I was told:
“I reviewed the notes from when you called in, and it looks like we verified at that time that the basement is 100% finished. I also confirmed that no changes were made to your water backup coverage during that call.”
That is exactly the problem.
I called specifically about coverage after finishing my basement. The agency documented that my basement was 100% finished, yet my water-backup coverage remained at $5,000.
Then, AFTER I suffered the loss, I learned from the agency that higher limits were available: $10,000 and $25,000.
When I asked whether their records showed that I had actually been quoted those options or that I declined additional coverage, I wasn’t provided anything showing that. Instead, the response was that I had been mailed declaration pages every year showing my coverage and limits.
After 20+ years as a customer, that response was incredibly disappointing.
Sending me a declaration page is not the same as providing the guidance I expected when I specifically called my insurance agency to discuss protecting a newly finished basement.
I subsequently pursued the issue through the agency’s Errors & Omissions process, and that claim was denied as well.
I understand that an insurance company can only pay according to the policy and limits that were actually issued. My complaint is about how I ended up inadequately protected despite specifically contacting my agency about my finished basement and the lack of meaningful assistance I experienced when the loss actually occurred.
Insurance agents aren’t important when everything is going well. Their value becomes apparent when something goes terribly wrong.
For me, that moment came while I was out of town, on a cruise, watching from hundreds of miles away as my basement flooded and trying to manage an emergency at home. That was when I needed my insurance agency the most. Instead of feeling like I had an advocate helping me through it, I felt like I was left to figure it out myself.
After more than 20 years of loyalty, this experience destroyed my confidence in this agency.
This isn’t simply about a $5,000 coverage limit or a denied E&O claim. It’s about trust, service, and whether the professionals you depend on are actually there when you need them.
After 20+ years, they have lost my business.
I cannot recommend this agency based on my experience.