CoverTree
Carrier website links, underwriting access points, mapped product lines, and appetite notes in one place.
This appetite summary is only a guide. Confirm eligibility, submission requirements, restrictions, and binding authority directly with the carrier or underwriter before relying on it.
Carrier appetite summary
Program focus & appetite: - Specialty personal lines program focused on factory-built housing: manufactured homes (HUD-code), modular homes, tiny homes, ADUs, park models, and stationary travel trailers. Nearly all prefabricated housing is acceptable; shipping container homes are specifically excluded from the manufactured home program. - Owner, tenant/renter, vacant, and seasonal occupancies are contemplated in the manufactured home program; however, as of the Summer 2024 Agent Guide, new landlord/tenant policies are temporarily discontinued while a self-service portal is developed. - Supports coverage for homes used as primary, secondary/seasonal, and certain short-term home‑sharing (up to 30 days per year on owner or seasonal occupancies). Preferred / target business profile: - Factory-built units in good structural condition. Condition is the primary underwriting concern; homes do not need to be cosmetically attractive, but must be structurally sound. Units written with Replacement Cost are held to a higher standard of condition than those written on ACV. - Manufactured homes (post-1976 HUD code) and modular units, generally with dwelling limits from $5,000 to $300,000 (up to $500,000 for modular). Replacement Cost is available for units 30 years and newer; extended replacement cost of 20% of Coverage A is available when criteria are met. - Personal liability limits up to $300,000 are standard; limits up to $500,000 may be allowed with underwriting approval and supporting documentation. - Risks where prior claims history is limited and mitigation has been completed after any losses. Underwriters are tolerant of some prior losses but will scrutinize repeated or unmitigated loss patterns, especially water, fire, and roof claims. - Personal lines occupancies without significant commercial exposure. Light hobby farming is acceptable via endorsement (generally up to $5,000 in annual farm-related income and approximately up to 5 large or 10 small animals). Restricted / declined classes and conditions: - Shipping container homes are not eligible in the manufactured home program. - Homes with a business on premises are only acceptable with underwriting approval, must have little to no foot traffic, and cannot involve hazardous operations or conditions. - Roof condition, water losses, fire losses, open claims, and lapses in coverage are key underwriting flags. Each requires documentation before binding or continuation: photos for roof, fire marshal reports for fire, detailed loss descriptions and mitigation evidence for water, and loss runs/statement of no loss for lapses or open claims. - Certain coastal and high-wind areas in active states may be written with wind/hail coverage excluded or restricted; coverage maps and coastal grids are referenced in the guide, with some coastal zones in AL, GA, MS, SC, and TX subject to wind/hail limitations or unavailability. - Stationary travel trailers: Replacement Cost is not offered; coverage is typically ACV with optional endorsements. Geographic appetite: - Active personal-lines manufactured home program footprint as of the Summer 2024 Agent Guide includes: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. - Within certain coastal states (notably AL, GA, MS, SC, TX), underwriting uses coastal maps to determine whether wind/hail can be included; some coastal tiers may only be eligible with wind/hail exclusions. Coverage structure & options: - Primary structure types: manufactured homes, modular homes, tiny homes, ADUs, park models, stationary travel trailers. - Occupancies: owner-occupied, seasonal/secondary, renters (currently closed to new landlord/tenant business), and vacant. Vacant risks typically default to Basic peril form. - Peril forms for dwellings: Basic (similar to DP-1), Broad (DP-2-like), Special (HO-3-like; all risk Cov A with named perils Cov C), and Comprehensive (HO-5-like; all risk Cov A/B/C, default for most non-vacant uses). Underwriters can adjust perils to fit risk profile. - Standard policy components include dwelling, other structures, personal property, loss of use/additional living expense, personal liability, and medical payments to others. - Common endorsements and underwriting levers: Enhanced Coverage package (raises sublimits and adds coverages to approach standard homeowners), earthquake, identity fraud expense, comprehensive water damage, hobby farming, animal liability (default $10,000, buy-up to match liability), golf cart, trip collision for stationary travel trailers, fungi/wet/dry rot/bacteria coverage, roof exclusion, specific building exclusion, and wind/hail exclusion. Submission & documentation requirements (agents/brokers): - Quoting is done via the CoverTree agent portal; typical quote-to-bind time is 3–5 minutes when no underwriting flags are triggered. - Address entry: agents should enter addresses slowly, including directional abbreviations (e.g., "SE"), to allow the system to properly validate and populate the location. Mis-entered addresses are a common source of underwriting flags. - Effective dates: portal defaults to an effective date approximately 7 days out; agents can adjust effective dates from the final summary screen before binding. Same-day or retroactive effective dates are considered case-by-case and require documentation (e.g., closing documents, current dec page) emailed to agentuw@covertree.com. - Email requirement: an email is required for e-sign and policy delivery. If the insured has no email, agents may use the prescribed placeholder format: policyholder+10-digit-phone@covertree.com. Post-binding email changes require a service ticket so the application can be resent correctly. - Payment options: only credit/debit card and mortgagee billing are accepted; ACH/EFT is not available. For 11-pay plans, the option appears only when AOP deductible is at least $1,000, wind/hail deductible at least $2,500, and premium is $500+; 11-pay remains subject to underwriting review. - Auto-draft: for 2-pay and 11-pay on credit/debit, subsequent installments are automatically drafted from the card used at issuance unless changed by service. - Mortgagee changes: if the lender requires the insured to pay year one and escrow thereafter, agents should email CoverTree to add/update the lender for future mortgage billing. Underwriting flags & required documentation: - Lapse in coverage 1–7 days: statement of no loss noting last coverage date and reason for lapse must be provided. - Lapse in coverage 8+ days: carrier loss runs showing claims closed and a signed statement of no loss with last coverage date and lapse reason are required. - Roof condition concerns: photos of roof and/or paid-in-full invoice if a replacement has occurred since the original roof. - Water claims: description of incident, location address, occupancy type, mitigation actions, and confirmation that repairs are completed. - Fire claims: fire marshal report documenting cause of loss. - Open claims: loss runs or carrier documentation showing current claim status and mitigation/repair details. - All underwriting flag documentation is to be emailed to agentuw@covertree.com for review prior to binding or continuation. Broker / producer operational notes: - Primary agent support contacts: agentsales@covertree.com (binding assistance, coverage and portal questions, pre-issuance issues), agentservice@covertree.com (endorsements, insured contact info changes, mortgagee updates, payment status, post-issuance service), and agentuw@covertree.com (underwriting flags, exceptions, documentation review). - Quotes that disappear from the portal are typically flagged by underwriting; agents must email agentsales@covertree.com with the quote ID for assistance. Once issued, the policy is again visible in the agent portal. - Policy rewrites: if effective date or payment method is incorrect, the original policy must be cancelled and rewritten; funds cannot be transferred between policies. New payment is required on card-paid business; refunds are processed on the cancelled policy. - Statements of no loss: CoverTree can provide its own form upon request, or agents may use an ACORD statement of no loss. - Claims: submissions are made via the carrier website claims page (covertree.com/claims) or referenced within the agent guide; all claims are handled by the underwriting carrier program per policy terms. Overall, CoverTree’s current appetite favors structurally sound manufactured and other factory-built homes in its active states, with flexible peril and endorsement options but disciplined documentation and review around roof condition, water/fire losses, lapses, and any commercial or higher-hazard exposures on premises.