Travelers Benefit Program Frequently Asked Questions
It has been publicly reported that thousands of Connecticut homes are affected by the “crumbling concrete foundation” problem. The “crumbling” is the result of the presence of a mineral, pyrrhotite, in the aggregate from which affected concrete foundations were formed.
The State of Connecticut established the Connecticut Foundations Solutions Indemnity Company (CFSIC) to provide financial assistance to affected Connecticut homeowners. The assistance provided by CFSIC, however, is not expected to cover all of the costs associated with pyrrhotite-related damage.
Travelers has established the Travelers Benefit Program -- a $5 million fund -- to assist affected Travelers customers (both current and past) by supplementing the assistance provided to them by CFSIC.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Application for Enrollment is available and can be submitted at this link.
The best ways to contact the Travelers Benefit Program are by email (CTconcrete@travelers.com) or by telephone (800.527.2416).
Written correspondence may be sent to:
National Claim Center
99 Lamberton Road
Windsor CT, 06095
ATTN: Travelers Benefit Program
The Travelers Benefit Program process consists of two distinct stages. The first is enrollment and the second is issuance of the Travelers Benefit.
No. The program is not open to homeowners who are not qualified current or past Travelers customers.
For purposes of the Travelers Benefit Program, the owner(s) of an affected home are considered past Travelers customers if, prior to December 6, 2018, the home was insured under a policy issued to them by a Travelers affiliate but the home was either not so insured on December 6, 2018, or has since ceased to be so insured.
For purposes of the Travelers Benefit Program, the owner(s) of an affected home are considered current Travelers customers if, on December 6, 2018, the home was insured under a policy issued to them by a Travelers affiliate and it remains so insured.
The following Travelers affiliates have issued policies insuring homes in Connecticut:
- The Standard Fire Insurance Company
- The Automobile Insurance Company of Hartford, Connecticut
- The Travelers Home and Marine Insurance Company
- The Travelers Indemnity Company of America
- Travelers Personal Insurance Company
- Travelers Personal Insurance Security Company
- Travelers Casualty and Surety Company
- Fidelity and Guaranty Insurance Company (only as to personal insurance policies issued prior to 9/30/1999)
- The Phoenix Insurance Company.
No. Travelers customers who have obtained a judgment against, or have entered into a settlement agreement with, a Travelers affiliate related to the presence of pyrrhotite in their foundation do not qualify for the Travelers Benefit Program.
No. The Travelers Benefit Program is separate and apart from any insurance claim.
No.
The key elements of the two stages (enrollment and benefit issuance) include:
- To become enrolled, the eligible owners of an affected home must submit an Application for Enrollment and must authorize CFSIC to provide Travelers with proof of their enrollment in the CFSIC program (the CFSIC claim approval letter).
- After Travelers has received documentation that the enrollee(s)’ CFSIC claim has been fully paid, the amount of their Travelers Benefit will be determined. If the enrollee(s) decide to accept the Travelers Benefit, they will execute a release. The Travelers Benefit will be issued on their behalf to their contractor(s) (or to the extent that the enrollees have paid for the completed work, to the enrollee(s)).
Yes. CFSIC must provide a copy of the CFSIC claim approval letter to Travelers.
Homeowner(s) must complete a CFSIC application and provide the required information to CFSIC. Information on the CFSIC program, how to enroll in it and the program requirements is available on the CFSIC website.
There is no fixed application deadline. Please note that the Travelers Benefit Program will expire at the earlier of two times: (a) when the $5 million fund has been exhausted; and (b) when the CFSIC program expires. No Application for Enrollment will be accepted and no Travelers Benefit payments will be made after that time.
Enrolled homeowners will progress to the payment stage and payments will be issued in the order that the required documentation is received.
No. Enrollment in the Travelers Benefit Program and Acceptance of a Travelers Benefit are voluntary.
No. The Travelers Benefit is payable on a per-home (as opposed to per-homeowner) basis. All owners of the home must submit a joint Application for Enrollment.
To become enrolled:
- Homeowner(s) first must enroll in (and be accepted into) the CFSIC program and must authorize CFSIC to provide Travelers with a copy of the homeowner(s) CFSIC claim approval letter and certain other CFSIC documentation.
- The homeowner(s) must complete a joint Application for Enrollment in the Travelers Benefit Program. The Application can be found, completed and submitted at this link.
Upon receiving an Application for Enrollment, Travelers will determine whether the applicant(s) are qualified Travelers customer(s).
Yes. Once Travelers has confirmed an applicant(s)’ status as qualified Travelers customer(s) and has received a copy of the applicant(s)’ CFSIC claim approval letter, Travelers will notify the applicant(s) that the Application for Enrollment has been accepted and they have become enrolled.
- When a CFSIC claim progresses to the CFSIC pre-payment stage, CFSIC asks the homeowner(s) to execute a CFSIC Participation Agreement. That agreement is another document that enrollee(s) in the Travelers Benefit Program must authorize CFSIC to provide to Travelers. Travelers will notify the enrollee(s) when it has received a copy from CFSIC.
- Once the enrollee(s) CFSIC claim has been fully paid and closed, Travelers will need documentation of the payment(s) CFSIC made, the concrete work for which the payment(s) were made and the contract (Type 1 claimant(s)) or paid invoice(s) (Type 2 claimant(s)) upon which the CFSIC payment(s) were based. Enrollee(s) in the Travelers Benefit Program must authorize CFSIC to provide this documentation to Travelers.
- Once Travelers receives that information, Travelers will contact the enrollee(s) to begin the process for determining the amount of their Travelers Benefit and issuing payment.
Travelers will use the documentation provided by CFSIC and other relevant information to determine the amount of a Travelers Benefit.
A Travelers Benefit is potentially available for and may applied only in the following order to:
- the cost of CFSIC-eligible concrete work that was not covered by CFSIC;
- the cost of repair of pyrrhotite-related Dwelling damage not covered by CFSIC;
- the cost of repair of pyrrhotite-related damage to Other Structures such as driveways and patios not covered by CFSIC.
No other costs are eligible.
The total per-home financial assistance provided to enrollee(s) from CFSIC, the Travelers Benefit Program and any other source will not exceed 100% of costs incurred to: (a) remove and replace the concrete foundation; (b) repair any damage to the Dwelling and/or Other Structures resulting from the removal/replacement of the concrete foundation; and (c) repair any damage to the Dwelling and/or Other Structures otherwise caused by the presence of pyrrhotite in the concrete foundation.
For qualified customers who were insured by Travelers on December 6, 2018 and who remain Travelers customers (i.e., current customers), the maximum Travelers Benefit will be $25,000. For other eligible customers (i.e., past customers), the maximum benefit will be $10,000.
The Travelers Benefit is generally payable only for completed work. If the enrollee(s) are Type 1 CFSIC claimant(s), payment will be issued to their contractor(s) in accord with the price set forth in the contract(s) (to the extent that the work has been completed, the enrollee(s) have paid the contactor and they provide documentation of such payment, payment may be issued to the enrollee(s)). If the enrollee(s) are Type 2 CFSIC claimant(s), payment may be issued to the enrollee(s) to the extent that they have provided documentation that they have paid the persons who performed the work.
In Travelers discretion, and only to the extent that the contract at issue requires a payment (over and above the amount already paid by CFSIC and/or any other source) before the work that is the subject of the Travelers Benefit can be undertaken and only upon submission of appropriate documentation, may a single advance payment, of no more than 25% of the Travelers Benefit, be issued prior to the completion of all of the work that is the subject of the Travelers Benefit.
Once the amount of the Travelers Benefit available to the enrollee(s) is determined, the enrollee(s) must decide whether to accept the benefit. In order for Travelers to issue a Travelers Benefit payment, the enrollee(s) must provide the required release of claims against Travelers and any outstanding documentation needed to show that the work has been completed. Travelers, in its discretion, may inspect the home to confirm completion. Please refer to the Travelers Benefit Program Release.
If the enrollee(s) are Type 1 CFSIC claimant(s), Travelers Benefit payment(s) will be issued to the contractor(s) on behalf of the enrollee(s) in accord with the price set forth in the contract(s).
If the enrollee(s) are Type 2 CFSIC claimant(s), Travelers Benefit payment(s) may be issued to the enrollee(s) to the extent that they provide documentation that they have paid the contractor.