California homeowners insurance: Elderly couple withdrew AAA coverage because they drained their pool in an effort to save water – while another resident lost it due to ‘mess’ in his yard

An elderly couple claims their AAA homeowners insurance policy was canceled after they drained their backyard pool to conserve water during the California drought.

Marilyn Smith and other residents spoke to ABC 7 and said their policies were rejected after the insurance company monitored their homes via drone.

Smith and her husband drained their pool after their grandchildren all grew up and said they no longer used it. In response, AAA said they noticed “overdue maintenance” on the pool and were unable to renew their insurance.

Similarly, homeowner CJ Sveen said his insurance was not renewed because of “clutter” in his front yard. Another resident was told his roof had “exceeded normal life.”

The rejections come just months after State Farm and Allstate announced they would not be writing new policies in California over wildfire concerns.

Smith said she spoke to agents after she received the shock non-renewal notice, who told her the rejection was clearly related to the pool.

“She just said outright because the pool was empty,” Smith said. “I don’t understand what their problem is. Because you empty a swimming pool and you save water.’

Smith and her husband are currently using the empty pool as a kind of greenhouse to grow tomatoes and lettuce. She said the rejection came as a shock.

“I think I was so in shock, I couldn’t believe it,” she said.

“I mean, we were both in shock. Because the pool is empty. What does that have to do with canceling your home insurance policy?” Smith continued.

The elderly resident told KGO that she and her husband were simply trying to cut down on the costs of having to constantly fill the pool with water after their family moved.

“We made a good decision, we don’t use it, you know, the kids moved in different states… that saves us on maintenance,” she said.

“You have to put water in it every few days… and that’s not a little puddle. Water became very expensive,” she told the outlet.

AAA told her that the pool, in photos and videos they took, showed signs of “overdue maintenance.”

Other homeowners echoed Smith’s feelings and anger with AAA.

Sveen, who lives in Oakley, California, was told they would not renew his policy because they took photos and video showing debris in his yard.

“Apparently they’ve got some pictures and they’ve noticed clutter,” Sveen said. ‘I find that offensive. How dare you judge me for my things!’

Sveen uses his garden as a workshop and said when he asked for any photos or videos they had taken, the AAA denied his request.

“There was no chance to soften, clean up, do anything, it was just, you’re fired,” he said.

George Nadeau, 85, of San Rafael, also received a cancellation due to the aging roof on his home, the insurance company claimed.

“We have one of the best maintained homes in the area. And we’ve taken very good care of our roof,” Nadeau said.

In response, the elderly man sent his local insurance agent invoices showing that he installed a brand new roof seven years ago and spent $4,000 to update it in March.

‘We have lived in this house for 50 years and have maintained our roof in a very effective manner. So having an insurance company tell me I’m not doing my job is kind of annoying,” Nadeau said.

An insurance agent allegedly told him that AAA is looking for every possible reason to cancel their policies.

And she literally said they’re looking for excuses to get rid of homeowners’ policies on this. I am 85 years old. I feel like I’m the victim of some sort of conspiracy,” he said.

“Give us some respect for the good citizens we’ve been all these years,” the elderly homeowner continued.

Sveen and Smith were both able to find other policies, while the AAA reinstated Nadeau’s policy after he sent them the photos and evidence.

Speaking to KGO, Amy Bach of United Polishholders said insurance companies are using technology such as drone surveillance to look for risk.

“Insure tech tools scare insurers,” Bach said.

“It’s now very easy for them to discard a customer based on this technical information that they use and buy. So far it’s not really helping consumers,” she said.

In March, State Farm announced it would no longer insure homes in California because the risk of wildfires was too great and the cost of rebuilding too high.

State Farm said it “made this decision because of historic increases in construction costs outpacing inflation, rapidly growing exposure to catastrophes and a challenging reinsurance market.”

In its statement, State Farm said it “takes seriously our responsibility to manage risk.”