What is a CLUE Insurance Report?
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A CLUE report is a document that shows the seven-year history of loss associated with a person and a piece of property, such as a house or a car.
Insurers use a CLUE report to determine the risk of insuring that property. Similarly, sellers or buyers may run the report to learn of any undisclosed damage and determine an appropriate price for the car or home, in the event it’s being sold.
What does a CLUE report show?
CLUE stands for Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange. It's a database of loss information offered in response to the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions (FACT) Act. Insurers and individuals can use a CLUE report to learn about the seven-year loss history of a piece of property, such as a house or a car. The report includes:
- Owner's name, address and social security number
- Insurance company's name
- Insurance policy number
- Claim number
- Date of loss
- Loss type
- Amount paid out by the insurance company
Additionally, a CLUE auto report will include the driver's license number and vehicle information, such as the vehicle identification number (VIN) and the vehicle's year, make and model. If no claims have been filed in the past seven years — or the owner is insured by a company that does not participate in CLUE — the relevant CLUE report will be blank.
Also, just like your personal credit report, you are entitled to a free copy of your own CLUE report annually.
How is a CLUE report used?
If you're applying for homeowners insurance, the insurance company will run a CLUE personal property report to determine the level of risk they would be taking to insure your home. Similarly, if you're buying a home, you can ask the owners to run a CLUE report and share it with you.
For example, if you see that in the past seven years, the current owners filed two separate claims under their flood insurance policy, you might want to discuss the scope of that damage with them and then factor the findings into your assessment of of future flood damage risk when determining your offer.
A CLUE auto report shows the seven-year history of losses associated with a driver and their car. Insurers will run this report to determine the risk posed by insuring the car.
You, too, can ask to see a CLUE auto report, in combination with a VIN report, to determine if a car you're considering buying is a salvaged vehicle.
How is a CLUE report different from an MVR?
While CLUE auto reports focus more on the vehicle, a Motor Vehicle Report (MVR) relates more to the driver. MVRs include personal information from a driver's license, such as the driver's height, eye color, and weight, so it's not as freely available as a CLUE auto report. An MVR also includes information regarding the person’s driving history, including traffic citations, driving record points and DUI convictions. Generally, MVRs only include the past three years of a person's driving history, although the age of the data varies by state.
How do I get a CLUE report?
CLUE reports are offered for a fee by LexisNexis, a legal- and risk-solutions company. You can order either a CLUE personal property report or auto report by mail or by visiting their website.