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CLUE reports: how claims history follows you and your house
A CLUE report holds up to seven years of claims tied to you and your address. What it shows, how insurers use it, how to get your free copy and dispute errors.
A CLUE report is a claims-history record, kept by LexisNexis Risk Solutions, that insurers pull when you apply for a policy or come up for renewal. It lists up to seven years of property claims tied to you and to your address, including what was paid and for what cause of loss. Because the record follows the address as well as the person, a claim made by the previous owner can show up on a home you just bought. You can get a free copy once every 12 months and dispute anything wrong.
What a CLUE report contains
CLUE stands for Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange. The Washington Office of the Insurance Commissioner says the report lists your name, date of birth, policy number, date of loss, type of loss, amount paid and a description of the covered property, plus the property address on homeowner claims. It covers up to seven years of personal auto and personal property claims history (Washington OIC). The CFPB's company listing says the same about the seven years (CFPB).
Insurers use the data on two levels. One is you: your own claims history across homes and policies. The other is the property: what has been claimed at that address, no matter who owned it. A buyer cannot pull a property report on a house they are considering; the Washington OIC notes that for a property you want to buy, the owner must request it.
CLUE is not the only database. Verisk's A-PLUS Property also collects insurance claims and loss history associated with homes, autos and personal property, and Verisk will provide one free report every 12 months on request (CFPB). Which databases your insurer queries depends on the insurer, so request both.
How insurers use it
At application, an underwriter looks at the number of claims, their causes and their dates. Water claims draw the most attention because they are frequent and can recur if the cause is not fixed: ISO data compiled by the Triple-I put water damage and freezing claims at 1.50 per 100 house-years for 2019 through 2023 (III). Most homes have no claim in a given year (III reports 5.3% of insured homes had one in 2023), so even one claim sets a home apart from its neighbors. See how insurers decide whether to insure a home for the rest of the underwriting picture.
At renewal, the history can change your price through a claims surcharge, or through losing a claims-free discount. The rating plan decides how many years count and how heavily; the database holds up to seven years, but your insurer may count fewer. Ask your agent how long your insurer looks back. will a claim raise your homeowners premium? covers the premium effect, and claims-free discounts and when to skip a small claim explains what that credit is worth.
Claims, closed claims and inquiries
The report shows an amount paid, and that amount can be $0. A claim you reported, that your insurer opened and closed without paying, can still sit on the file. Check how each claim was coded; a mismatch between what you remember and what the insurer reported is the first thing to look for.
Inquiries are a separate worry. The Texas Attorney General warns that insurers have in some cases reported inquiries about a mold claim even when no claim was made (Texas Attorney General). Some states also restrict how certain categories of past claims can be used; Texas does for properly remediated appliance claims, as washing machine, water heater and dishwasher leaks explains. Rules vary, so if you are unsure whether a loss is worth claiming, start with general questions to your agent about the policy language before you describe a specific loss. Your policy's duties after a loss still apply, including prompt notice of a covered loss, so do not hold back a report of significant damage to avoid a record. The Should I file a homeowners claim? and should you file a homeowners claim? help you weigh the decision.
Claims follow the house
If you are buying, ask the seller to order a property CLUE report during your inspection period. A history of repeated water claims, or a large claim with no repair records, tells you the insurance quotes may be hard, and it tells you before closing. check insurability before you buy a house covers the pre-purchase checklist. If you are selling, order your own report first so you know what a buyer's insurer will see, and keep repair invoices for every claim.
Finishing a repair does not remove a claim from the record, but repair records answer the question an underwriter will ask: was the damage fixed? Keep photos, contractor invoices and the final payment letter for every claim.
How to get your reports
- Request your CLUE report from LexisNexis at consumer.risk.lexisnexis.com/consumer, or by the phone number or mailing address on the CFPB's company page. Federal law gives you one free report every 12 months, and a copy is also available after an adverse action by an insurer.
- Request your A-PLUS report from Verisk at fcra.verisk.com, also listed on the CFPB page.
- Request the property report for your address if you own it, in addition to your personal report.
- Compare each entry with what you know: dates, cause of loss, amount, address and insurer.
- Check the date range. An entry older than seven years should not appear.
What errors look like
| Problem | Example | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Wrong address or duplicate | Same claim listed twice, or an adjacent house | Dispute with the reporting agency |
| Claim you never filed | An inquiry recorded as a claim, or someone with a similar name | Dispute with the agency and the insurer that reported it |
| Wrong cause of loss | Wind damage listed as water | Send the claim letter or estimate |
| Wrong amount | A $0 claim shown as paid | Send the payment letter or closing letter |
| Prior owner's claim | Loss from before you bought the house | Attach repair records; it will generally stay on the property |
| Claim past seven years | Old fire claim still showing | Dispute with the agency |
How to dispute
Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, you can dispute inaccurate information with both the consumer reporting company and the company that supplied the data, and each must investigate at no charge. The Washington OIC says LexisNexis checks the information with the reporting insurer and tells you the result within 30 days, and you can add a statement that will appear on future reports (Washington OIC).
Keep the dispute short and attach evidence. A typical wording:
I am disputing the following entry on my report dated [date]: claim dated [date of loss], reported by [insurer], listed as [what the report says]. This is inaccurate because [it was a closed-without-payment inquiry / the cause was wind, not water / the loss predates my ownership]. I attach [claim closing letter, estimate, repair invoice]. Please investigate, correct the entry, and send me the result in writing.
Send a copy to your insurer's claims department as well, because the agency usually has to go back to the insurer that reported the claim.
If the entry is corrected, ask your current insurer to re-rate your policy and pull a fresh report. If it stays, add your explanation. If an insurer declined or surcharged you because of the report, ask for the adverse action notice, which names the agency and gives you a free copy (insurance scores: how credit affects home insurance lists what it must contain).
Key takeaways
- A CLUE report holds up to seven years of claims tied to you and your address, and insurers pull it at application and often at renewal; A-PLUS Property is a similar database.
- The record follows the house: a prior owner's claim can appear on yours, so buyers should ask sellers for a property report.
- A claim closed without payment can still appear, and reported inquiries can hurt in some cases; weigh the decision to call before you call.
- Request your free reports every 12 months, compare each entry, and dispute errors with both the agency and the insurer, attaching documents.
- Keep repair invoices and closing letters for every claim; they answer an underwriter's question about whether a loss was fixed.