I’m trying to sell my departed Mother’s house. It’s insured at $200 a month with an “unoccupied house” policy.
Something knocked the power line down and ripped the meter loop away from the wall.
I had the power cut off, figuring that I’d be arguing with the insurance company not about the meter loop but about a burned down house or the kid who walked into a downed power line.
The power company won’t reconnect until the meter loop passes a city inspection that requires a larger meter loop than was installed in 1957. We’re talking $1000.
So it’s worth a shot to see if the insurance company will pay. A very earnest bastard spends an hour taking me away from work, walking on the roof, coming up with various excuses. He’s delighted to find the “You want to update?” excuse.
“You’re not going to pay, are you?” I ask after an hour and a half of dicking around.
“OH, it’s not ME, it’s the company”.
“Yes, by ‘You’ I mean the company.” The only thing I hate worse than taking it up the ass is taking it up the ass for an extended period of time.“So if you, oh I’m sorry, the comany isn’t going to pay, how about getting this over with so I can get back to work and figure out where I’m going to come up with a grand?”
He seemed terribly offended. If the bastard wants to make people happy, he should get a job selling ice cream.
I bet the insurance would pay to put it back the way it was. Just because the local government requires an update doesn’t mean the insurance company is obligated to upgrade it for you.
OF course, $200 from $500 deductible. 
Of course not, that’s why I posted, “It’s worth a shot.” It’s the being screwed with that pissed me off. Just say, “No, we won’t pay to make it better than it was”, but he jerked me around all afternoon.
I’m an insurance adjuster and I don’t have time to spend all afternoon “jerking” one customer around. If your adjuster has that kind of time on his/her hands, let me know the company and I’ll put in an application! 
My experience has been that most companies try to find a way to cover claims rather than our beloved reputation of trying to find a way to NOT pay them.
I would recommend talking with your agent or perhaps the adjuster’s supervisor so that you can see the exact language in your policy that applies to the claim. Most homeowners policies that I’m familiar with have an “ordinance or law” provision that says should an update to code require an update to the property repairs, they will pay. If they won’t pay for the upgrade, maybe they’ll pay the estimated cost to put it back with the old style electrical service and you would only be responsible for the difference.
Keep in mind, I’m clearly not well versed in the language of every insurance company out there so your policy may not have that in it. Let us know what you find out.
I was thinking the same thing. Any repairs they make have to pass code.
Look at your policy.
Was going to chime in with the same thing (must pass code) - I distinctly remember seeing in our policy that, if rebuilding/repair is covered under the policy, the policy will pay to have the repair brought up to code if the code has become more stringent. It’s possible your policy does not have such a provision, of course.
They won’t make repairs to bring to specification for ordinances for various and sundry other reasons, nothing mentioned about the electrical service entrance.
Thanks,
CP