Woman still waiting for insurance money

Bridgeport, Conn. (WTNH) - A Bridgeport woman bought a house over the summer, but she still can't live there because thieves robbed the house clean of its copper piping. She contacted News 8 because she's been waiting months for insurance money to fix the damage.

21-year old Vanessa Rodrigues was excited to own her first home.

"It was amazing. I'm young and it's something I have always wanted to do, have my own house," she said.

Two weeks after she bought it, thieves literally stripped the copper piping from the basement, both water and heating pipes were gone.

"They even cut into the rafters," Vanessa said.

Vanessa admits it brought her to tears, but she took comfort knowing her homeowner's policy with SafeCo Insurance was current.

"I thought, 'it's going to be okay, it will be fine, the insurance will help me out.'  That didn't happen," she said.

She filed a police report estimating the loss at $18,000 and filed a claim with SafeCo. Three months later and she is still waiting on the insurance check. The basement is still stripped and that means she can't live in her home, so she contacted News 8 via ReportIt for help.

"I'm paying my homeowner's insurance, paying other bills for a house that I can't even live in right now," she said.

News 8 called Safeco for a comment, but they offered no explanation and said they don't comment on open, pending claims.

"I just think they're trying to give me the runaround and not pay," Vanessa said.

While Vanessa waits for her insurance check, she is warning other homeowners to be on the alert for the copper thieves.