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One creature was stirring…

Posted On: Jan. 8, 2020 1:34 PM CST

squirrel

Santa wasn’t the only one to come down the chimney bearing gifts for one Atlanta couple.

The gift — a denied insurance claim — stems from an incident in which homeowners Kari and Dustin Drees returned from a winter vacation to find that a squirrel had come down the chimney and wreaked havoc on their first home, the Associated Press reported Monday.

Feces everywhere, scratched-up floors, chewed-through baseboards and a kitchen faucet left running were among the damage, which the couple assumed insurance would cover.

Yet the couple's home insurance provider Mercury Insurance Co. told them it wouldn't cover the incident because “a squirrel is a rodent," which is — “explicitly stated” — not covered under the policy, according to the article citing a statement from a spokesperson.

Too bad it wasn’t a raccoon, the couple was told. If it had been, the damages would have been covered, according to the wire service.