This 3-Part article is designed to assist home and property owners through the often painstaking process of settling their insurance claim. Throughout 2021, we’ve noticed an unfortunate trend where certain insurance carriers are consistently undervaluing their clients damage repairs and it’s negatively affecting YOU, our clientele. Learn more about how to protect yourself and your property from this new type of disaster by reading below. View Part 2 »
Insurance Carriers Consistently Undervalue Property Damage Repairs; Here’s What You Can Do As a Homeowner to Protect Your Investment
It’s a widely known fact that Insurance carriers will do everything in their power to undervalue and/or deny property damage claims. From hiring third party adjusters, to coverage denials based solely on terminology used while filing a claim, insurance companies are leaving property owners who are already facing a crisis left with mountains of debt or unsafe living conditions.
Before we begin, it’s important to think of your property insurance policy like any other insurance coverage policy. The emergency services you obtain and submit for reimbursement or compensation are things that need to be done. If you break your arm and go to the emergency room, you’re going to pay a pre-determined and agreed upon deductible and in return will receive skilled and experienced help to remedy your ailment. The same thing applies to property damage. When disaster hits, you contact Tri State to ensure that your home is returned back to its normal pre-loss state.
Most rightfully assume that their homeowner’s insurance policy will cover the damages, but it doesn’t always work out that way, unfortunately.
Imagine waking up to over a foot of water in your basement. You have extensive property damage due to a failed sump pump and all of your belongings are saturated with water that has backed up from a sewage drain line. Your walls are wet, floors are buckling, belongings are ruined and out of caution, you immediately contact a plumber and mitigation specialist to come and fix the faulty appliance, extract the standing water, remove affected and unsalvageable materials and perform necessary services that help prevent costly secondary damages like microbial growth and structural issues. Your next call is to your insurance agent to file a claim and let them know you have done your due diligence and initiated these services. Then, a few days later, after everything is properly repaired, mitigated and restored, the professionals you hired to help turn your disaster into peace of mind provide you and your insurance adjuster with an invoice for their services and request payment. Then, your claims adjuster will review your loss and issue a settlement, which should be fair compensation to fix or replace your damaged property. After all, that’s what property insurance is for, correct? Well, you would think so at least.
Remember above, when we said that Insurance carriers will do everything in their power to undervalue or deny property damage claims? Just because you bought a policy, does not mean it will cover all of your costs.
It’s at this point in the process that we’re seeing the unjust enrichment of our valued clients.
STAY TUNED FOR PART 2 NEXT WEEK!
In recent experiences with certain national insurance companies, the claims adjuster no longer cares about bedside manner towards their customer, or – about providing fair compensation to them for services they were required to enlist…
View Part 2 »
