Too many homeowners buy insurance without reflecting much about what they are actually buying. Naturally, one thing is the premium or cost you pay for it. The cost is the single biggest cause of the insurance coverage purchase that seems to concern most buyers. When it comes to other parts of the insurance policies you purchase, the concerns are almost absent. Most buyers seem to unknowingly think that the insurance policy we purchase is the same, no matter which companies you buy it from. This type of attitude is based upon a fundamental misinterpretation of what the insurance policy is – and how the insurance industry runs. It can also cause insurance disputes. Read the rest of this entry »
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(C) Joe Brennan is President and owner/operator of Insurance Claims Group, Inc., a national independent adjusting, appraisal, and umpiring firm. We will answer your claim questions FREE as part of our FREE Insurance Advice and Insurance Claim Consulting Services.
9NEWS DENVER Reported – “Hail up to the size of baseballs caused widespread hail damage to vehicles and homes around Brighton and Commerce City and other communities in the northeast metro area.” This storm occurred the afternoon of 5/26/2010.
Hail season produces hundreds of thousands of hail damage claims. Many of those claims end up in disagreements between the insurance company and property owners.
One common issue is that the insurance company usually wants to repair or partially replace damaged areas or certain slopes of the roof, where as the property owners want to replace the entire roof.
(C) Joe Brennan is President and owner/operator of Insurance Claims Group, Inc., a national independent adjusting, appraisal, and umpiring firm. We will answer your claim questions FREE as part of our FREE Insurance Advice and Insurance Claim Consulting Services.
With the proper assistance you can resolve a hail claim dispute with your insurance company, as well as any other insurance problem you may incur. It is untrue for people believe the only way to fight an insurance claim is in a court of law. If you do decide to handle it in such a manner it will require a ton of money and twice as much effort. You will also need to be sure the policy you authorized with the insurance company will even allow you to do such a thing. Read the rest of this entry »
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(C) Joe Brennan is President and owner/operator of Insurance Claims Group, Inc., a national independent adjusting, appraisal, and umpiring firm. We will answer your claim questions FREE as part of our FREE Insurance Advice and Insurance Claim Consulting Services.
Insurance companies are tightening their belts when it comes to paying for hail damage claims. Oklahomans, who already pay among the highest insurance rates for homeowners insurance, have a couple of reasons to take comfort despite recent hail storms that caused millions of dollars in hail damage. Read the rest of this entry »
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(C) Joe Brennan is President and owner/operator of Insurance Claims Group, Inc., a national independent adjusting, appraisal, and umpiring firm. We will answer your claim questions FREE as part of our FREE Insurance Advice and Insurance Claim Consulting Services.
Property damage claims that are a result of fire, windstorm, tornadoes, water, flooding, hurricanes, and even theft are tragic on there own. It’s worse when the insurance company sends an unqualified insurance adjuster to assess your damages.
In many situations the insurance adjuster who inspects a property damage claim is not, nor has ever been, a contractor. For this reason the policyholder is now faced with an insurance company estimate that is missing many property damage repair items, or the item prices are lower than those required to complete the actual repairs.
As a result, the insurance company’s estimate and the contractor’s estimate can be thousands, tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of dollars apart. In reality, most insurance adjusters take classes to learn about insurance policies – and classes to lean about building materials… but have never been a roofer, carpenter, painter, or carpet installer. They have very little or absolutely no hands-on experience, no on-the-job experience, or any experience with the materials or procedures for the property damage claim they are estimating.
They lack the hands-on experience and knowledge of a person who has many years experience repairing or replacing such damages. It’s easy to see how disputes can arise from property damage insurance claims.
Property Damage Claim Scenario
Many policyholders run into situations that go something like this. The insurance company sends an adjuster to the property damage location. The adjuster seems to spend very little time inspecting the claim and determines the property damage to be $150,000. However, the policyholder has several bids from different contractors with estimates of repair for $250,000 and higher. Many times it seems the insurance company is trying to repair or clean damaged items and the contractors have provided pricing to replace them. It’s not long before a dispute between the cost of repairs begins and an agreement on the costs of property damage cannot be reached.
Property Damage Appraisal Clause
When such a dispute arises there is a clause in most insurance policies called Appraisal. The insurance appraisal clause is usually a new term to most policyholders. However, more and more policyholders find themselves disagreeing with their insurance company adjuster’s estimate of their property damage claims. Those who do; should educate themselves on the insurance appraisal clause, how to use it, when to use it, and why to use it. For many property damage claims the only available option to resolve a dispute is the clause buried in the “Conditions” or “What to do after a loss,” sections of their policy. It’s called The Appraisal Clause – also know as The Appraisal Provision.
Property Damage Appraisal By The Insurance Carrier
In most cases the insurance company invokes the insurance appraisal clause more often than policyholders do. Only because they have a better understanding of the terms and conditions of their property damage policies. If your insurance company has invoked appraisal on your claim, or if they advised you that if you disagree you can invoke or demand an appraisal, you’re in the right place. Even if you’re just searching for information on what your options are if you disagree with them – you’re still in the right place. It may seem like a fancy clause that would take a law degree to understand. The simplest way to understand it is that it’s the insurance industries version of an arbitration. However, a property damage appraisal is not actually an arbitration, it’s just similar to one.
(C) Joe Brennan is President and owner/operator of Insurance Claims Group, Inc., a national independent adjusting, appraisal, and umpiring firm. We will answer your claim questions FREE as part of our FREE Insurance Advice and Insurance Claim Consulting Services.
Too many homeowners buy insurance without reflecting much about what they are actually buying. Naturally, one thing is the premium or cost you pay for it. The cost is the single biggest cause of the insurance coverage purchase that seems to concern most buyers. When it comes to other parts of the insurance policies you purchase, the concerns are almost absent. Most buyers seem to unknowingly think that the insurance policy we purchase is the same, no matter which companies you buy it from. This type of attitude is based upon a fundamental misinterpretation of what the insurance policy is – and how the insurance industry runs. It can also cause insurance disputes. Read the rest of this entry »
