Hurricane damage can be some of the most devastating property damage imaginable.
In South Florida, the threat of hurricane damage is a yearly occurrence, so along with your other hurricane preparations for food, shelter and power, you should also have a public adjuster in mind who will be ready to assist you with getting life back to normal in the wake of the storm. With how pervasive the damage can be to not only your personal property, but to the power grid, water supply, and more, ensuring that every aspect of your hurricane damage insurance claim is properly submitted is usually the last thing on a homeowners mind.
In the aftermath of a storm, insurance companies will underpay claims due to the influx in claims that they will naturally receive. The insurance company will hire catastrophe adjuster’s during this time to evaluate their claims. Most of them are from out of state and do not even review your policy.
Navigating A Hurricane Damage Claim
Insurance company adjusters will conduct their inspection, turn their report into the insurance company, and most of them will leave town. The claim will then be assigned to a different adjuster working for the insurance company. Sometimes there could be over 5 different adjusters assigned to a single claim file. Leaving the homeowner with little for repairs, and a time-consuming endeavor. However, the last thing a homeowner needs to worry about in this situation is not having enough money to cover the damage to their property.
Our public insurance adjusters are there for you as advocates and are responsible for managing your claim as you focus on getting the rest of your life back together. It’s always the best choice to enlist a licensed public adjuster to handle your insurance claim as early as possible. The damage should be documented by your public adjuster and presented to the insurance company adjuster. We have a trained eye and know what to point out. Unfortunately, the initial payment is often low if any payment is issued at all.
Working With A Public Adjuster
Our professional public adjusters make sure nothing is left out during that initial inspection to make the first payment as high as possible. Even if they issue an “under deductible” letter, it will still be beneficial to the policyholder that we were present for the first inspection because what we present to the adjuster will normally be documented in their claim file. This allows us to negotiate a better settlement on our client’s behalf. During this time, it is a good idea to put a tarp on your roof, but NOT a good idea to paint over any of the damages until you have hired a Public Adjuster and discussed the repairs with your Public Adjuster.