Help with insurance company screwing me over
I had some water damage at a rental back in February. The insurance company snd adjuster keeps making excuses and dragging the process a long. Its September and I haven't received anything. I haven't been able to repair my place either.
Do I hire a laywer? Are there ither experts I can pay to help this along? Can I sue for damages simply because theyve taken so long to pay?
There has to be more to the story. A quick google search says that most homeowners insurance claims are settled within a few days to a few weeks. I've only had to deal with 1 claim myself for a roof replacement, and that process only took a few weeks.
I'd start by climbing up the corporate ladder at your insurance brokers office. Talk to a manager. If they can't help, ask to talk to their manager. If they can't help, as to talk to an executive. Eventually you'll land on somebody with some power. It's not fun to be "that guy" but if they've truly been stringing you along for 7 months, this is necessary.
#2 Insurance Contributor
- Insurance Agent
- Nationwide
@Moazzem Hussain your insurance agent should be supporting you in holding the claim adjuster accountable. If they can not get anywhere with them, then you can always file a complaint with the Insurance Commissioners office. Every state has one and the insurance carriers can get fined if they don't work within the allotted time frames set forth by the state.
Another situation that could be going one....It is possible this claim rep is an independent rep hired by the insurance carrier. The insurance carrier could be thinking everything is going great. Talking to your agent or the state will get everyone up to speed and back on the same page.
I do not recommend hiring a lawyer as this will drag out the process longer and most likely cost you more money than it is worth. How much in total damage would you say was done to the building? Also can you tell us exactly what happened to cause the damage? If you are looking for someone to help represent you then hiring a public insurance adjuster would be your best option. These individuals hold a license with the state to be legally allowed to represent you on your behalf to negotiate your insurance claim. I would google search for someone who can do this in your area. Typically, they charge you a fee based on how much your claim pays out. Best of luck
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#3 1031 Exchanges Contributor
- Investor
- Las Vegas, NV
Talk to your agent. Assuming you’re with any type of reputable company there should be obvious work immediately.
I’ve had two claims with allstate. Two different properties with floods caused by the same thing. The hose from the wall to the toilet is the metallic kind that looks like snake scales or knights armor, not braided. They both flooded the house when they failed even though the were caught within an hour.
Both times allstate had serv-pro (a great but very expensive company) there within a few hours. They pulled up carpet and pad, removed the bottom 4 feet of drywall and ran fans for 2 days. Within 10 days everything was back to like new condition.
On one property I paid my $1,000 deductible at the end of the process. Oh the other property they actually sued the hose manufacture and won something like $12,000. They waived my deductible even though both claims were in excess of $30,000. I wasn’t involved in either case for more than 30 minutes. They just took care of it.
I dont have a rep. The person I've been dealing with is from an adjuster company called Sedgwick.
my insurance company is NREIG but the names Shield ans American LLoyd are also insurers that are involved.
In terms of damage a water pipe broke upstairs which flooded downstairs. So there's electrical and water damage fixes to be done. The electrical work is understandably expensive to fix the unit (around 11k) and they're dragging their feet on that. There's also damage to the basement (14) they're but even looking at or paying out any of the loss of rent.
also from their estimates they keep cutting 25% for deprecation despite repearedly telling them the property was fully renovates 2 years ago. They also keep using their own estimates instead of what my contractors say it will cosst. I dont mind their estimate if they can find a cobtractor that can actually come and fix the problem at that price.
looks like someone said their insurance company just sent people to fix their place. Is that true?