Mutual Insurance Company says it is only looking out for its policyholder’s best interest, but it appears the exact opposite could be the end result of its recent decision to prohibit its policyholder’s from using public adjusters, says Florida-based public adjuster Tutwiler and Associates. Citing “exaggerated claim settlements” and “longer settlement times,” Mutual Insurance told its policyholders it was also concerned about public adjusters driving up the price of a claim settlement, which would result in higher premiums. Instead, the policyholders are now left without access to their biggest advocate.  

The licensed and certified public adjusters at Tutwiler and Associates, with offices throughout Florida and licenses in nine other states as well as the U.S. Virgin Islands, understand there may be some sort of a negative public perception on the part of certain members of the public after articles appearing in the ‘Wall Street Journal’ described unscrupulous public adjuster firms blanketing neighborhoods with fliers and phone calls in an effort to add clients and file claims seemingly without merit. Tutwiler and Associates says these firms, however, make up a small percentage of a larger public adjuster industry that ethically and honestly work to protect their clients’ interests in the event of a property loss. By eliminating their policyholders’ access to this valuable assistance, Mutual Insurance Company is taking away the rights of their policyholders to have someone fight for them when they would need it the most.

“This is just bad public policy, plain and simple,” says Frank Fortson, licensed and certified public adjuster at Tutwiler and Associates. “It sets a dangerous precedent. What are they going to vote to eliminate next, the use of attorneys? The right for policyholders to choose their own inspectors? It’s just a slippery slope.”

What makes Mutual Insurance Company different from other property insurance providers is its corporate structure. The company is owned entirely by its shareholders, which means if someone buys a policy from them, they essentially own a share of the company. Because of the company’s unique structure, it decided it would put to a vote its proposed policy to eliminate the use of public adjusters by its policyholders. The public adjusters at Tutwiler and Associates say that vote, however, may not even be a clear indication of a consensus of the company’s shareholders. A recent ‘Sun Sentinel’ article details the vote and points out just more than 9 percent of the companies 12,000 total policyholders, about 1,134 of them, actually participated in the vote.

“It’s rather stunning how this was even passed for approval in the first place,” says Fortson. “Only a fraction of them voted, and this is a self-selecting bunch. A vocal minority made the decision for everyone, and it’s the perfect example of a short-sighted ‘fix’ to a long-term issue.”

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Phone: (800) 321-4488
For more information, please visit www.PublicAdjuster.com

About Tutwiler and Associates: Tutwiler and Associates is a firm of public adjusters licensed in 10 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands specializing in commercial and residential property loss adjusting. With well in excess of $113 million in client success stories over a 27-year history, the Florida public adjusters work exclusively on behalf of policyholders to help them achieve the maximum settlement amounts they can fairly and honestly recover based on their loss and their policy provisions. Professional help from the adjusters at Tutwiler and Associates can help clients obtain a fair recovery under their policy. The Gulf Coast based public adjuster firm is committed to public service and strives to educate its clients about commercial and residential windstorm and hurricane losses, flood damage, fire, smoke and water damage, collapse, hidden decay and mold losses, sinkholes, loss of stock, and business interruption.