In the early morning hours of March, 2020, the homeowner (now residing out of state) received a call notifying him that his home caught fire destroying everything. After confirming that his ex and his son were safe, the insured notified his insurance company of the fire loss. While filing the claim the homeowner was asked a few basic questions that apparently raised a red flag with the insurer. Three days later he received a Reservation of Rights (ROR) letter. The ROR letter is used to notify a policyholder that the insurance carrier is investigating the claim and is issued to reserve the insurance company’s right and or preserve any timelines of state statutes to deny a claim at the conclusion of the investigation. The letter stated that “the investigation has revealed that you were not occupying the residence premises at the time of the above noted loss.” It was obvious the insurance company was making an issue of this as a reason to deny the claim.

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In February of 2019, the owner of a popular family Italian restaurant in Pittsburgh and his employees cleaned up for the night and headed home not knowing that when they locked the doors, it would be for the last time. What happened over the next number of months became a lesson in what can happen with what appears to be a straightforward property insurance claim and why it can help to have a public insurance adjuster advocating for you.

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A thriving furniture manufacturing plant located in NE Mississippi builds 3,500 sofas, loveseats and recliners each day out of its 1,000,000 square foot facility. The finished goods are stored then shipped from the warehouse to numerous retailers nationwide.  In January of 2018, an accidental fire occurred destroying 400,000 square feet of the insured’s building, along with almost $10 million of finished goods and raw materials. The insurance company was immediately notified and promptly investigated the claim.

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On September, 2016 a property owner who owns a significant amount of property in the Wilmerding area of Pittsburgh all insured with one particular insurance company for close to 27 years, reported a claim after noticing the exterior brick on one of her apartment buildings were beginning to fall. Her insurance company replied that they were sending out one of their trusted engineers to view the property and inspect the structural integrity of the wall. Upon meeting with the policyholder’s contractor and inspecting the building, the engineer informed the woman and her contractor that the wall (in his opinion) was safe. Some time passed after the inspection and the property owner received a letter from her insurance company stating that their engineer had confirmed no real damage had occurred to the building, therefore the claim is denied. In this letter was a report written by the engineer stating his findings along with a proposed repair method. 

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Hurricane Irma made landfall over southern Florida on September 11, 2017 as a category 3 storm packing winds of more than 110 miles per hour. It overwhelmed the entire state with heavy rain and fierce winds causing extensive damage to a luxury home in Highland Beach, Florida.

The insurance company’s initial offer was below the deductible of $90,000.00 resulting in no payment being made to the insured as they felt the damages did not warrant a settlement. The insureds hired Tutwiler and Associates adjusters, Rick Tutwiler and Kevin Leisure, to represent them. Mr. Tutwiler and Mr. Leisure were able to negotiate a settlent of $1 million dollars.

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On May 28, 2019 a catastrophic hail storm hit the Pittsburgh suburb of Gibsonia. The golf ball sized hail that struck and damaged homes, buildings, cars anything it came in contact with. Over the next few days, contractors converged on the area knocking on doors and telling property owners they needed new roofs “just sign here” and we’ll file an insurance claim for you. Rather than doing the smart thing and call their insurance company to file a claim, some homeowners who had not dealt with a loss like this went along. As insurance company representatives visited their policyholders in the area, there was no question that all of the roofs needed to be replaced due to the hail damage. 

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On November, 2018 a Pittsburgh woman returned to a flooded home due to a water leak. The women decided it would be best to call her insurance agent, ask for advice and if this was something that her insurance would cover. She was instructed to file a claim and was referred to a preferred vendor of her insurer to mitigate the damage. Over the next few days arrangements were set up for the woman to temporarily stay in a hotel while she watched her home torn apart from top to bottom becoming virtually unrecognizable. 

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Hurricane Michael made landfall as a Category 5 Hurricane in the Florida Panhandle with maximum sustained wind speeds of 140 MPH. As evidenced above, the storm caused catastrophic damage from wind and storm surge. Our client contacted Tutwiler and Associates to assist with this nightmare and began working with licensed public adjuster, Michael Stabile. Using thermal imaging and moisture mapping, Mike was able to prove beyond a shadow of doubt that our client’s home had substantial hidden water damage behind the walls and subfloor. Mike was able to get over 6 times more than what the insurance company initially offered as “Final Payment”. The result was a full policy payout and Mike was even able to get the $5,000.00 deducible waved.

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Hurricane Irma hit Florida as a Category 3 storm the morning of September 11, 2017. It was the most powerful Atlantic hurricane in recorded history. Unfortunately for our insured, their home located in Winter Park, Florida sustained significant damage due to the massive storm. The insured contacted their insurance company immediately following the storm. The insurance company assessed the damages as near to none and advised no offer to be made as the deductible was $60,520.00. The insured hired Tutwiler and Associates to represent him in the claim. Our public adjusters, Rick Tutwiler and Kevin Leisure, were able to negotiate a settlement of $750,000.00

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Hurricane Irma caused significant damage throughout Florida on September 11, 2017. Our client sustained water and wind damage to their property located in Highland Beach, Florida. The insurance carrier made a quick inspection and confirmed the damage, but their initial offer was below the deductible of $260,000.00 resulting in no payment being made to the client. Tutwiler and Associates public adjusters, Rick Tutwiler and Kevin Leisure, were hired to represent the insured. Negotiations resulted in a settlement of $4.9 million dollars, assuring this beautiful property was properly restored.

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