If your home was severely damaged from the recent Tampa Bay flooding to the extent that it is uninhabitable to live in, your insurance policy may provide a coverage called “Additional Living Expense” or “A.L.E.” Under the Additional Living Expense coverage, you and your family may be entitled to rent another home of the same…
The no name storm in Tampa has caused widespread water and flood damage in the St. Petersburg and Tampa area. Now that cleanup has begun, many residential and commercial policyholders will submit either a flood (if you have flood insurance) or water damage insurance claim. Make sure you understand the difference between the two before…
Water losses are by far the most frequent claims reported to the insurance industry. I suspect water losses are also the most frequent perils that impact property owners. Since many are not reported however, we really have no accurate data to determine the full scope of damages that water causes notwithstanding the CLUE reports (Comprehensive…
After a scathing report about engineering fraud on 60 Minutes, it looks like FEMA is going to allow policyholders the ability to reopen all Superstorm Sandy insurance claims per a NPR report. As a licensed public insurance adjuster who represents policyholders and handled Sandy flood claims, it would be helpful to understood that the NFIP (National Flood Insurance…
I am from the government and I am here to help you. The famous line from then presidential candidate Ronald Reagan claiming that the government is here to help you, will in my view always be remembered as the defining quote in his campaign that led to a conservative Republican victory and his election to this…
Two years ago, on October 29, 2012 Super Storm Sandy came ashore just south of New York City causing significant flood damage to many buildings in the Financial District and in Battery Park City, New York. Our firm was on the ground within 3 days post-storm, helping people prepare to file their Sandy insurance claims.…
Given the severe localized flooding to parts of Southern and the East Coast of Florida this past week due to heavy rains, it’s timely to point out that it only takes one storm to trigger a property insurance claim that can decimate your property value. It’s interesting to note a recent article that reviews worldwide…
When there is a storm event such as the flooding in the Pensacola, Destin, Gulf Breeze and the Ft. Walton Beach areas we always get questions about how depreciation works. As public adjusters, we deal with this type of situation all the time when we are managing a policyholder’s claim. Deprecation is figured in a number of ways depending…
Property owners in the Pensacola, Destin, Gulf Breeze and the Ft. Walton Beach areas may be surprised to find that their flood claim for foundation damage is denied because the NFIP says the damage is caused by earth movement; even though the earth movement was caused by flood waters! Before I discuss this, let me remind any…
Hopefully, property owners the in Pensacola, Destin, Gulf Breeze and the Ft. Walton Beach areas who were impacted by the flood and water damage are starting to receive settlement offers from their insurance company about their claims. Sometimes our firm will be retained by a homeowner only to receive a call several weeks later to say the insurance company…