Our congratulations go out to public adjuster Frank Fortson who we are proud to part of the Tutwiler group. Frank was recently featured on WPTV News in West Palm Beach related to a duplex fire that caused smoke damage to the family’s residence. What would seem like an obvious claim to most people was surprisingly being disputed. 

We encourage you to watch the video so you can see what we find so rewarding about helping home and business owners with their property insurance claims.

If you have questions regarding any property insurance claim related issues please call 800.321.4488 or contact us to submit a question to one of our public adjuster or insurance claim experts.

A four-page unsolicited letter I received last week from an attorney filled me in on some of the inner workings of the powers to be in Tallahassee and reminded me of this famous line from the Forrest Gump movie. This letter was like a box of chocolates as each paragraph revealed something new. Apparently, he has been following some of my writings, specifically about the reduction in coverage for the  water peril, the most frequent cause of losses for property damage and wanted to give me some background on how this all went down. 

The House finally came to its senses last week and amended the 2012 Biggert-Waters act by scaling back flood insurance rate increases. This is not only good news for longtime homeowners in coastal areas but also will help revive the real estate market which made some homes too expensive due to substantial flood rate increases. Amongst the positive changes are that new homeowners will not have to immediately pay full rates and those long time residents holding existing policies will see more gradual increases.

Given the serious ice conditions hitting the Houston area and the frozen Northeast, we want to thank roofing expert Mr. Andrew Smith, Director of Field Operations at Roof Leak Detection Co. for contributing this very good explanation of ice dams and the resulting roof leaks and water damage it can cause. The damage this causes is a long-term issue for policyholders as the damage you incur this winter can show up during summer windstorms. These losses can become complicated insurance claims that require the policyholder to prove the cause of loss when water infiltrates the interior of the home.

Here is an insurance claim question that we answered as a contributing member of experts for United Policyholders who advocates for property owners. 

Q. What, if any, should be acceptable ACV on a driveway and walkway on a personal residence?  House was demolished by fire and working with adjuster on fair settlement value of these surfaces.  Policy provides ACV.

Home and business owners aren’t the only ones feeling the impact from frozen pipe breaks. A recent NY Times article; A Severe Winter Breaks Budgets as Well as Pipes discusses the toll the deep freeze is taking on municipal infrastructure which may be dealing with pipes over 100 years old. We also know schools and other public facilities are experiencing frozen pipe damage.  When there is wide spread damage from weather events, we’ve seen these local governments bring in public adjusters to manage their claims since they are typically short on resources.

Those facing enormous rate hikes due to the recent NFIP overhaul and the lack of action in the federal government to make things right might consider lifting their home out of the flood zone. This article gives Facing Flood Insurance Crisis, You Could Lift Your Home from the Herald Tribune gives a very thorough review of the pro’s and con’s. Just keep in mind that building code enforcement can vary greatly from county to county so make sure you understand the building code compliance issues you will face if you embark on this course of action.