Your Florida Hurricane Claim Checklist - Please Follow This List closely!

1. Report your claim immediately: Report the loss or damage to your insurance company and/or insurance agent immediately. Ask for written confirmation from the insurer of the receipt of your claim. Sometimes, when the claim is not properly documented by the insurer, an adjuster may later try to state the claim was untimely made or that you failed to provide timely notice.
   
   
2. Locate your insurance policy: Take a look at your insurance policy. There is a section regarding your duties after loss. This portion of the policy sets forth your rights, duties and responsibilities under the policy of insurance. The policy also sets out the insurance company's responsibilities after the loss. If you don't have a copy of your policy, when you report the claim, ask for a copy to be delivered immediately. Without it, you likely will not know your responsibilities and the actions you must take to obtain a recovery or assistance under the policy.
   
   
3. Document everything. Keep a copy of any document given to you by your insurer, your agent, even your mortgage lender following a loss. This includes all correspondence of any type. Also retain a copy of anything you send the insurer or any person or entity regarding the loss. Take notes of every telephone call or personal meeting with an insurance adjuster, agent, investigator or anyone asking you questions regarding your loss. Include the date, time, name and number of the person calling you or to whom you spoke. Afterwards, confirm the conversation in writing with a letter to the insurer. Keep notes regarding each time you call and cannot reach the person and if you have to leave a message with someone else or a voice mail. This is VERY important since insurers don’t always document these things and claim that its insureds did not return their calls. If you have spent money because of the loss - renting a hotel or buying something to clean, repair or cover the damage, keep the receipts. In a post-storm situation, you should keep the receipts for all money spent on food, water, incidentals, clothes or other claim-related expense. You may be able to recoup this money.
   
   
4. Photograph the damages. The more photos you have, the better. If you have experienced a loss to your property take as many photos as you can of the damages. While you may be able to effectively describe the extent of the loss or its effect on you, nothing assists people (including adjusters, agents, attorneys and potentially jury members) to understand physical damage as well as a photograph. During the repair, demolition, cleanup or rebuilding, take more photos.
   
   
5. Early settlement offers: Sometimes insurance companies make a quick settlement offer on a claim. Usually, this results from an incomplete evaluation or damage analysis by your insurer, resulting in a low settlement offer. If they offer you a quick settlement, ask for documentation explaining how they arrived at the extent of damages and an explanation, in writing, of all coverages available to you under the policy for your loss. While the insurer’s initial settlement offer may seem to be a lot of money or a fair offer at first, these offers are usually insufficient to cover the entire loss you actually suffered. No matter how friendly or interested in you the adjuster may appear to be, he or she is an employee of the insurance company, may be getting bonuses for settling claims quickly and cheaply, and likely has the company’s best interests at heart.
   
   
6. Settlement Checks: If you're not represented by an attorney or other professional who regularly litigates against insurance companies, do not accept a check indicating that the payments are a full and final settlement of a claim or the settlement check indicates a possible "release" of the insurance company. Before you endorse and deposit any settlement check, ensure you carefully read both sides of the check. If you're not sure what the effect of the language on the check means, seek legal assistance before signing and depositing the check. The language located on the check is often misunderstood or overlooked by an insured. The insurance adjuster may tell you not to worry about that language, but that could be a fatal mistake in regard to any remaining portions of your claim. Releasing your insurance company or cashing a check noted as "Final Payment," "Full Payment" or "Full Settlement" may foreclose any opportunity to collect additional damages to which you may be entitled under your insurance policy, or that were simply not found, noticed or were ignored by the insurance company. You always have the right to consult with an attorney. If the insurance adjuster says you don't need one, it should be a warning sign that something is wrong; evidence the adjuster is acting improperly. You don't have to accept the offer if the insurer's damage estimate, and ultimately the settlement offer, is low. We can assist you when dealing with an insurer’s early (and lowball) settlement offer.
   
   
7. You may need help: You may be overwhelmed after a major loss, especially to your home or business. When you report the loss, or soon thereafter, the insurance adjuster may ask for information, documents or even a sworn statement. You have a contractual duty to cooperate with them in these requests because these are the insurers rights and your duties as defined by the policy. Do not try to handle this alone. Consult an experienced Property Insurance Lawyer. If your insurer states that the damages are not as severe as you think, that the loss is only partly covered, or that there is no coverage for the loss, it will add to your frustration. An experienced property insurance attorney can assist you. Also, if the insurance company delays either the adjustment or payment of your claim, call us for assistance.
   
   
8. Hire an Insurance Attorney: A layman, or even an attorney who does not have extensive experience in dealing with property insurance claims may find handling a property insurance dispute extremely difficult. Mr. Wells has over 25 years of litigation experience within the insurance industry and has previously represented insurance companies, so he is familiar with their positions, arguments and tactics. Our attorneys are well versed in taking on an insurance company in a coverage dispute and know not only what bad faith actions by an insurer are, but also know how to properly preserve a bad faith claim. Many of Mr. Wells' clients are referred by other attorneys. If you have been denied coverage or been underpaid by your insurance company, call us. The Wells Law Group provides our clients representation on a contingency fee basis where our client pays no fees or costs unless we make a recovery on their behalf.
   
   
9. Public Adjusters: Public Adjusters can be a great asset and can assist you in making your claim. We often recommend them. Mr. Wells works closely with a number of Public Adjusters who involve us in the claim when the insurer denies coverage, acts unreasonably, resists making payment, refuses to recognize the full extent of damages or in some other way delays the claim resolution. Mr. Wells many times retains Public Adjusters to assist in estimating our client's losses, to act as consultants or experts in some cases, or to assist our clients in appraisal when demanded under the policy.
   
   
10. Tell the truth. You always need to remember that even an innocent misstatement in the application for insurance, or a materially false statement on any insurance claim form, may be used as a basis to deny your claim. Always be truthful with your insurer. Civil and criminal penalties can be assessed for the filing of a false claim or attempting to defraud an insurer.

Wells Law Group Frequently Asked Questions

For more Frequently Asked Questions about insurance hurricane and windstorm disputes visit our main Wells Law Group website.

Contact us TODAY for a FREE Consultation!