Did you sustain damage in the derecho on August 10, 2020? Then you have come to the right place.
Do You Need a Public Adjuster?
Maybe you don’t.
Do you just have a small claim? Sometimes you would be better served by going to appraisal, if there is a discrepancy and the full claim is only a few thousand dollars.
Are you in a hurry? Contesting what the insurance came up with can take time. Sometimes it can take a long time. Some people would rather pay several thousands to several tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket, rather than wait for insurance to agree with a public adjuster.
Are you worried about hurting your insurance company’s feelings? Frankly, some people are scared of making their agent or insurance company mad. Or maybe they are afraid of taking food off the table of the company employees. So they don’t mind if they can’t fix their house. Some people will think this is facetious, but others will recognize this as their own reason.
Do you hate to see others be successful? Public adjusters typically charge 10% of the claim, when it is settled. And public adjusters typically secure a significant increase in the settlement from the insurance company. Knowing the PA or the contractor might make some money really irritates some people.
For example, if insurance estimated $20,000 for superficial damage repair, but a PA finds another $280,000 worth of structural damage and hidden water damage (this is not uncommon on jobs we take on), the fee could be $30,000. Well, that might seem like a lot. And now some contractor is going to get a lot of business, instead of trying to patch up your house as best they could for $20,000. Some people can’t stand those thoughts. If so, a public adjuster might not be right for you.
Or, maybe you do.
- Is your insurance carrier being snarky about your claim?
- Did you have a contractor come look at your damage, and come up with a MUCH higher number than your insurance company did?
- Worse, did your adjuster have an attitude like they know what they are doing, and the contractor is just trying to retire off of you? (there’s a story of a salaried adjuster that wrote low estimates because he resented the money he thinks contractors make)
- Is your insurance estimate missing significant things that need to be done to fix your property the right way? (they love painting over water spots, replacing individual shingles, or just replacing a couple of pieces of siding and calling the mismatch “wear and tear”)
- Was part of your house or business blown away?
If some of these reasons sound like your situation, you should use the contact form above, or give us a call. It doesn’t hurt to have a conversation.
Why Hire a Public Adjuster?
You’re Not An Insurance Expert.
Do you really understand what is in your insurance policy? If the staff or desk insurance adjuster says “it’s not covered” or “we don’t pay for that,” can you trust that answer? Sometimes it seems like the insurance company’s adjusters just say no first, and hope you won’t question it. How would you know any better, anyway?
As licensed public adjusters, we understand insurance policies – often better than the adjuster who comes to your house. We have worked as adjusters after hurricanes on the coast as well, on both commercial and residential claims, so we have extensive experience in writing storm damage claims.
You’re Not A Construction or Restoration Contractor.
Most often, neither is your carrier’s adjuster. So he or she looks at your home, and decides what to include on their estimate. They are confident you don’t know, either.
You could hire a contractor, and you should. But by state law in Iowa, contractors are not allowed to negotiate with your insurance company, it’s illegal.
Advocate Public Adjusters has over 30 years of commercial and residential construction experience, which includes storm restoration. We understand what high winds and rain do to a building, and what is needed to fix that damage. And then we can present that information to insurance with an estimate. We can work with your contractor as well, because we understand their language.
Because You Deserve to Be Indemnified
Indemnify is just a big word that means “compensate you for your loss,” or “made whole.” It’s the idea that you paid for a policy that promised you to restore you back to pre-loss condition. You’re not asking for a favor from insurance. You held up your part of the contract (policy) by paying premiums, and now they should uphold their obligations by making you whole.
More often than not, when insurance companies send you the estimate for your damage repairs, the check you get is a fraction of what is needed. The letter they send seems to be worded in such a way as to sound like they are granting a favor by tossing a little money your way. And in bold, you will usually find statements about insurance fraud. Is it just a coincidence that this scary sounding language intimidates many people into just taking what they are gifted and not complaining?
The reality is that you have a contract, your policy, which says what they pay, and what they don’t. If you pay your premiums, and you experience a loss to your property, by a covered “peril” (fire, wind, hail, etc), then the policy said they will pay for the damage, minus your deductible. You’re not hurting the insurance company by asking them to pay for everything you need to fix your house or business. They have made record profits recently. So when you need to be paid for what they promised they’d pay for, don’t be shy.
An intense derecho moved from far southeast South Dakota into Ohio yesterday (8/10/20). This derecho traveled approximately 770 miles in 14 hours and produced widespread damaging wind gusts, including numerous wind gusts over 74 mph (65 kt) & several over 90 mph in central Iowa. pic.twitter.com/a8jJdEB59h
— NWS Storm Prediction Center (@NWSSPC) August 11, 2020
Contact Advocate Public Adjusters now, we’ll get back with you shortly!