Hurricane Irma impacted Florida a little over a year ago. As Hurricane Harvey’s impact on Texas drew many adjusters away to assess the storm damages, insurance companies weren’t ready for Irma. According to Miami Herald, “Under an emergency declaration signed by Gov. Rick Scott, the state loosened regulations on who could serve as an adjuster.” This led to many inexperienced adjusters inspecting properties which complicated and delayed the claims process. Nancy Dominguez, manager of the Florida Association of Public Insurance Adjusters stated, “I understand they had to get boots on the ground. You can’t wait six months to get to someone’s house. But at the same time, that was detrimental to policyholders.”
Now here we are in 2018. While many homeowners have had their Irma claims settled, there are still thousands of homeowners still waiting for the funds necessary to make repairs. Many have turned to public adjusters or lawyers to force the insurance companies to pay for repairs. According to Miami Herald, “The state’s biggest windstorm insurers, Citizen’s Property Insurance Corporation, has reopened almost half of its 70,000 Irma claims, and nearly 10,000 cases remain open and unresolved.”
It is very tough for homeowners who are waiting on their checks as repairs can’t be made until the claim is resolved. Many have to live elsewhere because of the excessive damages. Dr. Doug Mader, who lives across the street in a neighbor’s vacation home stares at his ruined home everyday. Melinda Goodro and her family are still living in their RV in front of their home. Homeowners savings dwindle as the extra expenses keep on piling up. Paul Handerhan, senior vice president of public policy at the Florida Association for Insurance Reform stated in the article, “It isn’t the first time the state has dealt with a shortage of experienced adjusters. Part of that is due to the boom and bust nature of the business. It isn’t practical for insurance companies to keep a huge roster of adjusters on staff year round if storms only come every few years, so most rely on independent adjusters that show up whenever a storm hits.”
So what can you or someone you know who still waits for the insurance company to send enough funds or even have their claim denied do? Contact us, Florida Claims Resources. We are public adjusters. After Irma’s impact, we were ready. We immediately went out to inspect our clients properties and start the claim process right away. As of today, we have settled over 100 Irma claims and are helping many more. Let us fight on your behalf and get the funds you need to make repairs.
If you haven’t filed a claim yet, you still have time to do so. Under Florida Statute Section 627.70132, you have 3 years from when a hurricane caused damage to your property to open a claim, a supplemental claim, or reopen your claim.
If you have any questions, call us 954-345-7676.
Source: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/article217393010.html
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