All Forum Posts by: Keith Harris

I don't work in Florida but my understanding is that it's an issue there.  I don't know about the turnaround and come after the customer part, but you are correct in the over inflation of the cost... 

Prorate means actual cash value.  The at-fault party owes this actual cash value, which is the value at the time of loss.  Your own policy is likely replacement cost, which is the cost to replace the damaged items. 

I highly doubt a PA will do anything for you.  Plus they take a commission from your settlement.  If you are concerned about structural damage, talk with your insurance about it and proceed with a claim.  Have you noticed any shifting since the accident?  Maybe request a structural engineer to sign off.

Yes, you would pay the contractor the full amount and your deductible, as long as they are completing all of the work.  You are being indemnified for the damage, you should not be coming out ahead and making a profit on the claim. 

You will receive the payment for actual cash value first, which is the repair cost minus the depreciation and your deductible. If you have replacement cost coverage, you (or your contractor) will notify your insurance company when the work is done and they will release the remaining amount it cost you to replace.

Now that's out of the way, some contractors are willing to negotiate your deductible.  With replacement cost coverage, keep in mind that this is not correct in the eyes of the insurance company as you should be footing your portion of the repair cost as agreed upon in the contract, but some people look at it as "What momma dont know wont hurt her."  This is completely up to you, as it can be considered fraud.  If you have coverage for only actual cash value, the insurance company will pay you for the value of the items now and be done with it so you are free to negotiate as you please.

Hope this helps.

Unless you have some terrible insurance company they will not pay you the bare minimum, rather they are going to indemnify you for the loss you sustained.  They are heavily regulated and would rather do things right than deal with the wrath of the dept of insurance.  A PA's job is to get as much money from the insurance company as possible and take a cut of it. My advise is to get a reputable contractor.  The insurance adjuster will write an estimate for the visible damages.  Show it to your contractor and go from there.  Keep in mind that additional damages or repairs are common throughout the restoration period, they are called supplements.  The contractor will be the one requesting supplements if they are needed.  

It's up to you to consider if a PA is worth it. I personally would never use one unless I had a ton of contents to deal with, but do what you need. Sorry this happened to ya.

Hi Charles, 

Thank you for your offer. I have completed my interview.  Your story sounds Incredible.  My wife and I are preparing to make the jump, would you mind if I send you a private message with some questions about starting out?

Hi all,

I am currently working on a research paper about money, particularly in utilizing debt to build wealth. I'm looking for someone who started their journey with a simple loan, that can provide insight on how that debt catapulted them into success.  If there is anyone fitting this description who is willing to answer several questions via email, I would be forever in your debt!  Thank you for making this community great!

I did not initially notice the forced placed insurance.  If you are not the lender, you may want to get it insured under your own policy as soon as possible.  Talk with an agent

So I looked through the documents and based on the pictures from the contractor, it does look like some of the damages are not related. I understand how you are confused as the home needs a lot of work and unfortunately not all of it will be covered. It also looks like your contractor believes the roof should be replaced. The estimate from the insurance company reflects replacing a couple of shingles. If your contractor does not believe the roof can be repaired, then this is likely to require a re-inspection by the adjuster. Make sure the contractor is present so that they can discuss whether the roof is repairable or not.

Overall, this whole claim looks to be a bit of a mess and it may be easiest to request a re-inspection, especially since the roof is an issue. This way the adjuster and contractor can go through and document and discuss the contested items. This also gives the adjuster the opportunity to document each item that is being denied so that you can more easily understand what is not covered.

One additional item I did note is that the property is very likely under insured. This means that the policy limits are not sufficient to fully repair or replace the buildings in the event of a loss. This leaves you very exposed as the cost will have to come out of your pocket once the policy limits are reached. It is too late for this claim but you may want to consider having this revised to ensure that you are fully covered.

Please understand that I am simply providing my opinion based on a very basic snapshot of your claim. I have not seen the property and am not familiar with the insurance laws within the state your property is located. Please take my advice with a grain of salt and be sure to seek counsel from and attorney or Public Adjuster before proceeding with any legal action.

In order to give you the best advice, what needs to be known is what has been covered and what is being denied in the claim. You briefly touched on it in your reply but more info would be helpful.  The letter that accompanied payment should describe this.  Could you share this information?  What it sounds like is that they are denying some of the damages, which may be in accordance with your policy. If this is the case and you believe that it should be, look over the policy provision which they cited as the grounds for denial.  Once you look that over and still feel that it should be covered, discuss it in detail with the adjuster. If that gets you nowhere, you may need to look into a public adjuster or attorney.  If you would like to post the policy provision, I can try and help.

I would recommend to replace it. If the insurance company pays to replace and you elect not to, you risk not having it covered after a future (maybe more serious) storm.  Also, if you repair and plan to sell, you will likely lose the money in the home value during the sale. $2k deductible now is much cheaper than negotiating the cost to replace it during a future sale.