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Tony
If your unit is a condo/townhome and if there is any portion of the reconstruction under the scrutiny of the homeowners association, let me know. I lost over $8k in 95 in central NJ due to my condo association. Judge merely shruged his shoulders.
I can tell you what NOT to do!
Replies
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Tony, I dont know if I can be of any assistance or not but I am a FireFighter by trade and I own a small construction co. on the side, so I do work both ends of what your dealing with. Mike
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Hey does anybody have any experience either as contractor, adjuster or property owner with fire damage claims?
An investment property was subject to smoke damage and exploratory
damage (open roof, ceilings) as a result of a fire in the adjoining property. Nobody injured. Meeting with 1st contractor and then insurance co representative this week. Interested in any stories, opinions.
*How about a remodeler with a sibling that had a fire? I wasn't around to help, but a few years ago my sisters place burned down. They decided to rebuild. The day after the fire, an "independent" appraiser ( or what ever the official title was) showed up and offered to represent her for a percentage of the claim. Sounded like a scam, but the old man was there and followed this guy thru every step, and my sister figures she got aprox. 20 percent MORE from the insurance co. than had she and my Dad fought this alone. I believe 10 percent of this went to the independent guy as his pay. She also said later, just breaking even, or even losing 5-10 percent in paying him would have been worth it. He took control of everything, kept her apprised of everything, and basically let the family get on with life while he did the pain in the ass work. As I said, they came out ahead too.They didn't get more than they were expecting, they just got more than the Ins. said they'd give, and alot quicker too! I'll check with her for the exact title he used if you'd like to contact someone in your area to check out. Just e-mail me. Maybe she just got lucky with the one honest guy in the profession, but it worked out well for her. Jeff
*Tony,Jeff is referring to a Public Adjuster. I have had experience with two fire jobs. I will warn that, just like any other profession, there are good public adjusters and bad ones.With the two jobs I've done, both adjusters got more for the customer than the insurance company was willing to give. I have heard stories of adjusters wanting upwards of 20%, but 10% is standard. My advice is to shop and check references.Good luck!Greg
*There are a couple of posts in the archives about ways and materials to get rid of the smoke smell. Some creative search terms should get you something.
*10% more of what ? Your house gets burned; the insurance company comes out and fixes it; if it burns to the ground, they build you a new one; they even put you up somewhere (you have the option of a per diem) while they do the work. Where does the extra 10% come from ?
*10% more in quality of repair parts and materials.10% more in what you think your personal posessions are worth.10% more in quality of workmen.10% better hotel accomadations or per deim.Open your eyes, you are not in your good hands, and do not have a good neighbor on your terms.Insurance companies are out to make money, that is why they are in business and have accumulated so much money. They do not want to buy things for you at the highest price.I was in the collision repair business for many years, I can only imagine what insurance companies will do in the house damage estimating game." You want plaster in your repairs? No one uses plaster, this drywall will be fine... You had solid oak floors, but this laminate stuff is just as good.... Cast iron waste pipes? Everyone uses PVC nowadays..."Frank DuVal
*If it's that easy, I think I'm switching to your Ins. Co.!.....some of the extra's came from the initial housing check(hotel), how many CD's(music) they'd pay for(didn't AT FIRST believe my nephew had 300), clothing values and amounts. It even came down to fighting about the new window values. There's ALOT more than, here's a recent pic....we'd like it back! Jeff
*Well, when we moved in (it was brand new construction), the insurance company sent an engineer out for 1/2 a day with a set of drawings for the house and made notes on all of the materials, carpeting, windows, took an inventory of the furniture and appliances, etc. They also gave us a list of the standard replacements and asked us to make notes on where we exceeded either the counts or the cap values (like art, coins, stamps, tools, ...). At the end of the exercise they sent us a bound copy of the report. They've treated us so well in the past, that I'm not worried.
*Tony, I did fire, wind and water repairs for a few years and will warn you that all things are not equal. Some of our customers ended up making ouut like bandits and others were taken to the cleaners. The policy covering the property is the first place to look. Does it cover replacement value or does it prorate contents? The adjuster may recomend a builder who specializes in this type of repairs (they probably golf together). This doesn't mean you should write this guy off, he is probably better versed than most contractors in damage repair, just be aware that he may lean toward the adjuster. This doesn't sound like a large complex job so I would go with the guy with the expertise. Skip
*Phil,Please tell us the name of you insurance company, for I think they want our business if they treat all their customers this good. I like to spread the word about good insurance companies, as it is so rare to do so.Do remember to update this info they have when you change inventory.My good neighbor type agent just wanted to know how many sq.ft. ( is that heated, unheated, or just what do you want?) and how many corners the outside of the house had. No drawings, no quality level of material questions, etc. I did go for the option of replacement value for personal property and building materials. So I know they will supply laminate flooring instead of oak if this option was not chosen ( from discussion with agent).Frank DuVal
*Royal & Sun Alliance (formed by the merger of Royal Insurance and Sun Insurance; I think that was in '97 or '98). I've used the Royal for automobiles since the mid-sixties. We get our insurance through an independant broker (F. Wallace Clancy & Son Ltd.) who have continuously provided insurance to my family for over 80 years. As this is a sub-division home, there's really not a problem if you've kept the same quality as originally supplied or a builder's upgrade (it's listed in the purchase agreement and your lawyer keeps a copy). As a good practice, you should keep receipts for all substantive upgrades to the materials in your home in the same place you keep your insurance/tax/investment records; and yes, we let the insurance company know if we make a change. All valuable items are scheduled (e.g. cameras, computers, scuba equipment, art). Most companies will give you a set of forms for a voluntary assessment - at a certain value, they send out an appraiser ($400K, $500K ?) and do their own. As an aside, I do know people who have been burned on insurance, mostly because they did nothing to help themselves. At the very least, people should walk around their homes and videotape the basic contents. You do get "burned" if you take the money rather than ask for replacement. We had our rental van broken into a couple of years back in Vancouver and lost some camera gear; if we had taken the money, we would have taken a substantial loss (current value of the missing items); however, the company cheerfully replaced the items with brand new equipment. We didn't even have to buy the exact replacement, they priced the replacement and we had sort-of a gift certificate to use at the camera store.
*Hey folks, just as an update, after one week of conversations with the insurance company adjuster regarding property damage claim and lost income claim (this is an investment property),also with the company insuring the adjoining property; I felt like I was being set up to get screwed. I engaged the largest and most reputable public adjuster in our area (10%) and turned the lost income claim over to my attorney. I feel that I made a good faith effort to bargain honestly in this matter but nobody was interested. Thanks for the thoughts.
*TonyIf your unit is a condo/townhome and if there is any portion of the reconstruction under the scrutiny of the homeowners association, let me know. I lost over $8k in 95 in central NJ due to my condo association. Judge merely shruged his shoulders.I can tell you what NOT to do!