Should I hire an attorney to settle dispute with homeowners insurance?
Saturday, November 21st, 2009 at
4:06 pm
dsjnix asked:
We filed a claim on homeowners insurance due to the fact that our dishwasher was flooding our sub flooring when it would drain and it did a good deal of damage, about $15,000 worth. Initially they told us for weeks that they were covering it and just waiting for estimate from restoration company. Now they have just told us that the claim was denied, said that they are waiting some answers from the restoration company. In the meanwhile I am stuck with a torn up kitchen with no cabinets, no sink, and no floor!!! Wondering what I need to do to expedite this as it has drug out for 3 months now. Should I hire an attorney or file complaint with insurance commissioner ? If attorney, then what kind of attorney? We live in Georgia.
Can’t go afte the installer of the dishwasher, it was installed before we moved into the house over 6 years ago, so apparrently something that just began happening.
We filed a claim on homeowners insurance due to the fact that our dishwasher was flooding our sub flooring when it would drain and it did a good deal of damage, about $15,000 worth. Initially they told us for weeks that they were covering it and just waiting for estimate from restoration company. Now they have just told us that the claim was denied, said that they are waiting some answers from the restoration company. In the meanwhile I am stuck with a torn up kitchen with no cabinets, no sink, and no floor!!! Wondering what I need to do to expedite this as it has drug out for 3 months now. Should I hire an attorney or file complaint with insurance commissioner ? If attorney, then what kind of attorney? We live in Georgia.
Can’t go afte the installer of the dishwasher, it was installed before we moved into the house over 6 years ago, so apparrently something that just began happening.
Filed under: Homeowners Insurance
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No you need to hire a professional insurance adjuster to be your advocate. The whole thing is based on WHO installed the dishwasher. The insurance company will go after the installer for the costs. Admittedly the dishwasher was installed improperly.
An attorney will not speed things up. That only brings things to a screeching halt. So if your goal is to make the process faster….bad idea.
I would start by going and sitting down with your agent. Discuss the situation with him/her. Sometimes agents can make some calls and get some information.
You could also call and speak to the adjusters manager. If the claims office is local, ask to come to the claims office and meet with them to discuss the claim. Keep in mind, you may not hear what you want to hear….you may not get the answers you want…..but the manager should be able to answer your questions.
Or you can file a complaint with GA department of insurance. Again, filing a complaint does not mean you will get what you want….the loss may still not be covered but you should get answers. (Insurance is regulated at the state level….so the state DOI is the highest regulatory body).
OK, now wait . . . there’s a REASON for the denial. What was the REASON? It needs to be given to you in writing. Before you start paying $250 an hour for an attorney, you need to do your legwork first.
if this is the claim you posted about before, where there was rot damage, well, rot damage doesn’t happen from one flooding. If this was NOT a recent, sudden, accidental thing, then it’s not normally going to be covered under your homeowners.
Worse, if the prior owner had put a claim in for this kind of damage, it’s CLEARLY not new, and CLEARLY not caused recently.
Your first step is to file a complaint with your state insurance commissioner. But to have a chance of winning, you need to include the declination, and a good reason why that declination is REFUTED.
You also might want to consider hiring a public adjuster. They would be experts at homeowners insurance coverage, and would charge considerably less than an attorney.
Although with an attorney, you *might* have a bad faith case, which would mean more money in the end. You’d use a civil attorney.
As mbrcatz said, I have doubts whether this damage will be covered by your homeowner’s insurance. If this is damage from repeated leaking from your dishwasher, it’s not a ‘sudden occurrence’, and would likely be classified as a neglected maintenance issue. Homeowner’s insurance does not cover such situations.
They will inquire of the restoration company whether the damage appears to be from lack of maintenance, and your claim will be either approved or denied on that basis.