next steps
WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN A HURRICANE DAMAGES YOUR PROPERTY?
If you have insurance coverage, an important next step is filing an insurance claim to get money from your insurance company. The amount of insurance money you are owed depends on different factors, including the type of insurance (homeowner’s insurance, flood insurance, commercial property insurance policies, etc.); the type of damage (flood damage from water coming up from the ground, wind claims like when a roof gets blown off, etc.); the amount of your insurance (also called your policy limits); and other factors.
Sometimes, even if you’ve done everything you should do—including buying insurance, promptly notifying the insurance company of damages, and other things like that—an insurance company may still try to deny or underpay your claim…That’s where WE come in!
If you have insurance policy and have also experienced storm damage, call Baer Law’s team of disaster law attorneys. If you have insurance and property damage, we may be able to help. We fight to get homeowners and businesses the money they are owed after a disaster.
THREE TYPES OF APPLICABLE INSURANCE POLICIES
FLOOD INSURANCE POLICY
Flood policies are almost always underwritten by the federal government through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). With the exception of high-end commercial situations, flood policies written by private insurers are extremely rare. The NFIP flood insurance policies are issued by the federal government, but are usually sold and serviced by private insurance companies. This program is called the “write your own” (“WYO”) policy program, but the party paying claims in the federal government. NFIP Flood insurance claims are administered by FEMA with the maximum coverage limits of $250,000 for residences and $500,000 for commercial policies. These claims are often referred to as “FEMA Flood Claims” or “NFIP Claims,” but should not be confused with FEMA Disaster Assistance which is also often referred to as a “FEMA claim.” You are on the clock with FEMA flood claims!
WINDSTORM POLICY
Particularly in high-risk areas, homeowners’ insurers do not want to include windstorm coverage in their homeowners’ policies, and therefore, the homeowner is required to not only have a homeowner’s policy, but also a separate windstorm policy.
HOMEOWNER & BUSINESS OWNER POLICIES
This provides a number of different coverages, including, for example, liability coverage. Particularly in the lower risk areas, windstorm coverage should be included in the homeowners’ insurance policy. Sometimes there is a special add on (endorsement), with a separate premium and/or deductible as part of the homeowners’ policy (instead of being in an entirely separate policy, like #2 above).Specifics will depend on the specific policy language. Unlike federally backed flood policies, which all use standard language, Homeowner and Business Owner Claims can vary.
Your insurance company has a duty to work with you in good faith on these policies.
HOW DO YOU GET STARTED?
Report the claim to your insurance company ASAP. The insurer has a duty to timely respond and initiate an adjuster to go adjust the property. In Louisiana, this period is 14 days, or 30 days if there is a “catastrophic loss.” The period can be extended to 60 days, which has happened here.
An independent adjuster will inspect the property and make an estimate of the damages. There’s really nothing “independent” about an independent adjuster. These adjusters work for the insurance company. Sometimes they are called “insurance adjusters.”
The insurance company will likely pay the “undisputed amount,” usually what is on the estimate. This amount might be paid on the date of the inspection.
If you or your lawyer hire an adjuster, that's the public adjuster and this is not the deadline for the public adjuster. Public adjusters work for you—the policyholder—to help find things the insurance company missed. Our firm is works with public adjusters and can have your property evaluated to try to get you the insurance settlement that you deserve without any up-front cost to you.
YOU ARE ON THE CLOCK FOR FLOOD CLAIMS AND WIND CLAIMS
If the proof of loss is denied or partially denied, then, pursuant to most policies, the insured only has one year to file a lawsuit.
Generally, for flood claims, the insured only has 60 days to file a proof of loss on hurricane flood insurance policies, unless the federal flood agency extends that time.
A lot of you will have wind and flood claims; so, you will need to be aware that the deadlines for their commercial flood policy (for example) follow federal law; the deadlines for their private policies are different.