Dallas Insurance Claims Attorney | Personal Injury Lawyer Richardson

Tag: homeowners insurance

  • Underpaid for Your Property Insurance Claim?

    After a fire or a natural disaster, people turn to their insurance company to be reimbursed for damaged homes, businesses and possessions. But you may lose out on money you could receive if you aren’t prepared prove the extent of your losses. 

    Steps To Take Before Disaster Strikes Can Help Your Financial Recovery Afterward

    This post provides tips on what to do before disaster strikes to smooth the insurance settlement process. You want to be fully reimbursed for the true value of your loss from your homeowner’s insurance, renter’s insurance, or specialty insurance policy (like flood insurance or riders for high-value items or business property located in the home).

    If you’ve wrongly received an insurance claim denial, or the insurance adjustor is undervaluing your property, you may need to get a consumer protection attorney involved. 

    What Will Your Property Insurance Policy Pay?

    Pull out your insurance policy and take a look at your property insurance coverage. There is an overview sheet that will show you the value of your home for insurance purposes, as well as the value of personal property. If your home is lost to a fire, tornado, storm (or flood, if you have flood insurance), you need to know what the insurer will pay. 

    Your policy may insure your home to a specific dollar value. Regardless of what your home is worth right now, that is the value you will be paid. That may be the value of the home when you first took out your policy. If you have a good agent, that value is updated regularly.  

    You may have a policy that pays an Extended Value or Guaranteed Replacement Cost. In this case, the insurance company has agreed to rebuild your house to the state it was prior to being destroyed. If it now costs more to rebuild your exact house, the insurer will pay more (usually up to a certain limit). 

    Your insurance policy will state a dollar amount for Contents/Personal Property. Usually this is a percentage of the value of your home coverage (about 70%). That may or may not cover it. 

    Are you being reimbursed for actual cash value or replacement cost of your personal property losses? 

    • Most policies pay for replacement cost, which is the actual cost of replacing the items.  The insurance company will send you an initial check. You purchase new items. Then send the receipts to the insurer with a request for any additional unpaid amount. 
    • Some policies pay for the actual cash value of the items lost. The adjustor depreciates the items for age and condition. Sometimes the adjustor depreciates too much. Depreciation is negotiable. Ask to see a copy of the insurers’ depreciation schedule. 

    Proving Value for a Property Insurance Claim

    Creating a household inventory is the best way to prove the existence, and value, of personal property. Some insurance companies provide customers with an electronic inventory program they can use to gather and store information. You can find a list of home inventory apps at Forbes Advisor. But you can also do this just with a paper, pen and a camera. Learn more at the Insurance Information Institute.

    Before Disaster Strikes

    Document Your Possessions: Go room by room and make a list of everything you own. Describe the items to the extent you can, including date of purchase, model or serial number, brand, purchase price, and any other pertinent information. Unsure of the value? You can use the internet to look up the price of items. 

    You may wish to do this once a year to ensure you haven’t forgotten to include new property. 

    Adjustors often ask for receipts for higher-value items. Policyholders often don’t have them. Do you need to provide a receipt? Yes and no. 

    As a policyholder, you have an obligation to cooperate with the insurance company’s investigation. While an insurance company can’t deny your claim because you can’t produce a receipt, they could investigate further and this could cause delays. If you have receipts, you should provide them. 

    When a home or business is a total loss, receipts are usually lost, too. With some advance planning you can protect this information. Take a photo of the sales receipt or purchasing contract or written appraisal for any item of significant value. Store this information in the Cloud or put it on a thumb drive in a safety deposit box (or another place away from home). 

    Take Photographs: Take pictures of your home and personal property in natural light and from multiple angles. You could also videotape your property as you tour it, narrating information about the possessions on the video. Photos and video can be used to demonstrate ownership and condition. They will help jog your memory when you need to provide the insurance company with an inventory. Again, store those photos in the Cloud, or in a safety deposit box. 

    After Disaster Strikes

    Store Items: Do not throw away damaged items until you have been fully compensated. The insurance company may need to inspect them. Store them in a basement or garage, or even a rented storage unit. If possible, secure them so they can’t become more damaged while in storage.

    Document Living Costs While Away from Home: If you can’t live in your home while repairs or rebuilding is taking place, your insurance policy may entitle you to be reimbursed for temporary living expenses. Document your expenses for hotels or home rental, meals, car rental, etc. Photograph those receipts as well.  

    Working With A Property Insurance Company

    Report your loss as soon as possible to your insurance agent or insurance company. Keep track of every interaction you have with the insurance company in a notebook or file. If there is a problem with your insurance claim later, your notes may be valuable to proving your case. 

    • When did you notify your agent of a claim? When did you receive confirmation that your claim had been received (put the letter in your notebook)?
    • When did you send proof? What did you send?
    • Did you have phone conversations? What was said?
    • Copy emails and put them into the notebook. 
    • When did you have visits from an adjustor, a contractor, etc.? 
    • What did the adjustor say and what did they agree to? 

    You may be asked to give a recorded or sworn statement in an Examination Under Oath. You may wish to talk to an attorney before you do so. Either way, make a recording for yourself and keep it. (You can do so with your cell phone). 

    In some instances, you may be asked to provide tax returns to prove you had the ability to purchase a high-value item. You are not legally required to give your insurer your tax returns. 

    Now begin working on your inventory. Remember, the goal of the insurance adjustor is to control the amount of money that gets paid on a claim. You want to maximize your claim in all ways that are legal. Documentation and organization will help you do so. 

    If You Need Help, Contact an Insureds Lawyer

    If you believe you are being underpaid or unreasonably delayed by your insurance company, talk to a consumer protection attorney. The Fell Law Firm can help. Call 972-450-1418 or complete our online contact form to schedule a consultation.

  • Insurance Claim Check Delayed? See the Texas Prompt Payment of Claims Act

    The Texas Insurance Code protects consumers from unfair insurance practices. One of the ways it does so is by allowing consumers to bring lawsuits against insurance companies when they act in bad faith. 

    Insurance claim check delays are an example of insurance company bad faith. Sec. 542.001 of the Insurance Code is called the Unfair Claim Settlement Practices Act. It applies (with some exceptions) to insurance companies and mutual aid and mutual insurance companies that provide:

    • Life, health and accident insurance
    • Property damage from fire, hail or storms
    • Casualty insurance
    • Burial associations, fraternal benefit organizations
    • And a few other types of policies

    The Act states that insurers cannot engage in the following unfair insurance claim settlement practices:

    • Knowingly misrepresenting pertinent facts about the policy coverage
    • Failing to promptly acknowledge receipt of a claim and acceptance or rejection
    • Failing to adopt reasonable standards for the prompt investigation of claims
    • Failing to make a good faith effort to arrive at a prompt, fair and equitable settlement when liability is reasonably clear
    • Compelling policyholder to bring a lawsuit to recover the moneyed to them because the insurance company has offered substantially less than the amount the policyholder finally recovers as a result of a lawsuit

    What is the Definition of “Prompt?”

    Section 542.055 defines promptness for standard insurance companies in this way:

    • Receipt of Claim: An insurer should acknowledge receipt of the claim, begin investigating the claim, and request all needed information from the insured not later than 15 days after receipt of the claim. The insurance company can request additional information at a later time if needed to complete its investigation of the claim. 
    • Acceptance or Rejection of Claim: The insurance company shall notify the insured in writing if they are accepting or rejecting the claim not later than 15 days after receipt of all information from the insured. If a claim is rejected, the company must give a reason. 
    • If Arson is Suspected: If the insurance company suspects arson is involved, they shall notify the insured not later than 30 days after receiving all information. 
    • Payment: The insurance company must pay the claim no later than the 5th business day after it informs the insured it will pay on the claim. If the insured has to do something in order to receive payment, then the insurance company has 5 days from that date to make payment.  

    Exceptions

    • If the insurance company can’t decide within the timeline above, it must communicate with the insured why it needs additional time. The insurance company then has another 45 days to arrive at a decision. 
    • In the case of natural disasters, the deadlines are extended an additional 15 days. 
    • Surplus line insurance companies – those that protect against risks a regular insurance company won’t take on – have an extended timeline.

    Penalties for Insurance Company Violations

    If an insurance company delays payment for valid claims for more than 60 days (90 days for life insurance), they may be required to pay the policy holder or beneficiary the amount of the claim plus 18% yearly interest from the date the claim was supposed to be paid. They also must pay reasonable and necessary attorney’s fees if the insured had to hire a lawyer.

    If you’ve been the victim of insurance bad faith and a delayed insurance settlement, talk to a lawyer about your rights. Dallas consumer protection attorneys at the Fell Law Firm can help you. Call 972-450-1418 or complete our online contact form to schedule a consultation.

  • With Storm Season Here, Texans Should Know Insurance Truths

    With Storm Season Here, Texans Should Know Insurance Truths

    People all across the country, and here in Texas specifically, see the segments every night on the evening news. Severe weather causes damage all over this time of year. Tornadoes, heavy rain, strong winds and hail create dangerous conditions—and storm damage to people’s property.
    Just last month, North Texas communities were battered by tornadoes. Today, that likely means many homeowners, business owners and car owners are awaiting word from their various insurance providers. The frustrating and likely reality for some of those people is they will be met with disappointment.

    Don’t Let Your Insurance Provider Fool or Intimidate You

    Purchasing insurance provides a sense of confidence. We tend to have faith that the products we pay for will provide us with the service and protection we need. Too many consumers are met with surprise and then the sense of defeat when an insurance claim is initially denied.
    A denial or otherwise inadequate offer from your insurance provider is not the end of the conversation regarding your storm coverage. Your rights in the wake of a damaging storm are worth protecting. But maybe you are hesitant to defend those rights because you are tired, worried you will lose or worried you misunderstood the terms of your policy.

    What Does Insurance Offer and Maybe Not Offer in Severe Weather Cases?

    While the point of storm damage insurance is to protect yourself financially following extreme weather like heavy storms, hail, tornadoes, fire, etc., even insurance has its limits. Below are some concise explanations about insurance provisions that might apply to your case:

    • Storm damage to your home should be covered. The amount of coverage will depend on your specific policy details. How much coverage does your policy, which you should have read, provide? If your insurer fights back against an amount for which you should be covered, talk to an attorney about a possible bad faith insurance case.
    • Flood damage is not going to be covered by your general homeowners’ insurance. You need to have a separate flood insurance policy in order to get coverage for potential flood damage. If your insurance provider is denying coverage for flood damage to your property, it might be because it is not part of the plan. If you do not think that is the case—if you have insurance for flooding—let a lawyer help you.
    • Living expenses you spend while unable to use your home are covered by homeowners’ insurance, up to a point. Living reasonably is the key to receiving coverage for living expenses, not by choosing the fanciest hotels and restaurants.

    Don’t Waste Time and Worry Wondering. Get Legal Direction

    You can do all the Google research and late-night worrying about your insurance woes that you want, but you will still be left with questions, confusion and financial stress. The most efficient and helpful way to combat what is very likely a bad faith insurance case is to turn to a law firm experienced in these matters.
    It is unsettling enough to see one’s property—a home in particular—damaged, sometimes beyond recognition. Homeowners will often need to work through the emotion and shock of that loss. If you are an overwhelmed homeowner looking for some security again, contact a lawyer experienced in taking on insurance companies and protecting consumers like you.