Sadly, in regions worldwide, climate change is already threatening to destabilize the areas where people live. North America and Europe have wildfires in summer, when it’s dry, and large floods in coastal cities are increasingly common.
The changing conditions are wreaking havoc with home insurance rates, driving up the cost of insurance and making policies that fully cover the worsening conditions more difficult to obtain. It’s more important than ever to review your home insurance policy, confirm what it does and doesn’t cover, and act accordingly to ensure your protection.
Insurance Adjusters Wriggle Out of Claims
After you file your insurance claim, the insurance company will send an adjuster to review the loss and provide the insurer with an estimate of its costs. They may use one of their preferred restoration contractors to determine the estimate or do it themselves, along with reviewing damaged items in the home, like clothing, electronics, and furniture.
Any problems arising at this stage can be a red flag that things will only get worse. Be wary of delays and difficulty in communication, the adjuster bringing in an unprofessional evaluator, or a severe undervalution of the loss.
Climate change could be the underlying cause of the damage, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be compensated sufficiently if the insurance adjusters can find a legal, technical way to wriggle out of their obligations. For example, the pre-existing state and/or damage to your home which you did not even know about may lead to the loss not being covered even if the majority of the damage was from an insured event.
Your Own Contractor May Help
Insurance companies only work with a select few companies, usually the ones who can provide a bid to do your repairs for the cheapest price. You may decide that letting the process unfold without your involvement is easier and therefore preferable, or you may prefer taking an active role, ensuring quality control.
If you hire your own contractor, the insurer may prefer to give one lump sum payment. If there are any unexpected costs or delays, you’ll have to pay for them from your own pocket. Knowing the insurance industry’s ways of minimizing their payments is important, just like understanding the details of your policy, so that your policy fully responds to the extent of the damage.
Insurance Lawyers Can Help
If your home has been through a flood or fire, you’re probably upset, frustrated, exhausted, emotionally drained, and not in a great place to deal with the fallout and rebuilding process. Maximizing your coverage will only be harder if the insurance company finds a reason to claim your home wasn’t covered, say, because it was in a state of disrepair at the time.
Perhaps they’ll say you didn’t accurately report the damage to your home or the extent of your loss. If they can determine that your claim was submitted in bad faith, it could void it altogether. Insurance lawyers can help ensure there are no irregularities with the paperwork, and can help determine the legal merit of the insurer’s reason for denial.
Experts in this area, like Virani Law, are also very experienced in pushing back against the industry’s common tricks. They are very experienced with the ways in which insurance companies look to limit their exposure on a claim. Insurance lawyers, like Virani Law, are on your side and will advocate for your best interests so that you can rebuild your life and home.
Climate change has already started changing society in countless ways. If your home is vulnerable, try to get ample home insurance coverage and consider hiring an insurance lawyer to get all the support you are entitled to.