Hurricane Irene, with all of its devastating impact, has finally moved past the United States. Now the insurance battles start, as self-interested insurance companies pull out all of the stops to avoid having to pay out claims on homeowners’ policies. Remember, insurance adjusters who come to evaluate damage to your home are not your friends, and in fact, their main job is to deny as many claims as they can while keeping the resulting litigation costs and court judgments for their unscrupulous behavior as low as possible.
There are a few tricks to watch out for. Most prominent will be insurance companies that deny legitimate claims by using the excuse that damage is caused by flood or storm surge, not wind. Most consumers have standard home owners’ insurance, which covers wind damage but not flood damage. Only home owners that purchase separate flood insurance are covered for this type of damage. Unfortunately, many insurance companies will try to claim that damage was done by flood, not wind damage, even where there is conclusive evidence that, but for the wind damage, there would be minimal or no water damage.
Another tactic insurance companies use is to claim that the deductible owed is based, not on a fixed dollar amount, but on a percentage of the value of your house. So called “percentage deductibles” can be up to 10% of the value of a home. While some insurance policies clearly spell out that this huge deductible will apply in the event of a hurricane, others are less clear, and more deceptive, in the manner in which such deductibles are disclosed (if at all).
If you suffered damage from Hurricane Irene and were unfairly denied coverage, and you live in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut or Massachusetts, please contact us to discuss your legal options.