Miami Hurricane Insurance Claim Attorneys
If you have suffered property damage or any other insured loss, your first reaction may be to call your insurance agent or your property insurer. Naturally, you are anxious to have your claim adjusted and to start repairing the damage or to collect insurance proceeds to compensate for your losses. Nevertheless, what you claim, how you structure your claim, how aggressive you are and your overall strategy will set the tone, content and parameters of your claim and will “cast the die” of whether your claim will be successfully paid or contested by the insurance company in time consuming and expensive litigation. Contact our experienced Miami hurricane insurance claim attorneys for more information.
Important Legal Issues to Understand and Deal With on Day 1
If you need to file an insurance claim after suffering property damage from a hurricane, then you should consult with a lawyer to help you obtain your settlement. By consulting with a hurricane lawyer to assist with the handling of your property damages claim, you will have a professional negotiator by your side to advise you about and, if necessary and requested, represent your legal and financial interests and you will have the help of an expert who understands the complexities of the insurance industry. Additionally, if your insurer fails to meet the terms of your insurance policy agreement, your attorney can carry your fight against the insurance company into court.
When you have suffered property damage from a hurricane, the first thing you should do is contact your local agent to report the claim, preferably in writing. The insurance company should acknowledge your claim and send an adjustor to your property to inspect the damage. Once the claim is made and the damage is assessed, your insurance company should provide you with enough money to repair your home and return it to its pre-storm condition. Often times, insurance companies will deny coverage or will not attempt to settle your claim in good faith. A legal claim arises when your insurance company either wrongfully makes a final denial of your claim or makes a final offer of payment that would not allow you to make the necessary repairs. A bad-faith claim against your insurance company needs to be handled by an attorney.
Why Should You Hire a Lawyer to Handle Your Insurance Claims?
If you need to file an insurance claim after suffering property damage from a hurricane, then you should definitely hire a lawyer to help you obtain your settlement. By hiring a hurricane lawyer to handle your property damages claim, you will have a professional negotiator by your side to represent your legal and financial interests and you will have the help of an expert who understands the complexities of the insurance industry. Additionally, if your insurer fails to meet the terms of your insurance policy agreement, your lawyer can pursue your interests in a court of law.
Important Legal Issues to Understand and Deal With on Day 1
When you have suffered property damage from a hurricane, the first thing you should do is contact your local agent to report the claim, preferably in writing. The insurance company should acknowledge your claim and send an adjustor to your property to inspect the damage. Once the claim is made and the damage is assessed, your insurance company should provide you with enough money to repair your home and return it to its pre-storm condition. Often times, insurance companies will deny coverage or will not attempt to settle your claim in good faith. This legal claim arises when your insurance company either wrongfully makes a final denial of your claim or makes a final offer of payment that would not allow you to make the necessary repairs. A bad-faith claim against your insurance company needs to be handled by an attorney.
Why Charlip Law Group, LC?
In the event of a catastrophic hurricane or other severe storm, it can be extremely difficult to deal with your insurance company and work with them to get a fair settlement for the damage left behind. Hiring an experienced attorney, such as Charlip Law Group, LC, can help you ensure the best possible results from your claim.
For homeowners in both Florida and New Jersey, Charlip Law Group, LC is proud to serve as your hurricane insurance claim lawyer. With so many insurance companies offering undervalued settlements, incomplete repairs to victims’ homes and other property, or outright denying insurance claims, the attorneys at Charlip Law Group, LC are eager to represent your interests. If your property has been damaged by a hurricane or other violent storm, contact the trusted insurance claim lawyers at Charlip Law Group, LC today to set up an initial consultation. We can answer any questions you may have and can serve as your trusted advisor in ensuring that your insurance company handles your claim fairly, properly, and promptly.
What Does Hiring an Attorney Cost?
Lawyers handling first party insurance claims such as hurricane claims for the most part have their clients sign contingency fee agreements that provide that they are entitled to a certain percentage of the total claim award or the amount awarded for attorney’s fees, whichever is larger. The contingency percentage is usually 33.33% – 40%.
Why Charlip Law Group, LC?
In the event of a catastrophic hurricane or other severe storm, it can be extremely difficult to deal with your insurance company and work with them to get a fair settlement for the damage left behind. Hiring an experienced attorney, such as Charlip Law Group, LC, can help you ensure the best possible results from your claim. Moreover, with Charlip Law Group, LC you don’t have to necessarily hire the firm to handle your entire claim for a percentage of the recovery (although the firm certainly is available to do that and in certain cases believes that such representation is preferable).
Charlip Law Group, LC affords prospective clients “hurricane claim review” services on a flat fee basis that provide such clients with the crucial and timely legal input at the formulation stage of the claim submittal. Every homeowner making a hurricane claim would be foolish not to spend the comparably small fee involved to have an attorney review and consult on their proposed claim before it was submitted.
For homeowners in both Florida and New Jersey, Charlip Law Group, LC is proud to serve as your hurricane insurance claim lawyer. With so many insurance companies offering undervalued settlements, incomplete repairs to victims’ homes and other property, or outright denying insurance claims, the attorneys at Charlip Law Group, LC are eager to represent your interests. If your property has been damaged by a hurricane or other violent storm, contact the trusted insurance claim lawyers at Charlip Law Group, LC today to set up an initial consultation. We can answer any questions you may have and can serve as your advisors in ensuring that your insurance company handles your claim fairly, properly, and promptly.
Legal Issues Unique to Commercial Claims
When it comes to businesses that have been affected by natural disasters, and particularly hurricanes, it is difficult to anticipate how and to what extent these events over time continue to impact upon businesses, industries, and commerce in a given area. In many cases, the damage to area merchants may be felt for two or three years following a storm. Most business owners do not quite understand the significance or effect of being hit with a storm. Hurricanes causing significant damage may result in businesses having to close their doors for repairs for extended periods of time, resulting in a loss of revenue that is unrecoverable. Furthermore, companies may be unable to avoid reporting costs relative to hurricane damage when reporting their financial status, and insurance costs may skyrocket as a result of the high number of claims being filed and processed in the aftermath of a destructive storm.
The damage caused by hurricanes and tropical storms can be far reaching, and not something that can be rectified in a short or immediate period of time. Business owners who have either been affected by hurricanes or tropical storms, or those who are thinking about opening or expanding their businesses into hurricane-prone areas should consider all the ramifications involved and develop an action plan that will allow for speedy recovery with minimal interruption to the business.
Part of this action plan includes thoroughly assessing and understanding your commercial insurance policy and determining the type of coverage. Numerous issues tend to come up with insurance claims in the aftermath of a storm. For example, property damage claims may be denied, there may be excessive reporting requirements for hurricane damage incidents, insurance companies may fail to promptly pay claims or fail to properly and promptly investigate and assess hurricane damage claims, insurance companies may also low-ball claims assessments and settlement offers, and they may make accusations that a building does not meet specified code requirements. Due to the types of insurance issues that may result from storm damage, the best measures to take are preventative ones. In developing an action plan for your business and assessing your commercial insurance coverage, be sure to contact a Miami hurricane insurance claim attorney that can help you prepare your business accordingly.
Resources
- http://www.floir.com/office/hurricaneseason/2012hurricaneseason.aspx
- http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/general/lib/lib1/nhclib/20101StopHurResourceGuide.pdf
- http://www.myfloridacfo.com/Consumers/Guides/Property/docs/InsuringYourHomeEnglish.pdf
- http://www.floir.com/siteDocuments/OIR-B1-1655.pdf
- http://www.floir.com/siteDocuments/FLPublicHurricaneModel.pdf