NEWS

Hurricane Ike Damage?
Help is Available!

Ike's 100 mph winds and 16 inches of rain hit the Texas coast on the morning of September 13, obliterateing thousands of homes and businesses, and raining sheets of glass shards down on the streets of Houston, the nation's fourth largest city.

Over a Hundred Thousand Insurance Claims have been filed, and many of those Policyholders would benefit from reprecentation by a Licensed Public Insurance Adjuster!

If you have suffered property damage or business interruption from Hurricane Ike, call 1-800-ADJUSTERS or find out more on how We can Help You.

1-800-ADJUSTERS

(1-800-235-8783)

Ask a Public Adjuster

A property claim is any damage that occurs to your home or business, and is covered under your insurance policy. For example: Hurricane damage, Fire or Smoke damage, Broken or Blocked plumbing lines, Burglary or Theft, Mold, Sinkholes, etc. Typically, when damage occurs to a home or business, the homeowner or business owner would call their insurance company (much like car owners do when they get into an accident). The Insurance Company will create a claim and dispatch an adjuster to the home or business.

An "Adjuster" is the person that determines the amount of money you should receive for your property damage. There are three types of adjusters.

1. Company Adjuster or Staff Adjuster: This adjuster works directly for the Insurance Company (like a State Farm adjuster).
2. Independent Adjuster: This adjuster usually works for several Insurance Companies. During catastrophes, like Hurricanes, insurance companies usually do not have enough of their own personnel (staff adjusters) to handle all the work, so they use 'Independent Adjusters' to help out (almost like hiring sub contractors). In either case, both of these insurance adjusters represent the insurance companies that pay them, and they ALWAYS look after the insurance company's best interests.
3. Public Adjuster: There is a third adjuster, but this one works for the public, not for the insurance company. This Adjuster is referred to as a "Public Adjuster," sometimes referred to as "Private Adjusters". The Public Adjuster will file your claim, work directly with your Insurance Company's adjuster, and ultimately see to it that you get every penny you are entitled to receive for your damages. Although there is a fee associated with hiring a Public Adjuster, you usually get much more than the insurance company would offer, plus you won't have the hassle of dealing with the claim process. For their services, Public Adjusters receive a percentage of the money they collect on your behalf, and this percentage may vary slightly with different companies.

Our experience tells us this is unlikely. Insurance Company adjusters work for, report to, and are paid by, the insurance company. Insurance companies are businesses, and they too look after their bottom line. We find that often times they opt to repair items, when replacement is needed. An average policyholder working alone with an insurance adjuster is like an average person trying a court case without a lawyer who knows every law. Policyholders need equal representation.

This is the biggest misconception. Recoveries vary, however public adjusters typically recover more than you'd be able to secure on your own. Since you'll typically get more money, plus you don't have to handle your claim at all, why wouldn't you ask a public adjuster to handle your claim? Still not convinced, here's a recent example: A Condo Board reached out with a wind claim. They decided the public adjusting fee would take away from their recovery, so they decided to do it themselves. They struggled for many months (almost a year) and recovered under $500,000. Since they felt they were shortchanged after going it alone, they hired our public adjuster who collected an additional amount over $1million dollars. In short, had they done this from the beginning, they would have collected the entire amount (roughly $1.5 million), in less time, and they would not have had the headache of handling their own claim for almost one year.

We work off a percentage of your recovery. Therefore, if there is no recovery, there is no fee. We only collect a fee if we are able to get you insurance company to write you a check for your damages.

Yes! We have many clients that were told their claim was denied. We simply re-open the loss, negotiate with your insurance company, and insist they pay you (if you have a valid claim).

We strongly recommend that you call before you call your claim into your insurance company or agent. Doing so ensures that you'll get the professional help you need immediately. However, you can enlist our services at any time (before you place your claim, during your claim negotiations, and even after your claim has been closed). Basically, it's never too late.