When to hire a Florida Public Adjuster?
Filing an insurance claim is a long and exhaustive process, especially when the company insurance is refusing to pay some of the coverage. To deal with this, there are homeowners who hire a licensed insurance adjuster. But who are they exactly and when is the right time to hire them?
There are three types of adjusters: the company adjusters, the independent adjusters, and the public insurance adjusters.
Company adjusters are those who are hired by the insurance companies to work full-time. Meanwhile, independent adjusters are independent contractors who provide claims services to insurance companies and charge the company a fee for each claim they handle.
On the other hand, the public insurance adjusters are independent adjusters that were created by the respective states and who work for the claimant to get money from an insurance claim. Their service fee is usually charged from the settlement that a claimant get from the insurance company.
Of the three adjuster types, the public adjuster is the one that you should hire if you want someone who would represent you to evaluate a property loss and claim the correct amount of insurance money.
If you are residing in Florida, you should know that there are Florida public adjusters that can assist you in getting an insurance claim if your property suffers from any of the following: plumbing and HVAC leaks and damages due to molds, storm, fire, flooding and more.
The following is a discussion on when to hire a public adjuster.
1. Policy insurance is hard to understand
Public adjusters are licensed professionals who are trained in understanding the language of insurance policies. Hiring public adjusters can help protect the policyholder from any pitfalls due to unfamiliar terms of the policy insurance.
2. Demands of the insurance company seem unreasonable
Public adjusters also help the policyholders in the negotiation with the insurance company so that they can have better settlements.
3. Lack of time to deal with the insurance company
What makes the process of evaluating, completing and submitting an insurance claim a tiring process is the submission of a report that details the following: item description, quantities, and costs. Often times, a policyholder has difficulty in finding time to file an accurate and detailed report, resulting in inappropriate or insurance coverage that is lower than the actual value of the damage.
4. Extensive damage
If the property is severe damage, a public adjuster must be hired as they can identify the structural damage, assess losses and account the possessions and valuables that can add to the value of a claim.
5. Quick payoff offers
Quick offers are the way of the policy insurance company to get rid of insurance claims. In most cases, the policyholder settles for less money because the insurance company makes them feel the need to “get it over with” as they were rushed to sign an agreement that they don’t really understand.
6. Delayed claim
There are times when the adjusters that were hired by the company is from another state who are not familiar with Florida laws. This may result to a slow progress in getting your claim. In situations such as this, it is best to hire an adjuster who would help you process your claim in a ratified period.
7. Inadequate settlement
Insurance companies also hire insurance adjusters to represent them in settling the insurance claims. Thus, in some cases, the offers do not even come close to the value of restoring the damaged property. This is why an expert’s opinion, who speaks the same language as the policy insurance’s adjuster is important.
In conclusion, we can say that an experienced public insurance adjuster can help you understand your insurance policy, expedite the process of filing and claiming an insurance coverage for a damaged property and helps you to settle and get paid the right amount of insurance money.