If your Jacksonville home sustained damage covered by your insurance, the insurer has a legal obligation to handle your claim in good faith. When your insurance company denies or delays your claim or undervalues your losses, this can be a problem.
Contact the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine today for a free consultation and policy review. A property claim lawyer in Jacksonville can take on the insurance company to get the compensation you deserve for your damages.
What Do Your Covered Losses Include?
Although your coverage options may vary, homeowners’ policies typically cover some or all of the following items:
- Repair or replacement of your home
- Repair or replacement of garages, sheds, and guest houses
- Repair or replacement of swimming pools, decks, and balconies
- Compensation for damaged or destroyed contents
- Debris removal and haul-off
- Compensation for disaster remediation (such as water extraction and mold removal)
- Compensation for property protection costs
- Compensation for expenses incurred due to displacement
Our Jacksonville personal injury lawyers will research your damages, document your covered losses, and submit your property damage claim to the insurance company. We will handle every aspect of your claim, leaving you free to get your life back to normal.
Understanding Your Policy Is Vital
Different policies cover different types of losses. For example, hurricane insurance typically does not cover flood damage, even if the hurricane caused the flooding.
To get the settlement you need, you have to determine the exact cause of the damage done to your house and make sure it is covered in at least one of your insurance policies. A property claim attorney from our office can go over your policies with you, investigate the damage, and more.
We Handle All Types of Jacksonville Property Claims
Homeowner’s insurance policies traditionally cover property damage resulting from storms, fires, broken pipes, and similar incidents beyond your control. When it is time to submit a claim, you expect your insurance company to process and pay it in a timely manner.
What happens when the insurer refuses to pay your claim, makes a lowball offer, or does not respond to your inquiries? You have rights under Florida’s Insurance Rates and Contracts statute.
For help with a Jacksonville property claim, contact the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine. We help homeowners with all types of property damage claims, including:
- Hurricanes
- Tropical storms
- Structure fires
- Lightning
- Damaging winds
- Downed trees
- Broken water lines
- Sewer line blockages
Life in Florida can be unpredictable. However, dealing with the insurance company shouldn’t be.
How a Jacksonville Property Claim Lawyer Will Serve You
Per Florida Statutes § 627.7011, the insurance representative cannot make any false or misleading statements. They also cannot discourage you from working with a property damage attorney.
No matter what the status of your claim may be, we will hold the insurance company to their obligations under your policy. Our services include:
- Investigating and documenting your damages
- Submitting your claim and demand letter to the insurance company
- Negotiating a settlement
- Determining which policy applies to your situation
- Protecting you from bad faith insurance practices
- Managing all communications
- Advancing the progression of your case
Our legal team will handle all aspects of your situation, including communications with the insurance company, their lawyers, and any other parties involved with your claim.
In addition to documenting and submitting your original property claim, we can assist you with the following:
Appealing a Property Claim Denial
Reasons for denial can range from something as simple as misplaced paperwork to more serious causes, such as insufficient evidence or the insurance company’s mistaken belief that you are somehow being dishonest about the losses you suffered.
If the insurance company denied your claim, our legal team will determine why. If the insurer denies a claim for covered losses, we will provide additional support for the claim, answer questions, and do whatever may be necessary to negotiate an acceptable settlement.
Negotiating an Undervalued Settlement Offer
If the insurer makes a low offer, we will provide additional documentation to support the fair value of your claim and push for a revised, equitable offer for your damages. This may require meeting with the insurance adjuster multiple times. We are more than willing to do this.
Amending Your Original Property Damage Claim
In the chaos that comes after a storm, it is easy to miss or overlook a loss until after you have filed your claim. This does not mean you cannot get compensation for it.
If you discovered additional damage after submitting your original demand letter, we will provide the supporting documents and a revised statement. We will handle all necessary negotiations from there.
Investigating a Delayed Claim
If you are struggling to get a response from the insurance company, we will demand they investigate your claim and make a decision.
If the insurer refuses to make a fair offer or continues to deny your covered damages, we can file a lawsuit to compel their cooperation. Because you only have a limited time to take legal action for a property claim, you should promptly consider your legal options.
Documenting and Establishing Value for Your Jacksonville Property Claim
We begin by investigating your property damage and identifying all covered losses. Then we document each one so we can seek maximum compensation for you.
To document your claim, we typically use some or all of the following items:
- Property repair estimates
- An itemized list of lost or damaged contents
- Receipts for items you have already replaced
- Receipts for displacement expenditures (such as hotel stays, food, and transportation)
- Receipts for disaster remediation expenditures
- Receipts for plywood, tarps, and other items used to secure and protect the property
- Photos of your home and contents before the damage
- Photos of your home after the damage
If the value of your property damage claim exceeds your policy limits—or if your home was a total loss—we will submit a demand letter for the value of your policy. It is important to note the insurance company will subtract your policy’s deductible from your final settlement total.
Until you talk to a property claim lawyer, do not accept any settlement offers or provide a statement or signatures to the insurance company. Doing so may relinquish your right to seek additional compensation should you discover further damage.
Caring for Our Clients
At the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine, we value our clients’ well-being above all else. We offer a variety of services designed to relieve you of the stress and burden of filing an insurance claim, including:
- A free case review: All you have to do is call in. A member of our team will be happy to tell you if and how we can help.
- Fee deferral: You pay us no attorney’s fees unless and until the insurance company pays you.
- Access to your lawyer: If you think of a question in between meetings or updates, do not worry—we give clients their attorney’s number so they can get in touch whenever they need answers.
- Frequent updates: We let you know what is going on with your case on a regular basis. This way, you can plan and make decisions accordingly.
- Compassionate advice: We know how difficult it is to lose property or suffer damage in a natural disaster. Our team treats all clients with the respect and dignity they deserve.
- Additional assistance: Having trouble making or keeping appointments with those who could help rebuild your property? We can help you make such important arrangements.
A Jacksonville Property Claim Lawyer Can Address Your Case’s Challenges
At the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine, we are committed to helping you recover the compensation you deserve for your property damage claim. To minimize their financial losses, insurance companies may unjustly reject or undervalue your claim.
Insurance companies may use tactics like these:
- Denying you have coverage
- Denying your damages are covered
- Denying your claim
- Undervaluing your claim
- Failing to investigate your claim
- Stating that the damages existed prior to the adverse event
In some cases, the insurer may send an unqualified adjustor to investigate your damages. Our law firm can address these complications throughout the progression of your case.
Common Reasons for Property Claim Denials
It’s our job to assess whether your insurance company had a legitimate reason to deny your claim. Whether their reasoning was legitimate or not, we can help you rectify the situation and file again. Here are some common reasons that initial claims are denied in property damage cases:
- Your policy has an exclusion. Your insurance policy information can be pretty hard to decipher. As a result, you may not have known that your property damage is only covered if it meets certain criteria. Our attorneys can read through your policy and communicate with your insurer to see if an exclusion is responsible for your claim denial.
- You missed a filing deadline. Filing a claim is time-sensitive. Not only do you have to follow certain court-specific deadlines for certain property damage cases, but your insurance company may have its own deadlines. Missing one may jeopardize your right to compensation.
- You aren’t up-to-date on premium payments. As insurance policies are contingent on your payments, they may have the right to deny your claim if you’re not caught up.
- You made a mistake or a misrepresentation of the facts on your insurance application. If the insurance carrier finds out that you entered into a contract with them on the basis of a lie, such as how many claims you’ve filed, they may be entitled to deny you.
While these may be legitimate reasons for claim denials, there are plenty of illegitimate reasons for an insurance provider to deny your compensation. Our property damage lawyers can get to the bottom of any kind of denial and pursue your available options for recovery.
How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Lawyer from Our Firm?
You don’t have to shy away from hiring a lawyer because you’re worried that it’s too expensive. We work on a contingency-fee basis, meaning:
- You don’t pay us until your case is settled.
- If we can’t resolve your property damage claim, you don’t pay our attorney’s fees.
- We seek payment from the funds we get for you.
It does not cost you anything up front or out of pocket to partner with our firm. Our goal is to make the legal process as easy for you as possible.
You Have Protections Under the Florida Homeowner’s Bill of Rights
The Florida Homeowner’s Bill of Rights grants you certain benefits under the law. Those benefits prevent the insurer from unjustly stalling the insurance claims process. For instance:
- The insurer must acknowledge your claim’s submission within 14 days of receiving it.
- The insurer must make a decision regarding your claim within 30 days.
- The insurer must pay your damages (if they reach a decision) within 90 days.
Just because the insurance company has certain obligations doesn’t mean they will abide by them. Having a personal injury lawyer from our firm on your side can protect you against unfair tactics.
How to Protect Your Legal Rights After a Storm in Duval County
There are several steps homeowners can take to ease the process of working with and getting a fair settlement from the insurance company. These include:
- Taking pictures of your property both before and after the event
- Retaining important documents related to the damage, repairs, and so on
- Filing a claim with your insurance company as soon as possible
- Seeking legal advice as soon as possible
- Being open and forthcoming with your lawyer in all matters
- Cooperating with the insurance company but letting your attorney speak with them on your behalf
Whether you have taken some, all, or none of the above steps, the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine wants to help. We fight hard to get clients the fair compensation they are entitled to after a storm or other devastating event.
Free Jacksonville Property Claim Consultation and Case Review
If the liable insurer denies you coverage, treats you unfairly, or offers you a low settlement, our team can help you. We can settle insurance disputes and fight for you to get the most out of your insurance coverage. To explore working with a property claims lawyer in Jacksonville on a contingency basis, call today.
We Can Help.
