I’ve never tried to fight a claim but obviously others here have. Mine was generous enough that I took what was offered.
Insurance help from pack
- Thread starter Skippergardner
- Start date
If you can't get an adjuster from them out and you're concerned about actually documenting the damage from the claim (which you definitely should be, since SF will try to claim lots of things were pre-existing), I would think about hiring a public adjuster. It's a step before hiring a lawyer, and I think that they're capped for their fee state by state. I worked with several good public adjusters on fire claims for years out here, and they do the same thing that an adjuster does, but with your interest in mind. And they use the same generally accepted rules of insurance adjusting, so they usually set up as litigation experts if that ever becomes necessary.
Ehhhhhh, kind of. I've had three claims (one roof, one floor, one car) in the last year and they haggled and lowballed before finally paying what the contractors billed. I eventually got what I needed, but it wasn't hassle free.
It also took them forever to get anyone out to look at our roof, and they don't have individual case agents any more. As a matter of fact, their customer service has turned into absolute garbage since they downsized that department and outsourced it.
We went almost 3 months without flooring and furniture in half our house (literally) because they kept dragging their heels. I was not happy even though they eventually got off their asses and paid the full amount.
I've had the opposite experience probably just depends who at USAA is assigned the claim.
I vote for an independent agent with several companies to choose from.
If Shelter. State Farm, Farm Bureau, Allstate, etc. get upside down on rates, the agent has no other options. If Safeco gets upside down, your independent agent can just move you to Travelers, MetLife, Progressive, etc. You don't have to start over with a stranger. Find a guy you trust, and you're good. Let him do all that shopping.
If Shelter. State Farm, Farm Bureau, Allstate, etc. get upside down on rates, the agent has no other options. If Safeco gets upside down, your independent agent can just move you to Travelers, MetLife, Progressive, etc. You don't have to start over with a stranger. Find a guy you trust, and you're good. Let him do all that shopping.
Here’s an update. Our sticking point has been the roof. Originally they only wanted to repair the 7 year old roof. We’re missing 100’s of shingles. In the original offer they depreciated the roof 23.33%, I understand and expected that. We had to get multiple contractors to say that the roof wouldn’t match and that the entire roof needed replaced. They finally agreed to replace the roof and sent a revised proposal with a complete replacement but in this proposal they are depreciating the roof 70% so that the complete settlement only comes to about $900 more. I’ve spent about 30 minutes on the phone with someone who isnt authorized to make any decisions.
It gets better. Just got a call that they made a mistake on the first claim settlement which they’ve already sent a check for, uncashed at this point. They are now sending me a third proposal but they won’t nullify the first check and will only send any additional funds once I have a receipt for the completed roof.
I had State Farm in MS and now in TN. I've never had a problem with them paying on a claim or trying to cheap out on me. My only gripe was after the ice storm hit Memphis last Feb(?), I ran over something and damaged the subframe of my car. Of course with the supply chain problems, it was gonna take a while to get the part. My policy that I pay for provides for rentals, but there were none to be had. Not a State Farm problem, but it pissed me off.
That's pretty much standard for all replacement cost policies. They pay you actual cash value of the roof up front. You have 180 days to replace the roof and submit a receipt for the actual cost to replace the roof. They issue you payment for the deprieciation deducted from the original payment after receiving documentation that the roof was replaced.
Updated update! After being told late today that I would have to produce receipts to receive the remainder of my settlement I get a notification on my SF app. A check has been issued about 5:30 this afternoon. The amount of the check is not the difference between proposal one and two nor is it the amount between proposal one and three. It’s not even the difference between two and three. It’s just a random figure with no explanation.
Not sure about one of the SF agents in Amory but I can guarantee that the other one is a piece of human excrement. I swear, I've had nothing but problems with SF over the years. Problem is, no one is close to their rates but you know what they say, you get what you pay for. SF is the absolute worst and some of the most unethical bastards I've ever had business dealings with. Like a good neighbor my @$$.
I’ve spent about three hours pouring over claim settlement proposals #1, #2, and #3 and I’m more confused than ever. I have 100% replacement insurance but they only pay the depreciation value up front and then I have to turn in receipts to recoup the remaining cost of a given item. I can’t make the math work no matter how I figure it. The money that we’ve already received plus what is listed on the last proposal as recoverable depreciation that we can recoup upon completion is more than our total estimate. My wife thinks they have paid us too much now. I wonder if a competing agent would help me with this if I go ahead and swap everything to him that doesn’t currently have an open claim?
This is an intentional strategy by nearly all retail insurance carriers, especially for property damage claims. I've litigated about 100 property damage claims and, at one time, had most of the bigger carriers' claims manuals. Their rules are pretty clear. Then, when I've deposed the adjusters on a claim, they usually have very little knowledge of the claims manual or any of the industry practices. They always say "it's a case by case analysis".
Good luck. I would only communicate by email, and I would ask for each copy of any Xactimate that has been completed on your claim, including the most recent one. Also, ask for a specific breakdown of the check amount and which coverages are included.
Are you dealing with multiple coverage catagories with replacement cost coverage? Dwelling, Personal Property, Other Structures?
My experience of 43 years in insurance is this: Make sure you are insured for replacement and be aware that home construction now on standard houses is close to $200 a ft. You may say you can't sell it for that but it's the cost to replace not sell. You can cut corners to save $70 but here are the facts. State Farm and USAA are putting % deductibles on houses such as 1% on a $300,000 house is a $3,000 deductible. You are very limited on sewage backups, guns and jewelry unless you broaden the coverage. Farm Bureau does not have a broad policy and sometimes pays only actual cash value on roofs depending on your coverage. Spend $30 extra a year and buy $500,000 of personal liability under the homeowners. On autos pay the extra $35 per auto and double your auto liability. You need at least $300,000 of auto liability to cover yourself.
There are only about 10 home insurance carriers in Mississippi now including all of the direct writers (State Farm, Allstate etc.). State Auto and Met are being merged into other companies. Don't try to be cheap. Look at Rolling Fork.
There are only about 10 home insurance carriers in Mississippi now including all of the direct writers (State Farm, Allstate etc.). State Auto and Met are being merged into other companies. Don't try to be cheap. Look at Rolling Fork.
ALFA was asked to leave Farm Bureau many many moons ago. The split was handled in the courts. The ALFA contingent (known then as Alabama Farm Bureau) started writing policies in adjoining states; a no no in Farm Bureau. So Alabama Farm Bureau changed it's name to ALFA And continued writing in adjoining states. Then ties were severed. Ten or Fifteen years ago Farm Bureau tried to establish a presence in Alabama under the Farm Bureau name with North Carolina Farm Bureau managing and financing it. That did not work and to the best of my knowledge there is no Alabama Farm Bureau in Alabama today.
There's 2 totally separate conversations regarding flood in this thread. A broken water heater releasing water isn't "flooding". That is a covered loss. But If it's a hurricane or rising water, it doesn't matter if is 1cm or 10 ft,, it isn't covered by a homeowner policy. You MUST have a separate flood policy.
Thanks I may be in touch later. I have a retired insurance agent friend who is going to look at everything this weekend and hopefully bring some clarity.
As someone has correctly stated, flood and water damage are not the same when discussing insurance. Flood is defined in insurance terms as surface water which pools or ponds to affect two properties or one property and the street or water from a stream, river or pond which over runs its banks or tidal overflow whether driven by the wind or not.
Someone else mentioned an ACV policy. ACV stands for Actual Cah Value which includes application of depreciation. There are two ACV policy forms written in Mississippi, the Standard Fire Policy and the DPP series which stands for Dwelling Package Policy. These policies are NAMED PERIl, which means they only cover specific perils named in the policy these two are generally reserved for lower value dwellings and have lower policy limits, so they do not appear to be the case here.. Again, neither of these policies appear to apply.
Tha leaves us with the HO series. There are 5 different policies, HO-1, HO-2, HO3, HO-4 and HO-5. The HO-4 is for Tenants and the HO-1 for lower value properties that qualify for replacement cost coverage. Just a small step above the DP. It covers 11 specific Named Perils. The HO-2 is also a named peril so it does probably not apply.
This leaves us with the two policies, one of which, should apply, HO-3 and HO-5. Both of these policies are "ALL RISK", that is they cover everything except that which is not specifically excluded. Both are also replacement cost. Contents coverage is named peril. on the HO-3. I think but cannot specifically remember if the contents coverage on the HO-5 is ALL RISK. The HO-3 is for the average dwelling found in you find in a typical subdivision. The HO-5 is for the high dollar custom home.
Finally, the way to read a policy is
1 Read the insuring agreement. (there is a heading in your policy for it and the following
2 Read the exclusions
3 Read the conditions
What you have left is the coverage afforded
GOOD LUCK
Disclaimer: This information is worth exactly what you paid for it.
I used to have car, house, and life insurance with SF. Just life insurance now. Horrible experiences. Special note, do not use State Farm Bank (better known as State Farm Call Center) for anything. Like I said, horrible.
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