Wildfire Coverage:
Why it’s more important now than ever
Will your insurance provider be able to come through in a large scale disaster?
Learn why an attorney is critical for successful insurance compensation
Fire
Potential problems with coverage:
- • Brush exposure, failure to remove an adequate distance from structures
- • Neighbors or cities or counties who don’t comply with necessary standards
- • Not meeting demands of mortgage clauses
- • Insufficient supply of fire extinguishers
- • Breaches of compliance by tenants or third parties
Hail
Potential problems with coverage:
- • Hail damage is covered by standard home insurance in most states, but how that coverage is applied can vary or be excluded altogether; they can also have percent-based deductibles (based on the home’s insured value)
- • Damage can come in the immediate and long-term; for this and other reasons, what is and isn’t covered can be a source of dispute
- • No matter the weather or climate conditions in your area, carriers can hike your rates if more than one claim is made within a time period
- • Your carrier may have an option to exclude payments for cosmetic damages such as exterior surfaces, walls, roofs, doors, and windows if the storm impacts the appearance but not the function of these elements; what is and isn’t coverable can be very gray—often, if something is damaged but functional, it’s not covered
Wind
Potential problems with coverage:
- • Depending on where you live, wind damage can be subject to percentage-based deductibles—which is based on your home’s insured value—or deductibles for wind damage, rain, tornados, hurricanes, or more; these costs are another reason it’s imperative you get your best compensation
- • For disasters qualifying for FEMA relief—presidentially-declared disasters—help tends to be short on compensation and long in time coming
- • High winds can also bring other related damages—storm damage, inland flooding, falling trees, etc.; the more complicated the damages, the more cover you carrier has for denying your claim
Flood
Potential problems with coverage:
- • Your insurance policy may require you to mitigate damage once it’s discovered; such costs may be reimbursable—fixing leaks, tarping the roof, installing dehumidifiers, etc.; initial water damage can worsen with mold, fungus, wet rot, and more—these are all consequences most insurance won’t cover
- • It may be necessary to bring in an emergency services mitigation company to limit damages
- • As flood damage can be complicated, so is its coverage—e.g. sinkholes and earth movement, even as a result of flooding, may not be covered or there may be limitations given to living in a “high-risk” area
- • The particular source of water damage can be critical too as carriers may have exclusions for discharge, sewage or other water backups or overflow
Appraisers not only help determine the amount of loss, but may also help determine the cause of loss. In Auto-Owners Insurance Company v. Summit Park Townhome Association, 100 F. Supp 3d 1099 (D. Colo. 2015) the court held that the cause of loss is an essential part of determining the amount of loss. Furtdao Law PC is litigating Certain Underwriters of Lloyd’s of London v. Southwind and Eastpointe Homeowners Association, Inc. (Case No. 1:16cv01288-MJW) where this ruling has been applied.
It is important that qualified professionals assist policyholders with the appraisal process. Insurance companies often attempt to influence the process by choosing biased appraisers to assist them. Some companies undermine the process by claiming an appraiser cannot determine the scope or cause of loss, and otherwise attempt to delay the process by interfering with the appraisal.
Furtado Law PC has sucessfully navigated the appraisal process for its clients.
To hold your insurance carrier accountable is a complex process.
Your insurer will have attorneys, and so should you.
Hiring a right lawyer to advise and represent you is essential; as a law firm, our focus is on quality, not quantity.
Making sure your insurance company pays you a prompt and fair settlement is a complex process. Hiring the right attorney to advise and represent you is essential.
Too often, life insurance companies deny claims without justifiable reasons. Not all life insurance companies are created equal, and not all life insurance claims are treated fairly. There are a number of reasons that an insurance may deny a claim, such as no beneficiary named on the policy, policy lapse due to non-payment, divorce, “incontestability clauses”, or an assortment of tactics the company believes to be misrepresentation by the insured. In some cases, the insurance company pays the claim to the wrong beneficiary, leaving the intended beneficiary from collecting payments rightfully intended for them. Life insurance companies gain a financial benefit by collecting insurance payments and then either denying or paying substantially less when the claim is filed. This conflict of interest can often result in a broken promise by the insurance company, denying loved ones the benefits to which they are entitled.
The basic concept of life insurance is simple enough. Life insurance policies and annuities promise financial security after a loved one dies. You’ve counted on this your entire life, and now when your family needs it, it’s not there.
Too often, life insurance companies deny claims without justifiable reasons. Not all life insurance companies are created equal, and not all life insurance claims are treated fairly. There are a number of reasons that an insurance may deny a claim, such as no beneficiary named on the policy, policy lapse due to non-payment, divorce, “incontestability clauses”, or an assortment of tactics the company believes to be misrepresentation by the insured. In some cases, the insurance company pays the claim to the wrong beneficiary, leaving the intended beneficiary from collecting payments rightfully intended for them.
Life insurance companies gain a financial benefit by collecting insurance payments and then either denying or paying substantially less when the claim is filed. This conflict of interest can often result in a broken promise by the insurance company, denying loved ones the benefits to which they are entitled.
Once, Wildfire was a season. Now, it’s become a permanent condition.
It wasn’t so many years ago when wildfire seasons weren’t nearly as devastating as we’ve come to know them. A limited fire season may now be a thing of the past: when once they were periods lasting a few months of the year, they’re becoming year-round events. Also, they’ve become increasingly upscaled, less containable, and far more catastrophic.
While changing climate patterns have exacerbated conditions—especially with respect to longer and more frequent droughts—approximately 95% of wildfires in California are caused by human activity. The remainder may have a natural cause such as lightening or lava. Recently, lightening storms have become increasingly commonplace. Such storms can generate thousands of strikes within a matter of hours which can easily ignite a firestorm in already hazardous dry conditions. In August 2020 alone, Northern California experienced more than 10,000 lightening strikes in a 72-hour period. Lightening was determined to be the cause in over 700 wildfires. The siege continued for weeks and more than 900 wildfires in the state were still burning by the beginning of September. Also, from 2019 to 2020 there was a 2000% increase in total acres burned.
Now more than ever, home and business owners need the protection promised by insurance coverage. And despite rising premiums, like many policyholders, your encounters with the insurance carriers may have been less than positive. You may also worry that in the event of a major disaster, collective damages could overwhelm your carrier and force limits onto what they’d be able to deliver—making your carrier’s burdens, your burden too.
But know this: Your carrier’s problems do not have to be yours. When you have a knowledgeable and experienced legal team at your disposal, your carrier will be compelled to honor their promises by the force of the law – used to your advantage.
Most policyholders don’t realize that insurance carriers also carry insurance. This system is called reinsurance. This allows your carrier stopgaps for covering large scale payouts when a devastating event happens that could otherwise overwhelm their resources. Carriers may also use other strategies for mitigating potential funding challenges to their obligations, such as diversification. This allows your carrier the ability to spread their risk and helps shield them against possible default.
Still, success in attaining fair and complete compensation can often depend good on legal pressure. As attorneys fighting for your property damage coverage, our promise is that in your time of need, we’ll ensure that your provider honors theirs.
Once, Wildfire was a season. Now, it’s become a permanent condition.
It wasn’t so many years ago when wildfire seasons weren’t nearly as devastating as we’ve come to know them. A limited fire season may now be a thing of the past: when once they were periods lasting a few months of the year, they’re becoming year-round events. Also, they’ve become increasingly upscaled, less containable, and far more catastrophic.
While changing climate patterns have exacerbated conditions—especially with respect to longer and more frequent droughts—approximately 95% of wildfires in California are caused by human activity. The remainder may have a natural cause such as lightening or lava. Recently, lightening storms have become increasingly commonplace. Such storms can generate thousands of strikes within a matter of hours which can easily ignite a firestorm in already hazardous dry conditions. In August 2020 alone, Northern California experienced more than 10,000 lightening strikes in a 72-hour period. Lightening was determined to be the cause in over 700 wildfires. The siege continued for weeks and more than 900 wildfires in the state were still burning by the beginning of September. Also, from 2019 to 2020 there was a 2000% increase in total acres burned.
Now more than ever, home and business owners need the protection promised by insurance coverage. And despite rising premiums, like many policyholders, your encounters with the insurance carriers may have been less than positive. You may also worry that in the event of a major disaster, collective damages could overwhelm your carrier and force limits onto what they’d be able to deliver—making your carrier’s burdens, your burden too.
But know this: Your carrier’s problems do not have to be yours. When you have a knowledgeable and experienced legal team at your disposal, your carrier will be compelled to honor their promises by the force of the law – used to your advantage.
Most policyholders don’t realize that insurance carriers also carry insurance. This system is called reinsurance. This allows your carrier stopgaps for covering large scale payouts when a devastating event happens that could otherwise overwhelm their resources. Carriers may also use other strategies for mitigating potential funding challenges to their obligations, such as diversification. This allows your carrier the ability to spread their risk and helps shield them against possible default.
Still, success in attaining fair and complete compensation can often depend good on legal pressure. As attorneys fighting for your property damage coverage, our promise is that in your time of need, we’ll ensure that your provider honors theirs.