Your Florida Insurance Company is Not on Your Side

When you buy homeowner’s insurance in Florida, you assume that the insurance company is on your side. You are paying the premium so that, should you need to make a claim, you and your personal property and building damages are covered. Right?

Sadly, while that makes logical sense, it is usually not true. In the event that you experience a disaster and need to file a claim, you may learn the sad truth…the hard way. Insurance companies are in the business of turning a profit, most charging premiums that increase annually while your coverage remains the same.

Florida insurance companies will do everything in their power to give you as little as possible, your loyalty to them and the thousands of dollars in premiums that you have paid notwithstanding. Truthfully, they are betting that you will never have to file a claim and if you do, they will make your life difficult.

Like homeowners in other states, Florida homeowners have found out that insurance agents are nice and happy to answer questions. Then, whenever you need to file a claim they “disappear”.

Here are 3 red flags to watch out for, so that you can know when your Florida insurance company is not on your side:

• The “disappearing agent” – When you need to file a claim and the previously nice, available insurance agent you liked just “disappeared”. Your insurance agent has not actually disappeared, but when you need to speak with them you get their voicemail every time you call. Or they are suddenly always “busy” or “in meetings”. Yes, they are avoiding you.
• Feet dragging – If you feel like they are dragging their feet once you have suffered a disaster in your home. When you need them, most Florida insurance companies either take forever to make the appointment to send an adjuster to your home to review your claim or, if they have come to your home, your claim feels like it is “stuck in neutral”.
• Quick payment – Often times, Florida insurance companies will drag their feet and you cannot get answers for weeks on end. Suddenly, they have great news and they need you to call right away! So you call them and they offer you a settlement payoff that will not even cover a quarter of your personal property or the damaged housing repairs. This you have experienced any of the above, you know how frustrating it can be. So do they and that is the point. They are trying to get you so frustrated that you give up, take the tiny payment that won’t fix anything just to “make the situation go away”.

If any of this sounds like something that you are experiencing, the public adjusters at Advocate Claims can help. Advocate Claims’ public adjusters have been assisting condominium and homeowners get the insurance settlements that they deserve, for over 10 years.  Give the public adjusters at Advocate Claims a call today at 954-369-0573 and one of our licensed public adjusters will be happy to speak with you about the insurance claim process.