Hurricane Ike May Spike a Storm of Insurance Problems

Persons living and working in the Golden Triangle area of Texas between Beaumont, Port Arthur and Orange were hard hit by Hurricane Ike, suffering many millions of dollars in damages, including losses from interruption of business. Now business owners and homeowners alike face a daunting task to rebuild.

That task will require relief in many forms, including insurance payments. Unfortunately, some companies in America's insurance industry have repeatedly demonstrated they are willing to commit insurance fraud rather than pay billions of dollars in damages, and then try to deal with the consequence, perhaps in court.

A lesson lies in Florida where, during a recent two-year period, the state suffered $36 billion in property damage after four major storms or hurricanes. To date, only $15 billion of those damages has been collected from insurance companies, some of which consider it profit when they refuse to make good on claims for which they are obligated by contract.

Homeowners and businesses with property damage insurance policies must be vigilant and not allow insurance fraud to occur. For one thing, if an insurance adjuster arrives to offer a quick, low-ball payment in order to settle the process, you should not accept such a settlement. Rather, you should insist on the full amount to which you are due given the precise nature of the contract signed both by you and by the insurance provider.

Also, don't allow an insurance company to be recalcitrant, negligent or otherwise slow to act. Such companies are required by law and by contract to give you an acceptance or a rejection of your claim within a short time, often two weeks. Failure to act promptly will not be viewed favorably by courts, which also hold insurance companies responsible for the ambiguity of any language in the policy which that company wrote.

If you have suffered hurricane property damage and your insurance company appears to be guilty of insurance fraud, a Golden Triangle hurricane property damage lawyer from Jim S. Adler & Associates can help you. The law firm has a long history of standing up to insurance companies and making sure that they pay the full amounts which they are obligated to pay by contract. Failure to do so is insurance fraud. Compliance in doing so, even after a lawsuit, is a triumph.

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