Don’t accept the denial as the end of your claim. Always consult with a lawyer or other insurance professional to determine if the denial was valid, or if the insurance company is simply trying to avoid paying you for a covered loss. I provide free consultations, as do many of my colleagues. Call or e-mail me anytime.

Underpayment is a common issue, and it is difficult for a property owner to know when a claim is underpaid. If you suspect your claim may be underpaid, call me for a second opinion at no cost. You can send me your claim documents and we can have an open, honest discussion about the fairness of the payment you received and the value of your claim.

Often, an underpayment results from an insurance company determining that property is repairable and does not need to be replaced (often, a roof). In this case, a second opinion is highly recommended as many roofers will not warrant a repair versus a replacement, and there may be legitimate reasons that your roof cannot be repaired to its pre-loss condition.

Due to the shortage of knowledgeable employees, insurance companies often fail to respond to policyholders during the claim process. This lack of communication can leave you anxious with no understanding of what is happening with your claim. Under Florida law, insurance companies are required to respond to substantive communications from policyholders or their representatives within fourteen (14) days. Each failure is a potential violation and may subject the insurance company to additional damages, thereby increasing your potential recovery. Should you be unable to reach your insurance adjuster, please reach out to me directly for potential ways to elicit a response.

There are many very capable lawyers who do what we do. One great separator of us from those firms is that first-party property litigation is ALL that we do. This narrow practice area allows us to focus on commercial insurance issues day in, day out, just like the insurance company’s lawyers do.

Another distinguishing factor is that I’ve worked as a commercial insurance claims adjuster and later, worked as the sole in-house counsel for a large commercial insurer. By managing all litigation for the insurance company, I received first-hand knowledge of the insurance company’s strategies, pressure points, and state of mind when handling and litigating a commercial insurance claim. This knowledge is rare, and I find it to be invaluable in my day-to-day practice. You’ll find that very few plaintiff lawyers have this combination of experience.

Also, consider that as a solo practitioner, I am highly communicative with my clients (you will have my cell phone number), flexible in rates and fee structures, and I answer to only you, the client. Before you use a “downtown” law firm that may have expensive overhead to pass along to you in the form of fees and costs, or which may use an associate attorney to represent your large loss claim, consider using my firm with its network of established professional relationships and in-house insurance company legal experience. To better serve you, I may, with your express permission, partner with select trial law firms for complex litigation, which brings strength in numbers and additional experience, at no additional cost to you.

I think that you will find the value proposition of my services to be worthwhile in your recovery efforts and I look forward to the opportunity to speak with you about your claim.