Tornados, winds, and dry weather can all lead to fires that damage your home or commercial property. Faulty wiring, lightning, and arson can also cause all your plans to go up in smoke, leaving you facing fire damage claims. Instead of fighting with a reluctant insurance company for the settlement you need, contact a fire damage attorney to discuss your options.
At Burnett Law Firm, we help homeowners and business owners secure the compensation they need to perform repairs and get their lives back on track. Our fire damage insurance claim lawyers understand the insurance industry and will negotiate on your behalf. We keep the insurance adjusters from taking advantage of you. Schedule a free initial consultation with our office to learn more.
Fire Damage Insurance Claims: What Every Property Owner Needs to Know
When your home or business has suffered a fire, you must educate yourself about how the fire started, what kind of damage it caused, and how to present your claim to your insurance company. Fires are a very common source of insurance claims, but they are also a prime area for fraud. This means insurance adjusters will be on the lookout for suspicious circumstances.
According to the University of Texas at Austin, there are five main types of fire your property may experience:
- Class A: Caused by paper, wood, fabric, or other solid materials.
- Class B: Result from gasses or liquids such as alcohol, cleaning supplies, gasoline, and grease.
- Class C: Fires caused by wiring or other electrical failure in appliances or electronic equipment.
- Class D: Caused by ignition of combustible metals.
- Class K: Fires started by grease or oil fires in commercial cooking environments.
The insurance adjusters will always try to reduce what they pay you. If they find evidence of flammable substances, they may argue you failed to prevent the fire. In a business, they may say you did not store cleaning supplies properly. For home fires, they could claim that leaving paint or solvents too close to an ignition source means you are at fault.
It takes a strong advocate to help you push back when a property fire causes damage. You need to get your property repaired after a house fire or business fire loss, and anything that delays getting paid means more frustration. A skilled insurance attorney can help you recover what you are owed.
Types of Damage Caused by Commercial and Residential Fires
In addition to partial or complete fire damage, your property may experience smoke and water damage. For all of these categories, the longer it takes to get the problem repaired, the more it will cost to return your home or business to “like new” condition. When insurance companies drag their feet processing your claim, your costs go up.
Fire damage includes any effects from being in contact with flames, which can range from minor discoloration all the way to complete destruction to ash. Water damage happens when firefighting efforts dump tons of water on the flames via sprinkler systems or fire truck hoses. Smoke damage usually lingers the longest since different types of smoke require different cleaning methods.
Fire repairs will need to include removing damaged structures and items, assessing new construction, ensuring repairs are built to code, drying out anything that was not burned, and removing smoke odors. You should always use a company with experience in handling fire damage rather than a handyman or contractor who only handles new construction.
How Fire Damage Claim Lawyers Can Help
At Burnett Law Firm, we help you calculate the full value of your property damage claim beyond the immediate repairs. In addition to your home or commercial buildings, your life will be affected in many ways, such as:
- You may have to live in a hotel or rental until the repairs are completed.
- You may miss work when you are managing quotes and meeting with insurance adjusters.
- Your company may suffer a business interruption and experience income losses.
In some fires, there may be so much structural damage that the property must be declared a total loss. Your insurance policy will explain when you qualify for replacement value instead of repairs. However, the insurance company is rarely willing to explain your coverage since they rely on your unfamiliarity with their policies and the law. In these situations, you could be leaving money on the table if you do not have an attorney at your side.
Insurance companies will do everything they can to avoid paying you a fair settlement because it takes away from their profits. If they make the claims process confusing, they stand a better chance of closing your claim before you realize that the payout was not enough. Our fire damage insurance lawyers will not let this happen.
We Negotiate Fiercely for You
Our experienced trial attorneys have the knowledge, training, and background that is necessary when negotiating with insurance companies. If you are injured, or out of work after a fire, you need someone who will tackle all the paperwork and communications with skill so you can focus on recovering from the loss.
Instead of being at the mercy of greedy insurance companies, you can turn these worries over to Burnett Law Firm. We help you find reliable repair contractors, organize your receipts and estimates, and calculate the full range of damages you have suffered. We review your policies to find anything we can use to your advantage.
Finally, if the insurance provider does not meet your demands for a fair settlement on a valid claim, we will be ready to take them to court. Our bad faith insurance attorneys will seek justice for you.
Dealing With Insurance Adjusters and Your Fire Damage Claim
Your insurance adjuster will be looking for many things when they visit your property. They will try to determine where the fire began, what contributed to its spread, and how much damage was caused. They will also try to find reasons for undervaluing your insurance claim so they can pay you less.
Most policyholders will only deal with one major fire in their lifetimes, so they often have no idea if the first settlement offer is fair or not. Insurance companies regularly close underpaid fire damage claims and leave homeowners and business owners without enough compensation to repair their losses. In the worst cases, they will issue a complete claim denial, leaving you with few options.
However, a fire damage insurance attorney can review their offers and determine if your claim is being underpaid. If they operate in bad faith, we are prepared to hold them accountable for their unfair and / or illegal practices. If you call us as soon as possible after your fire, we can begin advising you so that your claim is strong and well-supported from the beginning. This gives the insurance company less opportunity to try anything dishonest.
The Fire Damage Claims Process
Once the flames are extinguished and everyone is safe, the process for filing your fire damage claim begins. While every situation is unique, the steps are similar for both residential and commercial claims, and include:
- Review your policy: Reading through your policy details will refresh your memory of the coverage details and deductible.
- Document the damage: Take photos, videos, and notes of everything that was damaged by smoke, fire, or water. Do not discard anything until the adjuster visits and your insurer tells you it is okay.
- Make temporary repairs: After documenting the damage, make any needed temporary repairs to prevent further damage. You may do these yourself or hire someone, but be sure to keep all of your receipts.
- Contact your insurance company: Notify them of the damage and request a claim number. They will assign a claims adjuster to your case.
- Collect repair quotes: Ask for quotes from at least three repair companies so you can show them to the adjuster and compare their estimate with your projected repair costs.
- Meet with the insurance adjuster: Arrange to be at the property when the insurance adjuster visits so you can ask questions and ensure they record all the damage. If possible, have your chosen contractor attend this review to supply insight as well.
- Submit the claim in coordination with the adjuster: You should include all of your receipts, estimates, and other documentation for your losses. Your adjuster will coordinate with the contractor to review current building codes before beginning work.
- Wait for a decision: Your insurance company has 15 days to respond to your claim. They may ask for additional information to continue their investigation.
If your claim is approved, the insurance provider will send you a check so you can begin repairs. They often send a partial payment at first and send the rest when you provide verification the work was completed. If the claim is denied or reduced, then you need to get an attorney on your side to ensure you do not risk any additional problems.
Contact Burnett Law Firm for Your Fire Damage Insurance Claim
Dealing with the aftermath of a fire in your home or business can be overwhelming, especially if you or your loved ones were hurt. Going back and forth trying to prove your claim to the insurance company can make it an even more challenging time. Instead of exhausting your energy in an unfair fight, let our insurance claim attorneys manage it.
At Burnett Law Firm, we believe in building a strong attorney-client relationship, so you trust in our ability to secure the compensation you need. When you put our experience, competence, and compassion to work for you, we will stand up to big insurance providers on your behalf.
Contact us to schedule a free consultation with our attorneys today.