Public Adjusting

A flood is one of the worst things that can happen to a homeowner. Flood insurance brings some respite as the public adjuster can quickly assess the damages and bring financial relief. These coverage’s are not included in a homeowner’s policy, so it must be separate insurance that is purchased to cover flooding in Miami homes.

The Initial Assessment of Damages of Flooding
When a home or apartment is flooded, the first thing that must be done is too sure there are no safety concerns. Things like down power lines, septic leaks, and other hazards may need cleaning beyond the average person’s scope. Once the area is deemed safe, turn off the water lines. Disconnect all electrical appliances to make sure there is no risk of electrocution. The utility companies must be notified if there are an electric, water, gas or sewage line problems.

Renters do not have to shoulder the responsibility of paying for an insurance policy or claim. The landlord should have adequate coverage. However, the policy usually does not cover the tenants’ personal belongings. A renter’s policy will include them in the event of a burst pipe but not an act of nature.

Get Proof of The Damages
Get lots of photographs before any cleanup begins. All flooded areas must be documented, and this evidence is used to support the insurance claim. The public adjuster will want to see these pictures and other documentation of the incident.

During a flood, the water damage is categorized as clean, gray, or black. Clean water is nothing more than a nuisance, but it does not present any health risks. Gray water comes from sinks, showers, dishwashers, but does not contain fecal matter. Blackwater is the most dangerous as it includes sewage.

Cleaning Up the Mess
Once the damages have been assessed, a decision must be made on whether to clean up the mess or call in professionals. First, open all the windows to help the air circulate. The excess water must be removed, so it does not cause mold and swelling on drywall or floorboards. A shop vac or water pump can quickly remove the mess. Anything that was contaminated with sewage must be thrown away. Carpets and furniture should be cleaned and sanitized if it can be salvaged. Diluted bleach is the best thing to disinfect after a flood.

Be on the lookout for any damaged that were missed during the original assessment. The electric breaker box should be turned off and not turned back on until it has been cleared by a professional. Gas lines should be inspected before used too. When handling water that is contaminated, make sure that you use gloves, masks, and other protective gear.

Things Not Covered with Flood Insurance
Unless flooding happens as the result of a broken pipe or another covered peril, there will not be any coverage of a typical insurance policy. A separate policy is required to ensure the Miami home is adequately covered. There are two types of flood policies one that includes the house and another that covers personal belongings. A standard homeowner’s flood policy covers the structure, electrical, sewage, appliances, carpet, and other structural things. A personal affect insurance coverage is for clothing, furniture, area rugs, window AC units, microwave ovens, and the washer and dryer.

There are also dollar amounts and limits on insurance. It is always best to have adequate coverage to protect all the things that make a house a home. Floods can happen at any time in Florida, and the last thing a person wants is to be caught with water a foot high and have no insurance coverage.

In the wake of property theft or damage to your car or home, chances are you will have to consider making an insurance claim. If you have to do so, you might find yourself dealing with an insurance adjuster. Most public insurance adjusters in Miami, Florida will not charge you for visiting the site of the loss and determining whether they will work on your case. Nevertheless, they will charge you for working on your claim.

Typically, public adjusters charge you a percentage of what you are bound to receive when the insurance company settles your claim. Nonetheless, this percentage varies among public insurance adjusting firms and is usually capped by local state law.

In Miami, Florida the percentage charged by public adjusters lies in between 10% percent for the state of the emergency claims such as a hurricane or storm and 20% percent for the average demand. Of course, this depends on the experience level, success rate, and other factors. Choosing a public insurance adjuster is better than filing the claim yourself as they will do a tidier job, get you the correct amount, and save your time.

Public Adjuster Laws and Statues by Serafin Martinez on Scribd

Types of Adjusters

Claims adjusters are the professionals that you will deal with the most while following up on your insurance claim. There are three types of adjusters, and they include:

An Insurance Company Adjuster
This is an adjuster employed by the insurance company where one is filing their insurance claim.

An Independent Adjuster
This is an independent contractor that is hired by an insurance company to handle some of the claims forwarded to them.

Public Adjuster
This is an insurance adjuster that evaluates property loss or damage on behalf of the policyholder and assists them in filing insurance claims at a fee. These are licensed professionals that work for both businesses and individuals but not for insurance companies. Think of Public Adjusters as an asset, and they help you get the maximum amount of compensation under the law.

More about Miami Public Insurance Adjusters

A Public adjusters duty is to YOU the client; they work on behalf of the policyholder. A business or individual typically employs the services of this adjuster when they require some assistance in filing a claim or when they believe the claim amount being offered by the insurance company is not correct.

Claims for hurricane damage, fire, winds, or floods, as well as damage resulting from other perils, can be negotiated and filed by a public insurance adjuster. Additionally, they can also evaluate property losses resulting from situations such as loss of business income.

What Will a Public Insurance Adjuster Do For You?

A public insurance adjuster is a specialist in the language, details, and all the intricacies found in insurance policies and can file and adjust claims for you as well. They typically know claim-related fields such as construction and commonly use software to do an independent evaluation of the property loss or damage. Adjusters are usually better at investigating the costs of damages done to your home, and they also know what the best way to submit a claim or supplemental, in addition to understanding how the system works.

Time is short, and most homeowners can’t spend time filling out forms, evaluating and submitting claims. At any rate, it can be a daunting task and usually fail to accurately provide a property insurance claim the way a licensed public adjuster can, YOU need to be as detailed as possible. Also, the experience can go a long way.

This professional can also help you negotiate with contractors to get a better settlement from your insurer. Contact between you and your adjuster is personal while that between them and your insurance company typically occurs via mail. Needless to say, when a public insurance adjuster has your back when you need to file a claim, you will not only evade pitfalls that stem out of inexperience but will also save you time as they will undertake all the labors associated with the process.

Should You Use a Public Insurance Adjuster?
The normal is for homeowners to file a property insurance claims. However, its always best to consider using a public adjuster to fight for your insurance application.

Here is the thing: you as the policyholder stand to lose nothing from hiring one considering that most public adjustment companies offer to evaluate the loss, free of charge. They aim to help you determine the severity of the damage while advising you on whether you should file the claim.

Additionally, regardless of whether the policyholder is sure about the loss’s value, having a second opinion is only wise. In fact, on many occasions, public insurance adjusters, on visiting the sites of property loss or damage, find that the policyholders’ loss estimates are far below what they should be.

Since insurance adjusters who handle property claims are experts, it is very doubtful they will make mistakes. Most homeowners with insurance tend to make these mistakes, especially when it comes to evaluating and calculating the damages. An example of someone failing to submit the property information is; Let’s say a hurricane destroys your roof, most forget to add the costs of removing the roof which can cost you a lot of money on the claim.

It is paramount to obtain the exact estimation and well-written claim of the damages done to your home from your home insurance policy You have to remember that insurance companies are after all in business and as such would never voluntarily pay you more than what you have claimed even when they notice you omitted some costs. Hiring a public insurance adjuster will save you from such pitfalls.

How do you Choose A Public Insurance Adjuster in Miami, FL?
When looking to hire a right public adjuster, you first need to check whether they are legally certified to practice. As such, do not employ the services of an attorney or contractor who claim they can offer adjustment services yet they do not have the necessary licenses. Remember, a license is the ultimate proof of qualification.

Other factors to consider include:

Will the adjuster handle your claims personally?
As the client, you preferably need one person working on your case. However, most public adjusting companies will send several experts over to inspect your home, and that’s a good thing! Sometimes another public adjuster will give it to another adjuster because they specialize in a specific type of claim such as roof damage.

Can you get referrals?
Having a friend refer you to a public adjuster is the best way of finding a right adjuster. However, if none of your acquaintances have worked with adjusters before, ask the adjuster you have discovered for contact information of their previous clients to do a follow-up. A right adjuster with nothing to hide will willingly divulge this information.

Is the adjuster well experienced?
Some claims need the attention of an experienced professional due to their severity or complexity. It is essential to find out what the best public adjuster that suits your needs; you can learn more about previous jobs they have had in the past similar to yours or have worked with your insurance company in the past.

Also, note that more experienced adjusters tend to charge higher than those with less experience. Nevertheless, the amount of claims worked on by an adjuster does not necessarily indicate their experience level. For instance, a highly-experienced adjuster could take on only a few requests every year, just because they choose to work on large and complex claims that involve a lot of money.

Their terms of communication

Typically, the public insurance adjuster will handle all the details of the claim for you. However, you might feel that you also want to be involved in the process to some degree. Before you hire an adjuster, ensure that they are comfortable regularly communicating with you during the process.

References

Florida Public Adjusting Statues

A public adjuster in Miami has a unique job that most of us are blissfully unaware. We do not necessarily stop to think about the necessity of these individuals or how important it is that we have them working to help society move along as it is intended to. Despite this, public adjusters are all around us. The fact remains that it does not necessarily take a lot of formal education to get into this line of work. They can be trained on the job, and those who are good at what they do can move up the ranks pretty quickly.

Looking At Insurance Claims

Public adjusters are people who work as a go-between for the public and insurance companies. They serve as investigators of sorts to prepare claims. The adjuster is someone who will check out the circumstances of a particular situation for someone who is making an insurance claim to try to negotiate the terms of a demand for that individual. They are working for the person who is claiming this circumstance. They want to make sure that they do not leave anything on the table when it comes to making their claim. There could potentially be a lot of money at stake when it comes down to it. Squeezing every last dollar possible out of the situation is essential.

Requirements To Get The Job

Claims Adjuster Requirement Sheet by Serafin Martinez on Scribd

Someone who is good at math and communication might be a great candidate for this job. At the entry level, it does not take a college education to have this job. A high school diploma along with the skills just mentioned are all that you need. It might be nice to know someone already in the industry to get a leg up on the competition for the job as it were, but that is not a necessity either. As long as you can show that you are capable of handling the job responsibilities as they are presented to you, then you are well on your way towards getting this job.

Income For Adjusters

What is the bottom line for pay for a public adjuster in Miami? The answer is somewhere between $40,000 and $55,000 per year. That is not a bad start for a potential that does not require a college education. Many people would snap up the opportunity to take on a job like that if given a chance. Now they are being given that opportunity at least in Miami.

Being a public adjuster may not be one of those roles that are talked about in the media a lot, but it is an outstanding job that is relatively well paid for what is required to get it. A lot of people out there who are qualified to do this job need to hear about it so that they can start working in the field and helping society with the skills that they have in this area. It is most likely the case that is some great adjusters out there who just have not heard of the role as of yet.