Texas property owners know that nature can damage their homes and businesses. Windstorms and hurricanes can lead to hundreds of thousands of property insurance claims in a year. Water damage is also among the top five reasons property owners file claims, and unfortunately, it can weaken a building’s structure and encourage mold to grow.
Your property insurance should pay for repairs after a catastrophic storm. It sounds like a simple solution to protect your most valuable asset, but it isn’t. Insurance companies are not your friends. Don’t give up on your claim! In many cases, Kirk Law Firm, PLLC can make them pay.
How Insurers Think
Large insurers are corporations accountable to shareholders to maximize profits. They often do this by denying claims, ignoring you, accusing you of filing a claim for previous damage, or stringing you along so you give up and pay for repairs out of pocket.
The property insurance you depend on is a contract. When your insurer attempts to evade their end of the bargain, our attorneys can hold them accountable for acting in bad faith. Parties must enter into contracts in good faith. Insurers are expected to process your claim appropriately, which includes:
- Investigating claims promptly and with reasonable expectations
- Honoring the policy if the policyholder is covered for the damage claimed
- Paying damages for a covered claim
- Settling when negotiations are fair and protect the property owner from further loss because the insurer is denying or lowballing a claim
Our attorneys scrutinize your insurance policy, negotiate with insurers, and are not timid about taking insurers acting in bad faith to court to let a jury decide the damages to which you are entitled. When insurers simply make a mistake, we rectify it, and when they intentionally deny a valid claim, we will hold them accountable in court.
Property Owners’ Dilemma
When choosing property insurance, you can be overwhelmed with what is covered and what is not, and you have a budget that informs how much you are ready to pay for coverage. Most policies are written in complex legal language, making them difficult to understand.
For example, “water backup” coverage, which many property owners assume is flood insurance, only pays when a sewer drain backs up. A standard homeowner’s insurance policy does not cover flood damage. You must purchase a separate policy through the National Flood Insurance Program. When you live in a hurricane-prone region, you may not even be covered for wind damage.
Consult an Attorney Before You Give Up on Your Claim
While you are deciding which insurance policy meets your specific needs, let our attorneys discuss it with you. We offer free consultations to ensure you understand the coverage you are buying. If an insurer violates the condition to act in good faith when you file a claim, we can hold them accountable because we know what coverage you have.
At Kirk Law Firm, PLLC, our interest is in justice for you. Consulting us early in the process of filing an insurance claim costs you nothing but can give you peace of mind that you understand what your insurer will and won’t cover. You also gain an ally with extensive experience across the state should the insurer renege on what you paid them to cover.
Call our office today to schedule a private consultation.
