How the Insurance Appraisal Process Works

There are so many different things that can damage your home or commercial building.

Storms, accidents, falling trees, the possibilities are truly endless. When disaster strikes your home or business, it’s important that you feel like your insurance company has you covered.

Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. Insurance carriers frequently fail to cover the extent of damage that a home or business owner feels they should. If you’ve found yourself in this situation, don’t just let your insurance carrier get away with it!

An insurance appraisal may be just the step you need to claim what you deserve on your property. 

Keep reading to learn more about what an insurance appraisal is, as well as how the process goes.

What is an Insurance Appraisal?

An insurance appraisal is when a home or business owner seeks a second opinion on the claim for any damage caused to their property.

If you’re finding difficulty agreeing with your insurance carrier about your claim, an insurance appraisal may be necessary. This gives you the opportunity to dispute the claim and get the coverage you feel you deserve.

The process of an insurance appraisal is different than the process of appraising a property’s worth.

Here’s how an insurance appraisal works:

Start the Process

Before you can have an accurate answer, you’ll need to send in the appraisal request.

Some policies require both parties to agree to the request, while some don’t. Your public adjuster will help you learn which option suits your situation. 

Once you’ve sent in the appraisal request, you’ll need to choose an appraiser to represent you. Your insurance carrier will have to do the same.

Reviewing the Request

Once you and your insurance carrier have found appraisers to represent you, you’ll need to have them review each claim. 

Additionally, you’ll have a mutually agreed upon panel to settle the dispute. The panel, as well as the appraisers, will go through all the evidence to determine a solution. They may look at the dispute to figure out the amount of loss for each party.

The panel may also look at all evidence which is not limited to pictures of damage, documents recording the damage, or anything else that may help the panel make an educated decision.

It’s Time to Vote

Once the panel has had a chance to review the disputes and evidence, it’s time for them to make a choice.

The panel will discuss the evidence and claims and go to a vote on what they feel the solution should be. The majority vote is what determines the outcome of the panel. Once the panel makes a decision, it will be finalized and recorded.

If the panel agreed with your claim, the decision will be delivered to your insurance carrier. The insurance carrier will be required to settle the dispute.

Get Your Insurance Appraisal Today

If you think you’re in need of an insurance appraisal, don’t hesitate to start the process.

Reach out to us today to talk about an insurance appraisal!

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5 Tips for Developing a Disaster Preparedness Plan

Disaster can strike at any moment. You need to be prepared for the worst-case scenario. If you’ve already faced a disaster and don’t feel your insurance fully covered you, reach out to us today.

If you want to avoid as much loss as possible, now or in the future, you need to create a disaster preparedness plan. Below we’ll look at a few helpful tips when constructing your disaster survival guide.

1. Consider the Disasters in Your Area

Think about your location and what disasters you may be facing. For example, in coastal areas, there may be tsunamis, while in plains states you may face tornadoes.

You’ll need to consider the risk your home and/or company will face during a disaster.

Once you know the type of disaster(s) in your area you can figure out what insurance coverage you’ll need. Depending on how often they occur will determine how much coverage you’ll need.

Moreover, set up emergency supplies/toolkits relevant to your disaster to provide aid. You want to make sure they can be easily accessed when a disaster strikes.

2. Plan Communication Strategies

You’ll need to have a system in place that will let everyone know when they need to evacuate. Next, you’ll let them know which emergency exits they need to take to safely leave the building.

Make sure you have more than one way to communicate, as one option may become unavailable. For example, using cellphones but also having walkie talkies in case you lose service.

3. Plan Evacuation Procedures

Make sure you have more than one evacuation route considered in your plan. Your main evacuation route may become inaccessible.

Once you’ve evacuated, choose a safety location everyone will go to. Have a couple of backup locations just in case your original choice isn’t an option.

If you’re a business and your employees need to evacuate, set up a backup work location. This will allow your business to keep running.

4. Plan What to Do If You Get Separated

There is a chance that one or more people will get separated from the main group. If this happens, you’ll need a system in place, so you know if everyone is alright.

You’ll want to ensure everyone has some way to communicate with one another. You’ll have an easier time locating them and getting them to safety.

What’s more, you’ll need to make sure everyone knows where the safety location(s) are. This will help them find a way back to you if they aren’t able to communicate with you.

Keep a roster of everyone who was in the building at the time. This will help the people in the main group know who may or may not be missing.

5. Assign Responsibilities

Once you have a set plan in place, make sure you assign people to certain roles.

You should have a designated leader, and if you’re a business you’ll want a few team leaders.

The leader(s) will be in charge of the evacuation and staying in contact with everyone. They’ll check if everyone is present and accounted for.

If you’re a business, you’ll want someone in charge of backing up and storing data. This will prevent the loss of information pertinent to your business.

The leader(s) will train everyone on disaster preparedness once the plan is in place.

Do You need a Disaster Survival Guide?

Hopefully, our disaster survival guide has helped you better prepare for disasters. Disasters are no laughing matter and should be taken with the utmost seriousness. Not only can lives be lost, but entire businesses and items of sentimental value.

If you’ve been struck by a disaster review our appraisal options today.

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