I had a major fire at one of my properties a while back and I have been posting about my experiences dealing with that here on my blog.
Last time I wrote about dealing with the insurance adjuster that was sent out to my property to determine the amount of loss. While the fire and water damage might have seemed like a total loss to me, the eyes of an insurance adjuster can see things completely differently. If this were not the case then there would not be an entire industry out there dedicated to fighting insurance companies and securing larger claims.
Anyway, I was hopeful that the adjuster my insurance company sent out would see things my way; that my property was a total loss and that I was due the full amount of my insurance policy. I was hopeful that I would not need the services of an attorney or anyone else to fight my insurance company. I had already done some pre-estimation of what it would take to rebuild the property and after paying off the bank, I would need every cent I could get.
Thankfully, my hope paid off. The insurance adjuster agreed with me that the property was a total loss and they would be paying the full amount of the policy.
Whew!
One major hurdle crossed.
But there were still many more hurdles to go.
The next hurdle was actually getting the insurance money.
You would think this would be as simple as writing me a check, and if I had owned the property free and clear of any mortgages it would have been. But, like most of you I am not independently wealthy so I usually have to get a loan to purchase properties. So because there was a loan on this property, the insurance check is made out to both me and the bank that holds the loan. I received this check in the mail about a week or so later and all in all I can say I am very happy with the way the insurance company handled my claim. They did drop my coverage on the rest of my properties after that, but claimed the fire had nothing to do with it as they were just getting out of the market. Perhaps, perhaps not, but that is a story for another post.
Thankfully I had the check. Another hurdle was crossed. But I could not cash it since it was made out to me and the bank. To get the cash, I had to endorse the check and send it (Fedex so it can be tracked!) to the bank holding the loan. The bank would then take their cut of the insurance proceeds to pay off the mortgage and then send me the balance.
How long might that take? Months. In the meantime, there is little I can do with the property but keep it secure and start to get repair estimates. I’ll write more about that next time.
