Public adjusters promise to get an insured property owner more money for a claim in exchange for a percentage of the insurance settlement.
SPRINGFIELD – People trying to settle insurance claims arising from the June 1 tornadoes should use caution before retaining a public adjuster, said Barbara T. Anthony, state undersecretary of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation.
“People should know that they can negotiate with their insurance carrier themselves,” Anthony said this week in a meeting with The Republican’s editorial board.
Public adjusters don’t work for insurance companies. Instead they offer their services to people who suffered an insured loss, promising to get the insured property owner more money for the claim in exchange for a percentage of the insurance settlement.
According to the state, that fee should never exceed 10 percent. Public adjusters have been advertising in tornado-ravaged neighborhoods since the storms hit June 1. So far, state estimates show a total of $175 million in insured losses from 9,500 separate claims, Anthony said.
But consumers who feel they are not being correctly compensated can always show their contractor’s estimates to the insurance company’s adjuster or to their agent, Anthony said.
“They might tell you to try another contractor and get more estimates, but you can work with them and avoid paying that percentage,” she said.
But Bryan E. Thomas, president of United States Adjusters which is based in Boca Raton, Fla., said his staff can help homeowners navigate the confusing world of insurance claims.
He’s advertised in the tornado zone and said his company already represents homeowners in Monson.
“If you are going to court, you would hire an attorney,” Thomas said by phone this week. “We are licensed by the state Division of Insurance.”
He said people can inadvertently do things that harm their ability to get what they deserve from insurance companies, like failing to seal a building from the weather following wind damage, or throwing away damaged items before properly documenting the loss.
Anthony urges home and business owners to make sure that any public adjuster they are thinking of hiring is properly licensed; the list is available at www.mass.gov/doi.
People may also contact the Division of Insurance Consumer Hotline at (617) 521-7794 to verify licensing.
Consumers with insurance problems can also call the Division of insurance helpline at (617) 521-7777.
Anthony said the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation as a whole has not yet received a large number of complaints about building contractors.
“But we know they are coming,;’ she said. “The construction work hasn’t begun yet.”
The state has been getting a lot of calls from people verifying that the contractors they are thinking of hiring are properly registered. Consumers can check registrations at www.mass.gov/consumer or by calling (888) 283-3757 for contractors. For electricians and plumbers, go to www.mass.gov/dpl or (617) 727-1794.
Anthony said consumers who hire unregistered contractors don’t have access to the state’s arbitration process or to a fund that could get them a partial refund.
Residents who have had tornado-related damage are urged to first register with the Federal Emergency Management Administration online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling (800) 621-FEMA (3362).
The four remaining Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster recovery centers in Massachusetts have reduced their hours.
The remaining centers that are open are in Monson, at Granite Valley Middle School on Thompson Street; in Springfield’s Technology Park at 1 Federal St.; in West Springfield’s J. Edward Christian Municipal Building on 26 Central St., third floor; and in Southbridge, at Jacob Edwards Library on Main Street.
Hours will be 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The federal Small Business Administration also has disaster recovery loans available but the filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is Aug. 15. The deadline to return economic injury applications is March 15, 2012, according to a news release.
Additional assistance may be obtained by calling the SBA Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955(800-877-8339 for people with speech or hearing disabilities) Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET or by sending an e-mail to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Those affected by this disaster may fill out a loan application online by visiting SBA’s website athttps://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela/.