I received a question in response to my post about the second extension of time FEMA granted for Hurricane Matthew policyholders to submit their completed, signed, and sworn to proofs of loss for flood damage.… Continue Reading
On February 3rd FEMA Assistant Administrator David Maurstad issued WYO Bulletin W-17002, granting an additional 90-day extension for Louisiana policyholders to submit a complete, signed, and sworn proof of loss for their flood claims caused by the mid-summer storms commencing on August 9, through August 31, 2016.… Continue Reading
I just returned from the Windstorm Insurance Network Conference in Orlando, Florida, where both defense and policyholder professionals discussed and debated important topics in the property/windstorm insurance claims industry.… Continue Reading
Insurance policies containing conditions pertaining to an insured’s obligation to submit a notice and proof of loss are “meant to give the insurer the necessary facts to facilitate an investigation of a claim and to protect it against fraudulent and excessive claims.”1… Continue Reading
Happy Holidays to property owners with Hurricane Hermine flood claims. FEMA has provided a further 30-day extension for Hurricane Hermine claimants to file flood proofs of loss. The deadline is now 150 days from the date of loss.… Continue Reading
When making a non-flood claim for Hurricane Matthew related damage to your insurer you must comply with the insurance policy’s post loss conditions. This includes the timely filing of a Sworn Proof of Loss form. Generally, Proof of Loss provisions are worded in one of two ways. The first only requires that the proof be … Continue Reading
FEMA recognizes that the 60-day proof of loss deadline for flood damages relating to Hurricane Matthew was causing an undue burden on policyholders and has provided an extension.… Continue Reading
Property owners with Hurricane Hermine flood claims are now feeling extra thankful this week. FEMA has just further extended the deadline for Hurricane Hermine claimants to file flood proofs of loss to another 30 days. Now the deadline is 120 days from the date of loss.… Continue Reading
At the Florida Association of Public Insurance Adjusters (FAPIA) Fall Conference last week, I was speaking with a public adjuster about the impeding 60-day deadline for his clients to submit their signed, sworn, proofs of loss for Hurricane Matthew flood claims. For public adjusters who have not handled many flood claims in the past, this … Continue Reading
If you or your clients have suffered a flood loss, it is critical that the proof of loss is properly filled out and promptly submitted. In recent seminars, Chip Merlin has addressed Hurricane Matthew damages caused by both wind and flood. In the seminars he specifically details how handling flood losses differ greatly from handling … Continue Reading
2016 has been year of unprecedented floods in many areas of the Southeast. Many who thought there were on high ground in places like Baton Rouge, Louisiana, or Fayetteville, North Carolina, are still trying to comprehend the devastation of the flooding from August and October in their retrospective states. Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina residents … Continue Reading
Proofs of Loss for National Flood Insurance claims are always an issue. It is important to file all proofs of loss, even supplemental claimed amounts, properly and timely or face the possibility of no additional payment.… Continue Reading
Mathew is my favorite gospel. One of my favorite verses reads something like this: "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." So, last week, I posted 60 Day Time Limit to Make Louisiana and Florida Flood Claims, which called for FEMA … Continue Reading
Louisiana and Florida have suffered severe flood disasters. A second disaster may occur if the Federal Government does not extend the 60-day time limit for filing flood insurance claim forms and a National Flood Insurance Proof of Loss.… Continue Reading
Hurricane Hermine caused wide-spread flooding throughout Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas. For insureds with flood insurance through the National Flood Insurance Program (“NFIP”) understanding the Proof of Loss requirement is imperative.… Continue Reading
If you read this blog with any regularity, you know that the standard National Flood Insurance Policy requires that a Proof of Loss be submitted within 60 days of the date of loss. Without submitting the required Proof of Loss the claim—along with any hope of receiving additional funds under the flood policy—is forever lost. … Continue Reading
On March 7, 2016 through March 19, 2016, severe winter storms affected Louisiana and Mississippi. For those policyholders with flood losses, the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) requires a policyholder to send the insurer a complete, signed and sworn-to-proof of loss within 60 days after the date of loss.… Continue Reading
If your property suffered flood damage from Winter Storm Jonas on January 22, 2016 through January 31, 2016, and you will be submitting a claim to submit to your flood insurance carrier, this blog is for you.… Continue Reading
After a weekend filled with shoveling snow and sledding with my family, I spent Sunday evening responding to some emails and reading news coverage of the blizzard that dumped at least a foot of snow in every county of New Jersey (many areas, like my home, got close to 30 inches). What was unusual about … Continue Reading
The NFL season is finally upon us. I hope you took time this weekend to watch some football. If you watched the Kansas City Chiefs beat up on the Houston Texans, you saw not only a great game but also one that made history. Sarah Thomas, the first full-time female referee made her regular season … Continue Reading
By Robert Trautmann and Merlin Law Group on Posted in Insurance
Robert T. Trautmann, Esq., in Merlin Law Group's Red Bank, New Jersey office, talks specifics on the Proof of Loss form for the National Flood Insurance Program.… Continue Reading
In my prior blogs on Arizona insurance law, I discussed how insurance companies cannot simply get off the hook if a policyholder submits a claim late or files a lawsuit after the statute of limitations has expired. In those instances, an insurance company cannot avoid accepting or paying a claim (assuming there is coverage) unless … Continue Reading
Yesterday, my colleague, Chase Mathis posted a blog regarding a New Jersey case that determined the statute of limitations for flood cases runs one year from the date that policyholder’s proof of loss was denied.… Continue Reading
On September 15, 2014, United States District Judge, Faith S. Hochberg issued an Order in Kroll v. Johnson, which held the statute of limitations on Superstorm Sandy flood claims is one year from the date the insurance company denies the policyholder’s proof of loss.1… Continue Reading