Ocala First Party Storm Damage Lawyer
If your roof was torn off in a hurricane, your floors and walls were ruined due to water damage, your windows were shattered by flying debris or vandals during an evacuation, or your entire home was devastated and ruined in a tropical storm or hurricane, your homeowners’ insurance company is there for you, except when it denies your claim, which happens more often than would be expected. As a homeowner, you hope and expect that your first party storm damage claim will be accepted by your insurer, yet more often than not, little should be expected of their good faith if you do not work with an attorney who can apply legal pressure to hold them accountable. The Ocala first party storm damage lawyers of The Pendas Law Firm are available to help you do just that.
First Party Claim Vs. Third Party Claim
- First party claim: You are making a claim against your own insurance policy.
- Third party claim: You are making a claim against another party’s insurance policy.
Third party claims are made against your own homeowners’ insurance policy to cover damages to your property, while third party claims are generally made against another party’s insurance policy for a personal injury such as being hit by a car while walking or driving. You may be able to assign first party benefits to a third party, such as a contractor for making repairs to your home after flooding, for example.
Climate Crisis and What it Means for Florida First Party Homeowners’ Insurance Claims
Hurricanes and tropical storms are increasing in number and frequency due to human-caused climate crisis, according to numerous studies and meta analysis by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Along with rising ocean (and land) temperatures, sea level rise is causing higher storm surge, which is the greatest risk to human life and property during tropical storms and hurricanes in Florida, the South, and the East Coast in general. Catastrophic category four hurricanes are predicted to increase in frequency by more than 90 percent, according to some researchers, during the 21st century. Already, the largest storms today carry 71 percent more rain than the largest rainfall events in 1958, according to Popular Science.
What does this mean for Florida homeowners? It means that not only will we suffer increasingly worse property damage in the years and decades to come, but it will become increasingly difficult to get our insurance companies to fully cover the damage. Insurance companies care first and foremost about profit, and paying out millions and billions of dollars in damages to tens of thousands of Florida residents after a major storm is a serious profit loser. By denying claims, insurers can stay healthily in the black, at the cost of leaving their customers in desperate need. Working with an attorney is the only way to ensure that you get the benefits needed to repair your home and property.
An Ocala First Party Storm Damage Attorney Can Help Get Your Benefits
If your claim was denied in bad faith, or there was simply an error with your paperwork, an attorney can help solve your problem. Reach out to the experienced Ocala first party storm damage attorneys at The Pendas Law Firm for help today by calling 1-844-200-0000 to schedule a free consultation.