Anthony Delmedico has built one heck of a successful contractor restoration conference. Contractors in the business of rebuilding and repairing structures following a catastrophe owe it to themselves to learn and network at Win The Storm, which will be held in Phoenix on February 20-22.

I went last year. I learned a lot and networked with a lot of different individuals involved in the process of rebuilding following disasters and dealing with insurance companies that seem determined to underpay for that rebuilding. I even ran into insurance industry attorney Steve Badger (pictured with me, above), who was a featured speaker explaining the insurance industry’s perspectives about restoration contracting.

At Win The Storm 2019, I listened carefully to Xactimate Certified trainer Steve Shannon of DRG University, who, along with Merlin Law Group attorney Larry Bache, gave a presentation on how to make Xactimate estimates that will stand up to the most critical of analysis—at a jury trial. It was a standing room only event. Shannon was an actual contractor that took an insurer to court over the reasonableness of charges for his restoration work and won.

Merlin Law Group attorneys Larry Bache and Michael Duffy were his trial attorneys. Where else other than Win The Storm are contractors going to get answers to real-life questions about what juries find relevant regarding the charges for their work?

I met public adjuster James Howard at the conference. His booth had a three-dimensional Matterport camera. Howard and his daughter gave me a free two-hour tutorial about how this amazing camera works and can be used to better document an insurance claim in a manner that two-dimensional cameras simply cannot do. I came away with the belief that all public adjusters who want to help their policyholder clients to the best of their ability should make an investment in buying this or a similar three-dimensional camera.

The point about learning about the Matterport camera is that I did not learn about this at a public adjuster or insurance adjuster claim conference. Instead, I learned about it at Win The Storm—a conference for restoration contractors. I met former contractor turned public adjuster James Howard at this conference, and because of Win The Storm, I now do business with James Howard.

Was my time and money worth going to Win The Storm proven from just the two examples I mentioned above? You bet. And I am not even a restoration contractor.

Restoration contractors are under attack by property insurance companies. The insurance industry wants to pay so little only contractors willing to cheat or build illegally can make money and cover expenses of rebuilding based on insurer estimates. This is wrong, and Anthony Delmedico provides insurance restoration contractors with a lot of valuable clinics and training, putting fair contractor profit first.

If you are a restoration contractor, you owe it to yourself to go to a conference made just for you at Win The Storm. Here is a link for registration.

Thought For The Day

A man who works with his hands is a laborer; a man who works with his hands and his brain is a craftsman; but a man who works with his hands and his brain and his heart is an artist.
—Louis Nizer