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Donice Krueger came running into my study excitedly yelling that “Jimmy Patronis just called contractors and public adjusters locusts and predators on national television!” Since I just had a candid and positive discussion with Patronis the week before about hard issues confronting Florida’s insurance industry, I doubted that Florida’s Chief Financial Officer would say such slanderous things about entire trades of people trying to help others in their time of need. But then, Donice showed me the entire press conference.
Continue Reading Jimmy Patronis Owes An Apology—Pay Up! Explains Why

I have been receiving several inquiries about whether it is legal or ethical for public adjusters to sell a portion of their contingent fee to a funding company. For example, I received the following solicitation from a public adjuster who was solicited by a “funding company” that is associated with a law firm:…
Continue Reading Can and Should Public Adjusters Be Allowed to Sell Their Fees to Funding Companies Affiliated With Lawyers Who Want to Represent the Public Adjuster’s Clients?

The insurance landscape in California has become more precarious as a result of the severe and incessant wildfires. The great urban fires of the 19th century caused many insurers to become insolvent. These great wildfires, not even in urban areas, are having similar property insurance market impacts—especially in California.
Continue Reading California Thoughts and United Policyholders

The recent events by Demotech indicating that it may downgrade seventeen Florida insurance companies reminded me of the above scene from Casablanca. Florida’s Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier should try out for the role of the corrupt police Captain Louis Renault if the movie is ever remade.
Continue Reading Shocking! Shocking To Believe That Any Insurance Regulator Would Rely Upon Demotech

Yesterday’s post, Will Citizens Property Insurance Disputes Be Handled By Government Administrative Judges?, ended with the hope that Florida’s Office of Insurance Regulation would respond to Citizens request for an endorsement by looking out of policyholder interests. In a comment to the blog post, Mike Cappelli commented by saying that Florida’s OIR was a “rubber stamp.”…
Continue Reading The Revolving Door Connecting Insurance Regulators with the Supposedly Regulated Insurance Industry

April Hall has it going on when it comes to cannot-miss restoration contractor conferences. While discussing her plans for the upcoming Storm Restoration Conference Seminar that will be held in Texas on January 29th to the 31st, she and I discussed the dangerous nature of smoke damage claims. This conversation was during the recent American Policyholder Association summit in Denver.
Continue Reading Smoke Damage Claims Are Dangerous! Attend the Storm Restoration Contractor Summit to Find Out More Details

Smoke damage claims are unique. Special claims training is needed to properly and safely adjust smoke losses. Most policyholders are entirely unaware of the personal dangers created by smoke. These claims are often overlooked and not reported due to ignorance.
Continue Reading Smoke Damage Claims—Are Insurers Handling Smoke Claims Properly and Trying to Reduce Smoke Coverage Through New Policy Language?

Insurance fraud is always wrong. It is especially wrong when the insurance company is defrauding its own customer. The American Policyholder Association (APA) has taken a bold step by hiring experienced insurance fraud investigators to review and investigate actions by insurance companies that are wrongful and fraudulent.
Continue Reading Is The Insurance Company Committing Fraud? Report It To The American Policyholder Association Professional Fraud Investigators

A preferred insurance contractor network or third-party administrator (TPA) is not the friend of the property insurance policyholder. As indicated in yesterday’s post, Policyholders, Restoration Contractors and Public Adjusters Should Be Concerned About Managed Repair and Third Party Administrators Working in Preferred Contractor Networks, Kevin Jones’ book, The Insurance Gods: How the Insurance and Restoration Industries Have Failed the Consumer, is a must-read for those wanting to more fully understand how TPAs work against policyholder interests.
Continue Reading Kevin Jones Explains Why TPAs and Managed Contractor Repair Networks Are Scams Against Policyholders