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Peg Brown is the Chief Deputy Commissioner for the Colorado Division of Insurance. When she made an announcement this week at the Rocky Mountain Association of Public Insurance Adjusters (RMAPIA) that she would be retiring, I was sad. It is my impression that Peg is in her prime with passion and experience that genuinely helps Coloradans and Colorado’s insurance market. I would not have felt this way a decade ago. But over the years, I have come to appreciate Peg’s views and proactive endeavors to improve insurance for everybody. She will be missed.    …

Continue Reading Empowering Policyholders: How to Collaborate with State Insurance Departments for a Better Insurance Landscape

Ron DeSantis did not create the current mess of the Florida insurance industry. There are many causes and people to blame for the current mess. The question raised by a recent publication1 is whether the proper measures to correct the problems were not taken because the insurance industry has paid off Florida’s top executive. …

Continue Reading Did The Insurance Industry Buy Out Florida’s Leaders?

The title of this blog post came from Corey Harris’ quip to me after he read a recent media post, Claims of Florida Insurance Companies Underpaying Policyholders Under Investigation. My hope is that Jimmy Patronis does a thorough investigation and finds what the vast majority of Hurricane Ian policyholders with significant claims already know—the insurers are not promptly and fully paying benefits owed under the policy. …

Continue Reading Is Jimmy Patronis Investigating Insurance Company Wrongdoing Like Ray Charles Trying to Hit Major League Baseball Pitches?

Last week, I was preparing for a four-or-so-hour presentation for the National Claims Institute. The title of the presentation was “How To Prepare Hurricane Files For Litigation.” My excellent and valued co-presenter was Remington Huggins, who prepared a masterful PowerPoint to which I only added some minor edits.  …

Continue Reading The Property Insurance Adjuster Job—Follow the Best Claims Processes and Get the Policyholder Fully and Promptly Paid 

I believe that why you do the work you do means a lot more than what work you do. I started this law firm 38 years ago to challenge the status quo and to level the playing field for policyholders versus their much larger and financially superior insurance companies. I envisioned a law firm of champions and knights for policyholders who could stand up to the army of mercenary insurance company attorneys. I say “mercenary” because I could not imagine explaining to my maker that I had used my God-given talents to save Travelers Insurance Company $25 million versus passionately using those talents and encouraging others with a similar mindset, in a much more fulfilling, just, and noble cause.  …

Continue Reading Why Does Merlin Law Group Exist? Why Do We Give Our Time, Money and Effort to United Policyholders and The American Policyholders Association?    

How many apartment complexes and other structures have dangerous residue from smoke, and the landlord does not want to find out how bad it is for fear of losing tenants? A proposed Colorado law takes aim at this difficult issue.

Continue Reading Urban Wildfire Damage Requires Full Investigation and Testing to Determine if a Structure Is Safe for Occupancy

The vast majority of people working for insurance companies, third-party administrators, independent adjustment firms, and engineering firms are honest and hardworking folks who want the insurance product to work properly. Those same people hate to hear and see instances of fraud and improper claims conduct by anybody—including claims managers and others they work with. …

Continue Reading Are You an Employee in the Insurance Industry Who Is Upset About Unethical and Illegal Claims Activity?

Imagine if you were responsible for overseeing Florida’s insurance regulations and a subordinate came to you with a problem:

“Boss, we have so many complaints about insurance companies mistreating policyholders coming into the complaint telephone line that the entire staff only has time to take the calls and log the complaint. We do not have anybody left to follow up on the complaint. What do we do?”…

Continue Reading Florida Regulatory Officials Overrun With Unfair Claims Practice Complaints From Hurricane Ian

After passing the most favorable insurance company legislation—which led former President Donald Trump to call out his fellow Republican leaders for selling out the insurance industry—the Florida Senate this afternoon crafted some new proposed insurance laws aimed at helping Floridians.   …

Continue Reading Breaking News—Florida Senate Proposes New Insurance Legislation

Brianna Sacks of the Washington Post is already far ahead of Ron DeSantis and Jimmy Patronis when it comes to investigating and disclosing Florida’s insurance company claims corruption. After Donald Trump called out Desantis for being in bed with the “globalist” insurance industry and selling out Floridians, it was reported that DeSantis called for an investigation into these wrongful claims act violations. …

Continue Reading Wanna Make a Bet Whether DeSantis/Patronis Insurance Company Investigation Finds More Corruption Than One Washington Post Reporter Will Find?