Vacation Home Complete Loss
Only Memories Remain
An October fire engulfed a vacation home owned by the Davis family. The blaze leveled the structure to its foundation leaving only the brick chimney standing. Mike Davis, a dentist, and Gail Davis, the Executive Director of an arts-in-education organization, had vacationed to the home for years, and the home had been in the family for over three decades. Only memories of the home were left. The 3,500 square foot home was considered a total loss.
Greenspan Adjusters International, Inc. was amazing. I don’t know what I would have done without their assistance, guidance, and knowledge. Who offers the best service when it comes to professional loss consulting? Greenspan Adjusters International, hands down. There are times when out of the ashes of a tragedy, comes a shining light... that’s how both Mike and I feel about the Tumalo house. The wonderful memories are still there, but now we can build on those with our family in more comfort, to say the least. You are responsible for guiding us through a terrible process working for almost a year negotiating with what is supposed to be an insurance company that is on our side... boy did we learn a lot. I tell all my friends that if they ever have a fire to call on you for help.”
Issues
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The Davis family had coverage on both their primary dwelling in Portland as well as their vacation home in Tumalo. Both homes were insured by Fireman’s Fund and both covered their property worldwide without location limitations. However, Fireman’s Fund took the position that they would not allow the Davis family to combine the coverages. What would Greenspan Adjusters International have to do to convince Fireman’s Fund to change their stance?
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Fireman’s Fund refused to pay living allowances for the family. Was that a correct application of the policy provisions?
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At the time of the fire, Gail, a talented artist, had an extensive personal art collection in the home. The settlement proposed by Fireman’s Fund would not be nearly enough to replace the impressive body of work. How could Greenspan Adjusters International get Fireman’s Fund to more accurately assess the value of Gail’s artwork and the family’s personal belongings?
Solutions Applied
The Davis family had insured both of their homes with Fireman’s Fund; the main dwelling with a $750,000 property limit and the vacation home with $500,000. It is common in instances of property loss to extend a percentage of coverage from the main dwelling to the vacation home, but Fireman’s Fund would not allow an extension. Greenspan Adjusters International reviewed the policy and found no mention of limiting the extra coverage to the vacation home. In the end, Fireman’s Fund was persuaded to apply the higher personal property limit from the main dwelling to the vacation home.
The first steps taken by Greenspan Adjusters International to address the insufficient personal property offer from Fireman’s Fund was to assemble a personal property team. Fireman’s Fund had overlooked many of the items in the house, including the large collection of expensive and irreplaceable artwork. Greenspan Adjusters International’s in-house inventory specialist was able to search through receipts, artwork appraisals, and photos to persuade the insurance company to increase their personal property offer to $520,000, almost double the original amount.
To prove that the Davis family was owed additional living expenses, Greenspan Adjusters International had to first change the insurance company’s mindset. Fireman’s Fund refused to pay for living expenses given that the loss was to the family’s vacation home. Greenspan Adjusters International proved that the Davis family’s standard of living included having a vacation home to visit at their convenience. The Davis family spent a significant portion of the year at the vacation home, and Greenspan Adjusters International was able to demonstrate to Fireman’s Fund that the family was owed additional compensation for their loss. Fireman’s Fund eventually paid an additional $30,000 in living expenses to rent a vacation property for the family.
Outcome
Before Greenspan Adjusters International was retained, the Davis family was offered $350,000. With the addition of Greenspan Adjusters International to the Davis family’s team, they were offered $1,400,000, which is four-times more than what Fireman’s Fund originally offered.