Knowing what is in your insurance policy is half the battle.
When sitting down to attempt reading your insurance policy, it’s important to keep several things in mind. Actually, there are far more things to keep in mind than we can easily tell you in an article. Why? Well, there are so many important details included in insurance policies that it’s almost as if the policy is written specifically to keep you, the policyholder, in the dark.
What kind of company would do such a thing? Why would an insurance company choose to keep their customers in the dark about the contract they were signing? It’s rather simple when you break it down: money. The insurance company is a business unlike any other. The generally-accepted purpose of an insurance company is to help you recover what is damaged or destroyed after a loss of some kind; a fire, flood, or even a car that suddenly became parked in your living room rather than out on the street.
But what happens when the contract between you and the insurance company is so specific that it ultimately doesn’t make enough sense for you to understand what is actually covered and what isn’t? You end up having a false sense of security and continue about your day under the ruse that the insurance company still has your best interest at heart.
Why shouldn’t you believe they have your best interest at heart? After all, you have a policy with them that you pay for every month and have sometimes kept up with for years. There should be plenty of support for you if, or when, something bad happens to your home or business. Right? Sadly, that is often not the case.
That’s why companies like ours exist. We are here to help break down what your insurance policy really says. When there are more than 20 words defined on just the first page of an insurance policy, it’s almost as if the policy was designed with the intent to keep you confused. Especially when some of the words defined are things like “you,” “your,” and “we.”
We had a client with a large apartment complex suffer a major loss due to a storm. The insurance company was refusing to aid with the cleanup costs of the property as they stated that they were only responsible for debris on the property. How did we get them to pay for cleanup of debris that had made its way into water canals and bayous? We showed them that the policy stated that they were responsible for all debris “of” the property; not just “on” the property.
One letter. That’s what our argument came down to: one single letter. That one letter made all the difference. It meant that all of the trash and debris that had floated in different directions would be collected and properly disposed of, no matter if it was still on the premises or not. There was no way to argue otherwise.
It is our job to know what every insurance policy says. It is our job to make sure you understand what your own insurance policy says. It is our job to make sure you get what you are rightfully owed by your insurance company after you or your business suffer a loss.
Often times, representatives of the insurance company purposefully use types of verbiage in an attempt to make you feel confused or lost when it comes to your insurance recovery. It is our goal to never allow you to feel that way. We want to keep you up-to-date and relaxed even in the mist of dealing with an insurance claim.
If you want to have someone break down your insurance policy in such a way that you can fully understand what you signed on for, we are here to help. We will sit down with you and your policy so that you never have to wonder if you have coverage for different events.
To set up a meeting with one of our policy experts, give us a call at 713-369-4300. We want to help you know your insurance policy better.