QUESTION
I never declined hail or windstorm insurance from my Florida Condo Policy in writing or verbally, can I fight a denied claim?
Asked on Dec 11th, 2022 on Insurance - Florida
More details to this question:
I have a condo insurance policy from USAA and was impacted by Hurricane Ian. Due to a void in the roof and driving rain my 3rd floor condo received over $50K in damages and caused my spouse and I to be displaced for over 2 weeks. USAA denied our claim stating that we had a wind and hail exclusion on this policy. I do show where USAA has given us a credit for it, however, I was unaware that I needed to file for a separate policy with a different company and according to Florida Coverage Options I was supposed to send a written statement requesting this credit to USAA. I did not ever, to my knowledge, receive or submit a written statement to this effect. Can I fight this for reimbursement?
1 ANSWER
Consumer Debt Collector Harassment & Abuse Attorney serving Tampa, FL
Partner at
Tischhauser Law Group
2 Awards
Fight? Sure. But too many people use junk speak to translate effort into achievement, so that you are really asking can you WIN. The answer to that is - no way to tell until the fight is over. Generally, either they have a signed waiver request or they don't under Fla. Stat. 627.712. Your recollection of this or that is of no consequence. If there was a credit for it - this suggests that someone actually made such a request during the period of the policy, presumably to lower the premium. If there was no complying written request, that is certainly favorable as much as if they do, problematic. The other issue is whether you can insure the roof at all, as this may be a common area subject to the condo association insurance, not yours, where your claim may be for the consequential losses from the roof compromise from your carrier or the condo association. Thats one reason to retain a lawyer to address this type of issue ASAP.
Answered on Dec 12th, 2022 at 12:20 PM
All responses are NOT to be considered legal advice nor to be relied upon in any as such nor to establish any form of attorney/client relationship. Opinions expressed are solely informational and not a substitute for proper legal advice provided by a properly retained after thoroughly researching the issues presented.