Living in the Sunshine State comes at a cost. You have to be always prepared for hurricanes, brush fires or a sinkhole damaging the foundation of your house. No problem, you have insurance. Whatever happens, you’re covered.If only it were that easy. Many Florida homeowners are shocked to discover that all the premiums they’ve been paying faithfully every year do not in fact provide them the coverage they were expecting. They see their insurance claim delayed for months, undervalued or flatly denied and cannot understand why. How is it even possible? If you are faced with such a situation, you should waste any more time arguing with the insurance adjuster. Contact experienced insurance claims lawyers in Fort Myers and the surrounding area and let them do the fight for you. The activity of insurance companies is heavily regulated in Florida, to protect the rights of policyholders like you. In real life, though, once that disaster hits, you’re really at their mercy. All this is possible because they have the upper hand. They know all the laws and regulations and they can twist them any way they like to make it look like you don’t deserve any compensation for your losses. They’re banking on the fact that you don’t know much about laws and regulations and won’t be able to contradict anything they say.Things change when you reach out to an experienced Florida claims insurance lawyer. An attorney who has spent many years fighting with insurance companies knows only too well how they operate. How they distort the law, how they alter your policy to avoid paying the damages you’re entitled to, etc. When you contact a lawyer, they will offer you a free review of your case to see what you’re dealing with. They’ll be going over your file to see if the company acted in bad faith. According to the law, when an insurance company acts in bad faith, you have the right to sue.

Gavel on copy of lawsuit; image by Wirestock, via Freepik.com.

What constitutes bad faith? For instance, if the company takes forever to respond to your claim, that’s already bad faith. After a powerful hurricane, you can expect the insurer to be flooded with claims. However, if you don’t hear from them within 30 days, that’s a bit much. What do you do? Have your insurance claims lawyer give them a call. An attorney will know how to talk to them and remind them of their duty towards you.When they do acknowledge your claim, that’s when the really difficult part begins. Insurance adjusters will do everything they can to minimize the value of your claim. Maybe you have windstorm coverage, but the adjuster will say that the damage to your house was caused by flooding rather than wind, in which case you’re not covered. There’s no end to what they can come up with, all in bad faith.Don’t overestimate your negotiating skills. On your own, you have no chance of winning against an insurance adjuster. However, when they see you walking in with a seasoned lawyer by your side, you’ll be surprised by the transformation. They’ll know the gig is up once you have a lawyer to watch out for you. You can expect the negotiations to be over rather quickly. The simple mention of a lawsuit is enough to change their minds about the sort of damages you’re entitled to. And, no, you won’t have to go to court after all.