Individuals buy marine insurance for yachts and boats, which are their luxury crafts. These watercrafts can be very costly along with the valuable things inside them. An owner can obtain marine protection to cover these valuables from harm or damage. Any physical damage including accidents, exceptional storms, rock collisions, or floating debris, and even fire is protected by marine insurance. But insurance companies know how expensive boats are, and they specifically train their adjusters who review claims to undervalue damage or replacement costs of damage. When adjusters work with unrepresented claimants, they aggressively try to get claimants to accept less or threaten to deny the claim outright. This is not fair. That is why policyholders who have had a marine loss should ask our experienced marine claims adjuster & lawyer in Miami for help.
Here at Schlacter Law, we know how to handle insurance adjusters and ensure that policyholders who have had a marine loss get the reimbursement they deserve. We think this is only right after paying your premiums and other fees. Marine insurance companies, however, often attempt to deny coverage, violate their obligation to fairly investigate a claim, or fail to follow the laws of Florida. In such an event, an experienced marine claims adjuster or lawyer can help you to fight for your claim if you were a victim suffering from a hurricane, fire, flood, or a vandalism claim on your boat or other watercraft. Our maritime attorneys based in Miami offer years of experience in handling marine claims.
Most people have heard of a public adjuster and know how a public adjuster can help right insurance losses after a hurricane, fire, water leak, or other casualty event. But most people do not realize that they could hire an insurance claim lawyer to represent them at a lower cost and with more options. The same is true for maritime losses.
This is because a public adjuster will take up to 20% of your claim reimbursement, but an insurance claim lawyer like ours in Miami at Schlacter Law has their attorney’s fees paid for by the insurance company. The amount of the attorney’s fees are then added to the claim reimbursement. This means that, in most instances, the policyholder does not pay the insurance lawyer any money out-of-pocket because the insurance company is paying the legal fees.
In addition to this great benefit, having a lawyer on your side is simply a better choice than having a public adjuster because it is an obvious advantage when it comes to interpreting insurance contracts and making arguments to value claims. A lawyer can also hire an expert to help support your claim, and, if the insurance company is not playing fair, a lawyer can commence a lawsuit to protect your remedies in court. A public adjuster simply cannot.
A marine claims adjuster or lawyer can help you submit a claim to an insurance company adjuster or other representative. This is important because most insurance claims are a complicated matter, with many forms to submit and different types of proof required. This process can be confusing too, which is all part of the plan for insurance companies that purposely create a claims process that naturally creates mistakes so that they can deny or undervalue a claim.
Our Miami marine claims lawyers know that is not all. We see many insurance providers treating claims in the wrong manner, leaving out vital details that must be disclosed to the policyholder. When you buy insurance, you buy a contract which, in its simplest form, means that both parties have responsibilities to each other. You pay your premiums, and they pay your claim in return when you suffer an insured loss under the parameters of what the policy says.
A maritime insurance adjuster or attorney can represent you to the insurance company. The lawyers at Schlacter Law can negotiate with the insurance adjuster to seek a higher reimbursement amount. If they fail to offer a satisfactory amount, your attorney can commence an action against the insurance company for damage in court.
Marine insurance companies are responsible to honestly assess any damage, respond to claims in a prompt time period, and provide the coverage to the victims they deserve under a policy.
Some of the common different types of boat accidents and marine damages include:
Boat sinking – Usually boats sink when sea level rises a couple of feet Hulls cracked – Collisions of rocks, vessels, jetties to the boat causing cracks Beached damage – Beached damage usually takes place during hurricanes when boats are pushed out of the water Damage by dock – Bad weather can break up the entire dockThe insurance policy of each boat owner can vary and is dependent upon many factors including the boat’s type and value. The policy would be specific to your needs, depending on what form of coverage you need and whether the boat is used for commercial or private use.
We all know that boat insurance can be a very expensive type of insurance. That is because it is supposed to cover many different types of loss events in order to repair your damaged vessel. But insurance companies do not always honor their obligations under the policy. As a result, policyholders have both costly insurance premiums and costly repairs. This is just not fair. If you suffered a significant maritime loss, ask our experienced marine claims adjusters and marine lawyers at Schlacter Law in Miami for a FREE consultation by dialing (305) 999-1111.
References
http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0000-0099/0095/Sections/0095.11.html ↩
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