State Farm Homeowners Claim- Lowballed

[Matt_g]

Anyone have experience negotiating with SF on a homeowners claim?

I’ve sent them repair estimates from two different contractors, each over $35k, and today SF sends me an estimate for $15k minus my deductible... Nobody from SF has came out to physically inspect the damage so I’m not sure where/how they are getting their numbers...

I’ve tried calling my “claim handler” to discuss this, but was only able to leave voicemails today, I’m sure they are swamped with claims due to the freeze.

Wondering if a friendly conversation is the way to go or if it’s best to have a lawyer send a love letter their way. Any input is appreciated!

[ken800]

State farm in Texas is an "All Perils" as far as I know and should cover pretty much anything. I'd try to have a conversation first. Usually it will be they will pay the minimum they think they can get away with and then pay anything over once an approved contractor comes to do the work and says, "Hey, It's going to cost this much".

[EliteDriver]

You should have a discussion with your agent or claim rep. I would assume they will either negotiate with contractor or maybe that is an initial payment to get repairs started....ive always had good experience with them and not knowing what type of claim you have or for what will help drive the conversation. Maybe an atty is where you will end up but i would talk to them first and see what the justification for the payment was. Good luck!!!

[Matt_g]

State farm in Texas is an "All Perils" as far as I know and should cover pretty much anything. I'd try to have a conversation first. Usually it will be they will pay the minimum they think they can get away with and then pay anything over once an approved contractor comes to do the work and says, "Hey, It's going to cost this much".

Gotcha, thanks for the info!!!


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[Matt_g]

You should have a discussion with your agent or claim rep. I would assume they will either negotiate with contractor or maybe that is an initial payment to get repairs started....ive always had good experience with them and not knowing what type of claim you have or for what will help drive the conversation. Maybe an atty is where you will end up but i would talk to them first and see what the justification for the payment was. Good luck!!!

Yeah I’ve been with them for 15 years and have never had a claim before, neither home or auto. We had a sewer backup/overflow! Flooded the house with poo water... Not fun! I’ll try calling again on Monday, I appreciate the input!

[Atfulldraw]

Public adjuster.

Find a good one or hire a lawyer.

It’s the only thing that State Farm understands.

Advising the policyholder to talk to their agent or the carrier is terrible advice these days


I talked to a client earlier today who was asked to sign a GENERAL RELEASE before the carrier released the payment for the mitigation vendor.

If you don’t understand the implications of that, you need counsel.

[Shinesintx]

SF is the suck. Left them years ago. Needed a new roof, they denied it switched to Farm Bureau. Got some hail, they covered everything...zero issues.

[Alderrg]

Public Adjuster- ASAP!!
I had an upstairs toilet tank crack and flood my house. After dealing with the insurance adjuster and getting as much money as I could, I hired a public adjuster. They tried to clean and re-stretch the same carpet, wanted to match paint where they had removed sheetrock and baseboards, did not want to replace bathroom vanities where it was obvious water damage and some other small things.

The public adjuster pretty much suggested getting his lawyer involved. After I had collected everything I could get from insurance, we ended up in mitigation and played the back and forward game for about 7 rounds and settled on a very large dollar amount. Its amazing how quick they are to pay out when there is a chance of going to a jury trial. Public adjuster got 10% and lawyer got 30% of the agreed settlement at mitigation.

So i got 100% of all they planned to give me initially, and 60% of the settlement after hiring the PA / Lawyer. If i ever have another home owners claim of any kind, i will call the public adjuster and have him handle everything from the start and gladly let him have his 10%.

[sailor]

SF is the suck. Left them years ago. Needed a new roof, they denied it switched to Farm Bureau. Got some hail, they covered everything...zero issues.

Worst in the business......................
They "ain't" your good neighbor.....................
But hey, I gotta give'em props, for running one hell of an
insurance scam...............

[Muddy Bud]

I have heard a ton of bad experiences with State Farm. Alot of guys I work with from Louisiana are still battling with them from Hurricane Laura.

[DRT]

We've never had an issue with State Farm. We've had a few claims over 30+ years and never one issue.
YMMV

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[60 Deluxe]

I was with State Farm for twenty-five years. Then they decided to rearrange things and it was going to raise my premium by about a grand a year. I told them fine, I would shop the policy around. Ended up saving about $400 a year and have been very happy with the claims service from Germania.

Get your own adjuster. They are playing games. Your contractors may be playing games as well. It seems that a lot of people see this event as an opportunity to price gouge.

[Jesus is Coming]

Public adjuster.

Find a good one or hire a lawyer.

It’s the only thing that State Farm understands.

Advising the policyholder to talk to their agent or the carrier is terrible advice these days


I talked to a client earlier today who was asked to sign a GENERAL RELEASE before the carrier released the payment for the mitigation vendor.

If you don’t understand the implications of that, you need counsel.

☝️What he said!

[Matt_g]

Public adjuster.

Find a good one or hire a lawyer.

It’s the only thing that State Farm understands.

Advising the policyholder to talk to their agent or the carrier is terrible advice these days


I talked to a client earlier today who was asked to sign a GENERAL RELEASE before the carrier released the payment for the mitigation vendor.

If you don’t understand the implications of that, you need counsel.

Why don’t you make a trip to Tomball and help me out with this! [emoji4]

[Matt_g]

Public Adjuster- ASAP!!
I had an upstairs toilet tank crack and flood my house. After dealing with the insurance adjuster and getting as much money as I could, I hired a public adjuster. They tried to clean and re-stretch the same carpet, wanted to match paint where they had removed sheetrock and baseboards, did not want to replace bathroom vanities where it was obvious water damage and some other small things.

The public adjuster pretty much suggested getting his lawyer involved. After I had collected everything I could get from insurance, we ended up in mitigation and played the back and forward game for about 7 rounds and settled on a very large dollar amount. Its amazing how quick they are to pay out when there is a chance of going to a jury trial. Public adjuster got 10% and lawyer got 30% of the agreed settlement at mitigation.

So i got 100% of all they planned to give me initially, and 60% of the settlement after hiring the PA / Lawyer. If i ever have another home owners claim of any kind, i will call the public adjuster and have him handle everything from the start and gladly let him have his 10%.

Very interesting... I’ll try to do some research on a public adjuster, thank you very much!!!