New Orleans Disaster Litigation Lawyer

ADDITIONAL LIVING EXPENSES

Most people are not fully prepared to deal with the aftermath of a natural disaster. If you have incurred damages to your belongings, then you will need to provide a contents list (aka “home inventory list”) as supporting evidence for your insurance claim and to your adjuster. A home inventory list will also help you resolve possible disputes that may arise regarding the existence of the item at the time of the storm and the actual value of the item at the time you filed a claim with your insurance company. 

Getting started with your contents list may seem overwhelming especially when you have so many other concerns in the aftermath of a disaster. Fortunately, there are many helpful resources out there to guide you in this process, including these helpful tips:

1. Begin your list by documenting each room separately. Write down each item under the categorical name of the room (i.e., Living Room, Kitchen, Bedroom, etc.). Items such as “clothing” or “shoes” can be grouped together following a more specific amount of quantity. Such as, “Clothing – 25 shirts and 15 pants.” 
2. You can prepare your list with a pen and paper. However, there are many great excel templates and resources on the internet pre-prepared for your convenience. Our firm has compiled a helpful template for you to get started
   For Excel Template: Home Inventory List – Excel.xlsx
   For PDF Template: Home Inventory List – PDF 
3. After you have taken the inventory of each room, group together general categories, such as “work tools,” “appliances,” or “furniture,” etc. (Note: If you are using an excel template, then re-grouping your items together will be easier to do and save you some time rather than if you are using a manual PDF template.).
4. Create an archive of photos and videos of your damaged items. Also, collect any photographs or videos of the items prior to the storm so that the adjuster can ascertain what condition they were in prior to the hurricane incident. Please note, it is always better to use a smartphone device and to store the files electronically to avoid losing or damaging any original copies. These days, most claims adjusters prefer to receive supportive evidence, such as photographs and video files, electronically.
5. Protect your home inventory list, photographs, videos, etc. safe by either storing copies electronically via a storage platform (i.e., Dropbox, iCloud, Google Docs, etc.), storing them on an external hard drive, or making physical copies yourself. Do not give the claims adjuster any original copies of your home inventory list or supporting documents. Often these items are misplaced by the claims adjusters due to the overwhelming quantity of claims that they are expected to juggle contemporaneously.

Our firm has prosecuted over 3000 wind and flood claims since Hurricane Katrina for homeowners and businesses. You can call THE SUNSERI LAW FIRM, LLC, at no obligation, if you have any questions about any aspect of your hurricane claim.

BUSINESS INTERRUPTION

If your business sustained physical damage which renders your business not operational, then your business would likely have insurance coverage for business interruption. This coverage provides payments for your business’ lost income arising from Hurricane Ida. At the present time, many business owners who are unable to operate due to lack of power and water are being denied business interruption coverage due to the lack of physical damage and the insurance company’s refusal to activate “Civil Authority” provisions of business policies.

If your business did not sustain physical damage, then the only other mechanism to activate business interruption insurance coverage is under “Civil Authority”. This provision is applicable you are prohibited from accessing your business due to governmental decree. Civil Authority coverage is activated if all of the following elements are met:

1. Government authority prohibits access to the insured property;
2. The prohibition was issued as a result of physical loss or damage caused to property within a one-mile radius of the insured property; and
3. The expiration of the stipulated waiting period (usually between 24-72 hours).

For Hurricane Ida, “Civil Authority” will be a complicated and highly contested legal question because Parishes in the greater New Orleans area did not officially order a mandatory evacuation (except for outside levee protection and low-lying areas). Conversely, government officials stated it was too late for a mandatory evacuation but implied that an evacuation order would have been issued otherwise. Government officials recommended that residents and businesses owners leave and further recommended that residents who left stay away. Also, curfews were imposed. It is anticipated that many insurance companies will allege that the Civil Authority coverage is not activated since a mandatory evacuation was not formally issued.

In response to the anticipated denial of business interruption claims, we believe that the communications of government officials constituted “de-facto” application of Civil Authority. Specially, governmental officials recommended residents leave, if possible, to stay away pending restoration of power/utilities, access to gas, clearing obstructions to roads and the imposition of curfews. Accordingly, we will vigorously argue that the requirements for “Civil Authority” were effectively satisfied to activate business interruption insurance coverage.

Finally, there may be “contingent business interruption” coverage due to disruptions to certain suppliers and/or customers which result in losses. A few policies even provide coverage for disruption of power.

It is important to note insurance policies differ significantly from policy to policy. Therefore, you must read the specific terms and conditions to identify primarily and secondary coverages for your business insurance policy. The specific terms and conditions within each policy will ultimately determine if coverage is available. 

Our firm has prosecuted over 3000 wind and flood claims since Hurricane Katrina for homeowners and businesses. You can call THE SUNSERI LAW FIRM, LLC, at no obligation, if you have any questions about any aspect of your hurricane claim.

GUIDE TO DAMAGED ROOF AFTER A HURRICANE OR DISASTER

Hurricanes and wind storms have devasted SE Louisiana in the recent past.  Homeowner’s most common complaint regarding insurance companies is the refusal to fully pay for a new roof.  Instead, insurance companies are paying for a patch or repair which is often less than the deductible.  However, most homeowners are entitled to a new roof based in the following:

How a Hurricane Can Impact Your Roof

• A Category 1 or 2 storm tears off some shingles, tiles or portions of flashing, damage the gutters and causes a leaking roof.
• Category 3 or 4 storms  causes extensive damage to the roof covering, decking and gable ends from both wind and airborne debris.
• A Category 5 hurricane causes devastating roof damage, where the decking and gable ends are torn off.

Roofing types and their wind ratings

• Three-tab roofing shingles 60-70 mph
• Architectural laminate shingles 110-130 mph
• Presidential/Tri-laminate shingles 130 mph

Most residents in SE Louisiana have three-tab roofing shingles which are commonly known as asphalt or composition shingles. The three-tab roofing shingles were NOT manufactured to withstand the winds of Hurricane Ida. This fact may often lead to the need for a roof replacement as opposed to a repair.

Loss of Shingles 

If you find shingles around your house,  your roof is extremely vulnerable to environmental conditions and subject to roof leaks.

Loss of Adhesion of Shingles

Roof shingles are sealed with an adhesive to form a strong bond to protect interior from rain and environment. Hurricane winds compromise or destroy the adhesion sealing the shingles. As a result, a roof has “unsealed” seal tabs or shingles which facilitates water infiltration.  Unsealed seal tabs may be visually observed by the uneven pattern of shingles.

Edge of Roof Curling from Peeling Shingles

This occurs when the edges of roof have curling shingles where wind peeled the shingles. Peeling shingles keep are unable to repel water.

DOCUMENTING DAMAGES

A homeowner sustaining hurricane damage should take their cell phone and film all the interior and exterior damage. This includes filming damage to the structure as well contents especially in inconspicuous places. This would assist the homeowner in processing its insurance claim from Hurricane Ida.

Also, if you were home when the hurricane damage occurred, it would be a good idea to write a chronological diary/narrative of approximate time and nature of damage occurring. Insurance adjusters often try to mitigate damages by alleging damages were pre-existing or due to normal wear and tear occurring prior to  the hurricane. A diary/narrative will assist the homeowner to recall the necessary information during the subsequent insurance claim process. Further, this will assist the insurance company in obtaining the necessary information to recover their full extent of insurance payments from their flood or homeowners policy. It is very difficult to attempt to re-construct an insurance claim later in the claims process and/or in court if the homeowner did not properly document the insurance claim from the outset

Our firm has prosecuted over 3000 wind and flood claims since Hurricane Katrina for homeowners and businesses. You can call THE SUNSERI LAW FIRM, LLC, at no obligation, if you have any questions about any aspect of your hurricane claim.

DUTY OF THE INSURANCE COMPANY TO FAIRLY ADJUST CLAIMS

In the aftermath of a Hurricane or disaster, Louisiana homeowners and businesses are continuing to process their insurance claims. After years of promptly paying insurance premiums, many insurance companies are breaking their PROMISE to timely pay insured damages and losses. As a result, policyholders are unable to immediately rebuild their homes and businesses.

Louisiana has specific laws designed to discourage and punish insurance companies and compensate the policyholder for not properly processing an insurance claim. The duty of “good faith and fair dealing” requires an insurance company to adjust Hurricane Ida claims fairly and promptly make reasonable efforts to timely settle claims with the policyholders. An insurance company is in “bad faith” when the insurer violates its duty to timely pay for losses and/or damages to the policyholder. In such case, the insurance company is liable to pay the policyholder monetary penalties and attorneys’ fees for its “bad faith.” Louisiana insurance law specifically requires an insurance company to comply with the following legal duties:

Promptly Adjust the Insurance Claim

Louisiana law requires a property insurance company to “initiate loss adjustment” within 30 days of notification of the claim. Specifically, an insurance company has to assign an adjuster to quickly inspect the loss. This duty exists because delays in the claims process can be devastating for policyholders who drastically need these funds. If you had to wait over 30 days for an adjuster to begin adjusting your loss, your insurance company may have violated this legal duty.

Misrepresenting Pertinent Facts or Insurance Policy Provisions

When adjusting a claim, an insurance company is prohibited from misrepresenting pertinent facts or insurance policy provisions including exclusions to the policy. This means that an insurance company shall not misrepresent to the policyholder that damages are payable due to wear and tear, a pre-existing event or damage caused by other causes aside from wind driven rain. Simply, an insurance adjuster cannot represent to a policyholder that damages are not recoverable when it is undisputed such line-item of damages are subject to reimbursement by said policy. 

Pay Claims Within 30 Days After Receiving “Satisfactory Proof of Loss”

Louisiana law requires insurance companies to pay claims timely. If an insurance company does not pay a claim within 30 days after receiving “satisfactory proof of loss”, then the insurance company may be in “bad faith”. “Satisfactory proof of loss” is a detailed statement of the amount owed to the policyholder. A proof of loss typically includes supporting documentation such as photos, videos, contractor repair estimates, invoices, receipts, contents lists, expert reports and other relevant information that substantiates your insurance claim. This requirement discourages insurance companies from ignoring and delaying payment of claims when a policyholder is teetering on the brink of financial ruin following a catastrophic hurricane. If you submit documentation to your insurance company proving entitlement to payment of damages and forced to wait over 30 days for payment, your insurance company may be in “bad faith”.

Improper Denial of a Claim

If an insurance company fails to fully pay a valid claim and such non-payment or partial payment was “arbitrary, capricious, or without probable cause,” then the insurance company may be in “bad faith.” This requirement discourages insurance companies from mistreating policyholders after a catastrophic event like Hurricane Ida. Such improper denial or deficient payments of a valid Hurricane Ida claim could force families and small businesses to experience financial ruin.

 If an insurance company violates the above legal duties, you may be entitled to collect penalties and attorney’s fees in addition to your unpaid damages. If you believe your Hurricane Ida insurance claim was denied, delayed or partially paid, you may be entitled an award of penalties and attorneys’ fees from the insurance company.

Our firm has prosecuted over 3000 wind and flood claims since Hurricane Katrina for homeowners and businesses. You can call THE SUNSERI LAW FIRM, LLC, at no obligation, if you have any questions about any aspect of your hurricane claim.