Main Menu
As we roll into 2015, I wanted to take a minute to recap 2014 in Colorado. The hail season in Colorado for 2014 was a wild ride, to say the least. Typically, in the Denver Metro area we expect to see possibly a handful of storms that produce damaging hail in populated areas, with several others falling in rural or sparsely populated areas. 2014 had other ideas to keep insurance companies, contractors, public adjusters and attorneys on their toes.
From April until late September, which is the typical hail season for Colorado, the Denver Metro area experienced 1 “Category 5 hailstorm”, 3 “Category 4 hailstorms”, 2 “Category 3 hailstorms” and 13 “Category 2 hailstorms”, with dozens of similar storm in the Colorado Springs Area. All of these storms producing hail capable of damaging property, and which in fact caused significant property damage.
As these storms continued to pile on top of each other one after another, I repeatedly heard Public Adjusters and Contractors saying, “enough is enough”, I’m ready for a break, this is to much hail. Then Mother Nature decided to launch the last arrow in her quiver for the year.
On September 29, 2014 a massive hailstorm hit the heart of South Metro Denver and moved Northeast into Aurora. The storm cell was long and wide and produced hailstones up to 2” in diameter in very high volume, and lasting over 20 minutes. It is the worst hailstorm I’ve seen in Denver. We have seen widespread damage to so much property, it’s difficult to narrow down or summarize. So we’ve linked some photos to our Facebook page, check them out and give us a “Like”.
www.facebook.com/impactclaimservices
As we continue to see and review claims, and speak with industry experts in the field, we are hearing and seeing new tactics and trends from insurance companies, which have been deployed in hopes of reducing claims payments. As Insurance Companies began to approach and exceed their projected claims budgets for a region, an obvious shift in claims practices occurs. Which is now happening in Denver, we have literally seen insurance companies stop paying for things they paid for the day before, Implementing ridiculous criteria by which they evaluate damage, and a variety of other nefarious tactics used to stop the claims payment bleeding.
As we progress further and further from the dates of these losses, we will continue to see carriers dig their heals in more and more. It’s important for policyholders to understand this and to seek expert assistance in order to ensure they are fully indemnified for all losses under their policies. Whether you were the first to file a claim under one of these storms, or the last to the party, make sure you seek the expert assistance needed to recover all money owed for damages in accordance to your policy……the insurance carriers won’t help you do it, so don’t wait consult with experts and make sure we hold insurance companies accountable to the promises they made to their policy holders.