What’s In This Articles

• Rebuild or Replace Your Home After the Fire?
• What Should You Do After a Fire in Your Home?
• In addition, you may need to hire a structural engineer
• How Much Will It Cost to Rebuild Your Home?
• Consequently, You May Need a Public Adjuster to Help You Fight Your Insurance Company Over Whether to Rebuild or Replace Your Home After the Fire. Call AllCity Adjusting
• Who Decides Whether to Rebuild or Replace Your Home After the Fire?

Rebuild or Replace Your Home After the Fire?

Certainly, there are few events more traumatic to homeowners than having a fire in their homes. Of course, fire-damaged homes can mean flame and heat damage and smoke and soot throughout the house. Additionally, water damage from the efforts to put out the fire appears on the walls, soaked furniture and water-logged carpeting. Unfortunately, if the damage is extensive, you will have to decide whether to rebuild or replace your home after the fire.

What Should You Do After a Fire in Your Home?

Of course, the first thing you do after a house fire is to make sure everyone in your family is safe. Then, as soon as you can, call your insurance agent or the insurance company to report the fire. In fact, you will want to start the claims process immediately. In reality, there is a great deal of work that must be done in a home after a fire.

Hire a professional fire restoration company

Indeed, even fires limited to one room or section of a home can cause smoke and soot residues to spread throughout the house. Therefore, you will need a professional fire damage restoration company. Firstly, soot and smoke are hazardous. Secondly, professional restoration personnel have the proper equipment, including personal protection equipment, to remove the smoke and soot from furniture, carpeting, drapes, etc. Lastly, they can determine if the property is salvageable or needs to be thrown away.

Certainly, your insurance company will pay for the restoration company’s services.

In addition, you may need to hire a structural engineer

When a fire does extensive damage to a home, you may have to hire a structural engineer. She can inspect your home for structural damage. For instance, the structural engineer can inspect floor joists, interior load-bearing walls, basement walls and the foundation. Therefore, he can determine the extent of structural damage to the home. Additionally, he can advise whether contractors can repair the structural damage.

How Much Will It Cost to Rebuild Your Home?

The rebuilding process can frustrate the homeowner. For instance, if it was an old home, rebuilding the home to get it to the condition it was in before the fire may be very expensive. If your policy provides for actual cash value (ACV) coverage, the insurance company will not replace some items you lost in the fire at their current cost.
As an example, the fire may have destroyed your six-year-old refrigerator. In fact, you bought it for $1,200. However, the insurance company will only pay you the actual cash value of that six-year-old appliance. Correspondingly, they may only offer you $850 to replace the refrigerator.

On the other hand, if you have replacement cost value (RCV) coverage, the company will pay the full replacement costs for destroyed appliances.

Remember, building codes can be an issue

In addition, another problem with rebuilding an old house concerns the local building code.
For example, if your house is being rebuilt or repaired, it will have to comply with local building codes. However, those codes change over time. Therefore, it is possible that it will be more costly to build or repair your home as it was before the fire. Unfortunately, most homeowners’ policies do not cover the extra cost to the contractors to build or repair the house to comply with current codes.

As a result, any extra costs involved in complying with the building code are paid by the homeowner.

Consequently, You May Need a Public Adjuster to Help You Fight Your Insurance Company Over Whether to Rebuild or Replace Your Home After the Fire. Call AllCity Adjusting

We are a family-owned claims company with five decades of combined adjusting experience. Consequently, if there’s one thing we understand, it’s that you need 100% of your claim value.

Having fire damage your home means you have already gone through a tumultuous event. Of course, you have probably put a lot of work into determining the amount of the loss. You have filed an insurance claim and proof of loss. Moreover, you provided the insurance company with supporting documents and photos of your damaged property.

But your home insurance company is undervaluing your claim.

Alternatively, the insurance company does not want to rebuild your home. Instead, they just want to repair your home. However, you don’t agree that the damaged sections can be sufficiently repaired.

You believe the house is a total loss because of the fire.

Who Decides Whether to Rebuild or Replace Your Home After the Fire?

Generally, the side that has the best evidence and makes the best presentation wins. We will back up your claim with a complete damage assessment and complete and accurate repair estimates. Alternatively, if we believe they should replace your home, we will have the proof supporting that opinion.

To sum up, AllCity Adjusting, we are experts in all types of property damage claims. AllCity has handled fire damage claims hundreds of times. We can review the damage to your property, including the fire department’s water damage, damage from fire and smoke, structural damage, etc.

We’ll meet with the company adjuster and tell them why they’re wrong. Next, if that doesn’t work, we’ll help you appeal to the insurance carrier. In addition, we’ll organize damage evidence and repair estimates. Of course, we’ll make your argument the claim settlement is too low. alternatively, we’ll argue that the company has to pay to rebuild your home.
And if that does not work, we will help you draft a comprehensive complaint letter to the insurance commissioner. Moreover, if the insurance company is acting in bad faith, we will let the state know.

Lastly, if you need an attorney, we’ll help you find one and act as your expert witness.
To sum up, don’t get fooled, get the company that gets you more. Call us today at 844.692.3587 or visit our website to find an office near you.