Homeowners Insurance Claim Question (1 Viewer)

[Man in the yellow hat]

Hi,

A plumbing issue led to about 160 gallons of water in my finished basement. The carpet and pad are done for, and the water remediation guys also pulled a couple of feet of drywall off the bottom of the bathroom area.

Insurance company just sent a check for their estimated amount. They told us we should bring in a contractor to estimate the repairs, then send them any receipts after repairs are made.

My plan was to handle repairs myself.

Am I required to use a contractor in this case? The insurance company already sent the check, so I'm not sure what the point would be? Repairs are repairs, and we absolutely plan to do the work ourselves.

Sorry if a silly question, it's the first time I've ever had to deal with insurance for a homeowners claim.

Thanks.

 

[jon_mx]

Hi,

A plumbing issue led to about 160 gallons of water in my finished basement. The carpet and pad are done for, and the water remediation guys also pulled a couple of feet of drywall off the bottom of the bathroom area.

Insurance company just sent a check for their estimated amount. They told us we should bring in a contractor to estimate the repairs, then send them any receipts after repairs are made.

My plan was to handle repairs myself.

Am I required to use a contractor in this case? The insurance company already sent the check, so I'm not sure what the point would be? Repairs are repairs, and we absolutely plan to do the work ourselves.

Sorry if a silly question, it's the first time I've ever had to deal with insurance for a homeowners claim.

Thanks.

You better ask the agent what the policies are. If you are required to send reciepts in all cases or just if the costs go over.

 

[johnnycakes]

yeah.. ask the insurance company. My guess is they would reimburse for labor & materials if you hired someone but probably only materials if you do it yourself.

 

[jon_mx]

The odds are once they cut the check, it is a done deal and there is nothing else you need to do unless you want to fight for more.

 

[Juxtatarot]

The odds are once they cut the check, it is a done deal and there is nothing else you need to do unless you want to fight for more.

And I think it's a safe bet that if he is doing it himself but tries to get more money, there will be a problem.

 

[jon_mx]

The odds are once they cut the check, it is a done deal and there is nothing else you need to do unless you want to fight for more.

And I think it's a safe bet that if he is doing it himself but tries to get more money, there will be a problem.

Insurance fraud is not the recommended course.

 

[tjnc09]

Why wouldn't you use a licensed contractor if they are paying for it?

 

[culdeus]

Why wouldn't you use a licensed contractor if they are paying for it?

I had a situation where a van caught fire in my driveway. The insurance company paid out as if the section of the driveway was a total loss and needed complete replacement. $3900

Being the smart guy I am I rented an industrial sandblaster for $45/hr and blasted the #### out of the driveway. It looked so good after I did that section I kept it another 4 hours and did the whole thing. Cost me 200 bucks and I took a trip to Mexico.

 

[johnnycakes]

Why wouldn't you use a licensed contractor if they are paying for it?

Licensed contractors cost money. Say insurance pays $11k and materials cost $5k and labor &6k. OP gets to pocket $6k.

 

[glumpy]

Why wouldn't you use a licensed contractor if they are paying for it?

Licensed contractors cost money. Say insurance pays $11k and materials cost $5k and labor &6k. OP gets to pocket $6k.

That's right. For years I was the licensed contractor, and to avoid any questions of impropriety I would solicit comps for the insurance company before doing the work myself.

 

[Fat Nick]

My Insurance Co. basically goes one of two routes - Big jobs, you use their adjustor. Small jobs, you can just get an estimate from a contractor. In either case, they send you a check for that amount. I had some roof damage from Sandy, and their adjustor came out and gave me an estimate of $1,700 to replace some shingles and trim. I ended up replacing the shingles and trim myself for maybe $200 in total cost. No big deal. I could've called a pro if I wanted, but had the skills to do it myself...It's all the same to the company, because if they DON'T reimburse me for my efforts doing it myself, I'll just make them pay someone else to do it.