We Secured A Fire Damage Settlement 8x Greater Than the Insurance Company’s Offer
A severe fire occurred in the first-floor restaurant of the Riverside Inn in Leland, Michigan — a mother and daughter family business for almost 30 years. The inn also housed a bed-and-breakfast on the second floor, which suffered major smoke damage.
Description
A guest was outside and accidentally threw a lit cigarette that fell into a bag of linens near the inn’s restaurant. The bag of linens caught on fire and spread to the restaurant’s kitchen area. The entire kitchen area was destroyed, and the rest of the restaurant and all the second-floor guest rooms suffered heavy smoke damage.
The inn and its entire business were rendered unusable, and the owners missed out on their busy season.
Issues
The insurance company questioned the extent of the fire damage to the first-floor kitchen and the smoke damage to the second floor and believed that the restaurant could re-open for its busy season.
The insurance company questioned the extent of damage to the contents contained within the structure, which included many items that the insurance company believed to be salvageable.
The insurance company only wanted to pay for business interruption losses for a short period because they thought the business could be operational in a matter of months.
The hotel’s owners had not prepared a business personal property claim and were relying on the insurance company’s consultants to complete this aspect of their claim — but the owners were never consulted during this process. The insurance company’s consultants did not include significant details in their calculations and presented an incomplete commercial fire damage claim.
Consequently, the insurance company’s offer was significantly low.
Fire restoration could not begin because the owners did not know what was going to be covered based on the huge difference between the actual damage and the insurance company’s estimates.
Solutions Applied
Our public adjusters leveraged their commercial property damage and business interruption expertise to identify, quantify, and negotiate a fair and just settlement.
Globe Midwest Adjusters International reviewed the inn’s insurance coverage and recommended the appraisal process that was unknown to the inn’s owners, but available under their policy. We implemented a multi-prong insurance claim strategy and ensured the owners’ compliance with the requirements of the policy.
We performed detailed valuations of all the fire and smoke damage to the kitchen and first and second floors — including all damaged contents within the structure — while formulating a detailed business interruption claim model.
We presented an itemized claim package to the insurance company, providing detailed evidence of the full damage to the inn and its restaurant. This convinced the insurance company that the damage was greater than they had estimated and that the contents were unsalvageable.
Outcome
Our public adjusters secured a settlement that was 8x greater than the insurance company’s initial offer.
We accomplished this with minimal hassle for our clients while informing and advising them every step of the way.
The resulting settlement funds enabled the fire restoration and construction crews to begin rebuilding the property and restoring the business so that the inn could successfully capture the next season's revenues.
The inn was more than a business to owners Kate Vilter and her mother. This was their life for thirty years. We were delighted to help place it in a stronger position post-disaster so that it can thrive in the years ahead.
“They guided me through the process, and we ended up with the best settlement we possibly could have received...I can't imagine doing this without their help. My sanity, my livelihood, my business all depended on it. I highly recommend the entire team of Globe Midwest.”