Edward H. Zebersky Insurance Law Blog on Lawyers.com

Before you contact your local Fort Lauderdale insurance lawyer, it is important to know what you should do to protect your legal rights and ensure the safety of your family before a disaster, such as a hurricane, hits. 

The most important preparation for a consumer with respect to an insurance claim occurs before a hurricane ever happens.  It is critical for those insured to take an inventory of the contents of their home and take pictures of their home before a hurricane hits.

It is also important for you to take the opportunity before a hurricane to protect your home as much as possible.  This not only includes reinforcing the durability of your home by putting up shutters and hurricane resistant glass, but also includes making sure that objects outside your home that could become projectiles during a hurricane are brought inside.  In addition, you should make sure your home is safe.  This includes keeping your trees trimmed to ensure that they do not blow over during a hurricane.

It is also important that after a hurricane you protect your property so that you minimize the damage.  Many insurance company’s try to use clauses in your insurance policy to deny claims by stating that even after a hurricane that you could have done something to prevent the damages to your property from getting worse.  So if you have a roof leak, you need to repair the leak, if your roof is destroyed you need to put up a tarp to protect the interior of your house, if you have a broken window you need to board it up and if your house and its contents are soaked you need to try to dry it out so mold does not form.

The insurance industry continues to play games with their customers when paying even the simplest claims.  Through our experience providing legal services for people who sustained property losses caused by hurricanes, we found that insurance companies deluge them with red tape, bureaucracy, and battles.

The Florida legislature provided the Hollywood insurance lawyers at Zebersky & Payne with adequate ammunition to attack these industry practices for your benefit.

Edward Zebersky is a Ft Lauderdale Insurance Lawyer
Todd Payne is a Hollywood Insurance Attorney