Homeowners claim insurer not paying for tornado damage

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Homeowners claim insurer not paying for tornado damage

Madison County Record - ville,IL

Thursday, September 07, 2006

By Ann Knef

http://www.madisonrecord.com/news/newsview.asp?c=184071

O'Fallon homeowners M. and Debbie J. Hazlett are suing

Illinois Farmers Insurance Co. for refusing to pay a five-month-old

tornado damage claim.

Hazlett is a Swansea attorney representing the matter.

" Farmers' responses were the usual and customary boilerplate and

doublespeak jargon of adjusters and supervisors such as 'we don't

pay for that', 'that is not included', 'it was not caused by the

tornado', 'we do not think we owe that', " the Hazletts claim in a

suit filed Aug. 30 in St. Clair County Circuit Court.

They claim Farmers breached contract and violated the Illinois

Insurance.

After a tornado struck their home located at 1673 Lancaster Dr. on

April 2, the Hazletts hired three independent structural engineering

firms all of which indicated the less than one-year-old home

sustained major damage and that substantial demolition would be

necessary, the suit claims.

The Hazletts also claim a contractor they hired estimated that the

home's damage exceeded $1 million, but that a software program used

by Farmers estimated the loss at $470,791.07.

The complaint also states that Farmers later hired a general

contractor to provide a repair estimate which amounted to $848,824.

" Farmers then disputed the estimate provided by its own contractor

on the basis that the writen estimate 'does not provide the basis

for the estimate', " the complaint states.

The Hazletts also claim they have never been provided a copy of an

engineering study commissioned by Farmers, which was conducted by

Herman Engineering Services.

" At no time did Farmers indicate to plaintiffs that the opinions of

its expert from Herman Engineering Services contradicted the

opinions of plaintiffs' three structural engineers, " the complaint

states.

The complaint also alleges that mold began developing on the home's

drywall approximately six weeks after the date of loss, but Farmers

told the Hazletts it was not a covered loss.

" That Farmers then delayed until June 15, 2006, to send an engineer

from Chicago to southern Illinois to examine the residence for mold

even though Farmers had been informed that all of the drywall in the

house had been removed and after stating to plaintiffs that mold was

not a covered loss, " the complaint states.

The Hazletts also claim Farmers under estimated the cost of

replacing the home's electrical wiring.

" Farmers has known since late April 2006 that the cost of this

project would be at or near policy limits and that its initial

estimate was approximately 50% of policy limits, " the complaint

states.

" Plaintiffs have demanded that defendant pay their claim pursuant to

the provisions of the insurance policy but defendant has refused to

pay. "

In alleging that Farmers violated the Illinois Insurance Code, the

Hazletts claim their insurer is guilty of " compelling policyholders

to institute suits to recover amounts due under its policies by

offering substantially less than the amounts ultimately recovered in

suits brought by them. "