You did the job. You hired the guys. You put in the sweat and tears. Now the insurance company wants to cut you a deal. Wait a second. A deal for who?
Don’t back down. The insurance companies are all bark. If you stand your ground, they will be forced to pay you in full.
Still don’t know how? Well, first you have to pull on your big boy pants. Don’t think you can? We can certainly do it for you. Our pants are big, indeed.
You can roll over and show your belly. You can take the offered 80%. Before you do that, think of how that will affect all of us. The insurance company gets used to screwing the little guy.
We want you to take the third option. We want you to fight back.
Are you ready?
STEP ONE: Set the tone and proper expectations.
The insurance company doesn’t want to pay you in full. Everybody knows that. To think otherwise is just crazy talk.
Out of the gate, they’ll try to pay you less. Here is an example of the types of emails I exchange with insurance companies all the time.
They are quick to throw the first punch.
“Your case is under review” they say. That’s all fine and good. You can review the case as much as you want, but you still need to pay the invoice.
This is not a negotiation. If they want to negotiate, they can take it to court. We know full-well that we would win a case if it went to trial. Properly documented losses never go to trial.
Xactimate shows in detail all the work that was done, along with what that work is worth.
There’s a term for this. It’s an “open and shut case.”
Your first email back to the insurance company should cover the following points:
You signed a contract with the insured.
They are legally not able to change the contract.
The invoice that was sent is for services rendered and is non-negotiable.
If they don’t pay promptly, there will be late fees.
STEP TWO: Maintain pressure and stay the course
Let me repeat: The insurance company does not want to pay you in full. We all know this. We expect this.
Their next email will list some reason why they can’t pay you in full.
This is a lie. They are likely a billion-dollar company. The way they became a billion-dollar company is by ripping off folks like you and me.
Your next email should remain firm and non-negotiable.
Include the following in email #2:
You don’t care what the given reason is.
You signed a contract with the insured, not the carrier.
This is an invoice and not an estimate.
You cannot change your line item by law.
Making a change to a signed contract is a felony.
You stand behind your quality, and you are fully certified.
Remember: The insurance is playing a game with you. They want you to back down and take their low-ball offer. They have no teeth in their threats.
Under no circumstances should you accept their first offer unless that is an offer of payment in full (hey, it could happen!). Or you can decide you are willing to accept it.
STEP THREE: Count Your Folding Money
We aren’t doing anything illegal. We aren’t doing anything immoral. We’re getting paid for work we already performed.
Usually, after putting up a small fight, the insurance company will pay you in full.
Really, it’s not much of a fight.
If they thought they had a leg to stand on, they would take you to court. Since they know they would lose that battle, there is no legal fight.
Most legal battles are not started by the insurance carrier. Instead, they are started by the insured party. When they realize that they’re on hook to pay the contractor invoice, they sue the insurance company to get full restitution. If the insurance company is smart, they would settle at this point.
Some aren’t so smart. As a contractor, that isn’t your fight.
ABOUT CLAIMS DELEGATES
In 2012, Andy McCabe founded the property claim estimating and claims consultancy called Claims Delegates. Claims Delegates retains an army of dedicated professionals who write Xactimate® estimates for contractors, attorneys and adjusters across the country. They also consult on Large Loss and CAT events. They are currently accepting new client applications. Contact us today!
It’s a common dilemma. You had a flood in your house. The insurance company offers $10,000 to fix it. You can’t find a contractor to do the work for under $40,000. You may feel this is unfair. It certainly is. This is also by design. The insurance company makes more money when it pays you less than what you’re OWED.
Insurance companies use a very complicated program called Xactimate. This is also by design. If it were easy to use, the common property owner could master it. Xactimate software is very expensive. If it were affordable, the average property owner would have a copy.
We’re not talking about Microsoft Word, here.
Is it starting to feel like the deck is stacked against you? The insurance company is trying to get you on the ropes. They want you to feel powerless and hopeless. When you’re in that position, you will accept ANY low-ball offer they give you. Hint: You don’t have to accept the first offer.
Time to get US in your corner!
Like it or not, the insurance company uses Xactimate. That is their “language.” Speaking the same language as the insurance company generally leads to bigger and more successful claims. That’s why you need Xactimate.
Don’t let the insurance company tell YOU how much the damage is worth. Let an advocate fight for you. We’re on YOUR side!
We’re industry veterans. We’ve been doing restoration jobs for decades. We know the REAL cost of fixing a damaged property. Hint: The first offer from the insurance company will ALWAYS be less than what they think your claim is worth.
We need to be on the same page when we go to the mat with the insurance company. They have a “professional” quote that says the damage can be fixed for $X. We have a quote that says the damage can be fixed for $Y. Which quote is going to succeed? Hint: The property owner (YOU) have more power than you think you do!
Andy McCabe is a licensed Public Adjuster in Oregon, California, Maryland, and Florida. He is insured and bonded. He’s been doing this a long time. You can trust him. He’s itching for a fight. Let him go after your carrier! Put me in, coach!
I want you to think about the real cost of training a water tech. Has it really sunk in?
I’ve had years of experience with water damage. I’ve trained a lot of water techs. I’ve had a lot of workers quit. When that happens, I’ve had to retrain more workers. It is heart-breaking when those technicians quit.
I get it. It’s a hard job.
Personally, I’ve been through WRT three times. The first time was for my initial training. The second and third time was to update my IIRC certificate (for ServiceMaster).
Did I learn anything new the second and third time?
No!
I did learn one thing: training is expensive.
All three times, the cost to my employer was the same.
I had to get on an airplane. I had to stay in a hotel. I had to eat. I had to get paid a salary. I had to pay for the course.
Those figures change over time, but let’s give it a rough number… $3,000. And I took it three times. That $9,000.
Employers, this one’s for you: Was it worth it?
Not from my perspective. What if I hadn’t learned anything? What if I quit soon after?
I’m just sayin’.
It happens.
What’s the answer?
I came up with a solution. If I was going to go through new technicians, well… like water… then I was going to create a system.
I want every tech to go through a training that was detailed enough to get the job done, and easy enough to finish in one day.
That was the 24-Hour Tech system. I created it first as a simple spreadsheet. Then I expanded it to a full book of lessons and explanations.
This course is not a replacement for WRT (or some other training course). The science is important. I want people to know the science. That’s not what I’m saying here.
I’m saying that a totally green new hire is NOT a candidate for an exclusive, three-day vacation training.
We’re comparing apples and oranges here. Yes, we want to spend $3000 to train a tech who’s been here for 6 months. Right now, we want to spend $250 to train a tech and get him or her to work. In a day, he or she will be ready to gather the data YOU NEED. That will make YOUR life easier. Now you can write a professional quote and get paid.
Why are you spending so much money training new techs?
I care about making YOU money
I was never one for college. It takes five years for a textbook to get into the hands of students. It takes a student four years to graduate. That means they come to you with information that is at least five years out of date (if not nine!).
I don’t need another piece of paper hanging on my wall. I don’t need a text-book education. I need a real-world education and a willingness to work hard. I want to know what I need to know. I want to feed my family. I want to help YOU feed YOUR family.
I want to get the job done, and done right.
That’s what I had in mind when I created the 24-Hour Tech program.
Get in.
Get your learn on.
Get out.
Start making money.
Lifetime access for just $250
If I forgot part of my WRT course, could I go back and ask the instructor? Not likely!
If I forgot a section of the 24-Hour Tech program, could I review it for free? You better believe it!
You have LIFETIME ACCESS for an UNLIMITED number of techs! It is an absolute steal at $250.
A no-brainer.
I will be going back regularly to update the course. I just finished a major update for 2021. I’m getting ready to release version three of the 24-Hour Tech. When it is done, it will be included in the course.
I can also come to you! Do you want 1-on-1 training for your employees?
It’s possible someone shared this link with you and you have no idea who I am.
My name is Andy McCabe. I have been in the restoration industry for about 20 years now. I’ve been the guy crawling through basements at three in the morning. I’ve been the guy training others to crawl through basements at 3am.
I am a licensed adjuster.
I kind of do all the things.
I founded the company Claims Delegates to empower and educate people in disaster restoration. I am an advocate for the insured. I am a peer for the restoration contractor. I am a friend to all.
The other day I did a Matterport scan of a property and there was a couple rooms that I physically couldn’t get myself into. It’s not because I’m six foot seven and 255lb.
The insurance company doesn’t want to pay you in full. Everybody knows that. To think otherwise is just crazy talk.
Let me repeat: The insurance company does not want to pay you in full. We all know this. We expect this.
We aren’t doing anything illegal. We aren’t doing anything immoral. We’re getting paid for work we already performed.
