Question About Insurance Deductible?

Question

My in-laws had wind damage to their roof. The insurance company approved their claim but they also didn't want a panel to come loose and fly off and hit someone so they called a company to come out on emergency and do something with it temporarily. This company called on a subcontractor to come out and do the work. Well they then got their check for the amount of the estimate to replace the roof and were told they had to pay a $500 deductible. They later got an itemized bill from I'm not sure which company. They are disputing $380 worth of charges. There was a charge for having a dump truck there and a dump fee, and a charge for putting a tarp on. They are disputing it b/c there was no dump truck brought and they didn't remove anything or tarp it. They nailed down the loose panel. The person he's disputing the bill to told him the money should go back to the insurance company but they would let him put it towards his deductible. Can he do this and is it even up to that guy?

Answer 1

No, the deductible is what you have to pay before the insurance company will pay anything.  They will be out the $500 no matter what, you cannot get out of your deductible.  Sorry :(  What they can do is include the part they paid him in the claim, if they paid him over 500 then the insurance will reimburse them the overage.

Answer 2

The facts kinda blurred there because there were so many parties and you used they alot so I was not sure who you were referring to half of the time.

The simple answer is that insurance covers reasonable steps you take to prevent further damage until the roof can be repaired PLUS the repair itself.  When the insurance company issues you the check it will be for the sum of all of those estimates/charges less their $500 deductible.

The rest of the details are outside the scope of what the insurer is going to do unless I grossly misunderstand your question.

If I were your parents then I would tell their claims adjuster that the bill from the contractor includes charges for things that did not happen.  The insurer has MUCH more leverage towards combating fraudulent charges and your parents are going to end up paying their $500 deductible either way.  Basically this contractor is trying to get paid for these services because the insurance company is going to be footing the bill and probably wouldn't have looked into the bill.  Let me know if this doesn't make sense.

Answer 3

Let's say that the contractor's estimate to do the job is $3000. If the insurance company agrees it will pay $2500.00. Your in-laws will then have to pay $500.00 (the deductible) out of their own pockets along with the $2500.00 from the insurance company to the contractor.

If the temporary repair to fix the panel was not included in the estimate, a supplemental claim could be made to the insurance company for that amount. If you suspect that the contractor is billing for work that was not done you could try to resolve it with them or inform the insurance company and have them deal with it.

A public adjuster in Florida

Answer 4

He was offering an alternative.

Normally, emergency and temporary repairs should be included in the claim.  Yes, the first $500 needs to come out of their pocket.

You've asked the question in a really roundabout way.  

And you're dealing with several issues:  1.  improper billing from a contractor (not part of the insurance deal), 2.  claims adjusting (part of the insurance), and 3.  deductible (must be paid by them).

Their agent is the person who can answer this, in great detail.

Answer 5

Yeah I think he should.