Spokane insurance agencies already working with fire victims

While rain on Tuesday brought welcome relief to firefighters battling the Gray and Oregon Road fires, the next step of recovery for hundreds of victims is just beginning: insurance claims.

Aaron LeBlanc, who with wife Lisa owns North Town Insurance in Spokane, has adjusters working with 108 clients affected by the Oregon Road fire near Elk and 39 from the Gray fire near Medical Lake.

“They are very busy,” LeBlanc said of the claims adjusters. “They are likely bringing in catastrophic adjusters from around the country, just like they did for the windstorm from 2015. We are helping to fill any gaps in that service.”

As a result of the massive challenge, LeBlanc’s agency has reached out to every client in both areas.

“We are checking in with each client and staying available,” he said. “We know that it may take six to 12 months for some of our clients to be made whole again. We have a list of safe places where people can bring their animals and get resources.”

The list of victims includes every conceivable situation, LeBlanc said.

“We’ve had everything between catastrophic – everything is gone – to only our shop burned, to smoke damage so bad we don’t know whether the house is habitable … we’ve seen the full gamut,” he said. “I don’t what year the firestorm was, but that’s what comes to mind about how quick this was and how many people were impacted by it.”

Tom Moore, one of the owning partners of All Lines Insurance, 6404 N. Monroe St., said his agents have been busy talking to clients who suffered losses in the fires.

“We’ve definitely had some customers affected, whether it’s a total loss or whether they had to be evacuated,” he said.

Kathie Watson, CEO of Bell-Anderson Insurance Agency North, also of Spokane, said her adjusters had two customers who suffered some loss and several others who were forced away from their homes by evacuation orders.

“I wouldn’t say we are overly busy in a catastrophic nature but we definitely have clients and family and friends who have been impacted,” Watson said.

LeBlanc, Moore and Watson all endorsed a list sent out by Washington state Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler that provided ways for homeowners to better protect themselves and ease their navigation through the process of contacting insurance agents and the effort to make themselves whole after a disaster.

Kreidler noted, in the release, that the state has experienced another dry summer that has set the stage for an “intense wildfire season.”

“Wildfire season is becoming a more dangerous, and regularly occurring, threat in our state due to climate change,” Kreidler said. “It’s important to make sure you’re not only prepared to keep yourself safe, but to protect your property with the right coverage if disaster strikes.”

Hand-held devices

Moore said the best way to protect against disaster, and to document the loss if residents become victims, is the smart phone that likely is in the front pockets of every homeowner.

“Document your property,” Moore said. “You are going to be stressed out if you have a big claim and you won’t remember everything you have. So get your phone and take a little video.”

Watson, of Bell-Anderson, suggested smartphone users seek out insurance apps that allow customers to contact insurance adjusters anytime of day right from their devices.

“Those smartphone apps are very helpful,” she said. “You should also know your insurance company, even if they are working with independent insurance companies. If they have the app, they can obtain their policies within a touch of a button.”

Kreidler suggested several things that victims can do to help expedite their insurance claims.

The first was to immediately contact their insurance company.

He also wrote claimants should not “throw out any damaged items until your insurance company has a chance to inspect them.”

LeBlanc, of North Town Insurance, explained that if a homeowner bought furniture or electronic items that had not been photographed, they need to allow adjusters to search the remains of the fire.

“They want to assess the rubble,” he said of the adjusters. “They can look and say, ‘That’s obviously electronics or furniture that is burnt. We are going to replace that.’ But if all that debris is loaded up in a trailer and hauled away,” it likely won’t be replaced or reimbursed.

Home away from burned home

Watson said many policies cover claimants who have been displaced from their homes, even if their homes did not sustain damage.

“If your home is not livable, your policy may provide coverage for temporary housing,” she said. “But there are other reasons they may not be able to live there. It depends on the policy, but generally there are additional living expenses that are covered. That could include civil authority coverage for road closures and evacuation areas.

“Even though their homes may not have been damaged, they can’t get back in and may need a place to stay. If so, they should save all their receipts for hotels, meals, clothing, school supplies and work supplies … so they can be submitted to the claims adjuster for potential reimbursement.”

Protecting against more damage

Most policies include requirements for homeowners to protect what they can after partial losses. For instance, adjusters may require homeowners to put a tarp over a hole in the roof to prevent household property from further damage.

And most often, insurance companies require that only licensed contractors do any repair work.

Moore said he faced both situations in 2015 when the windstorm blew an 80-foot pine tree onto his house.

“All the contractors were busy, so I had a tarp on my roof all winter long. They weren’t able to get to it until the next spring,” he said. “I always recommend working with a contractor who is used to working with insurance companies. Contractors who work with them know what is acceptable and what they will pay for.”

More is more

All three agency owners said the more homeowners can document their valuables, the better their experience will be if they face a catastrophe.

LeBlanc said homeowners should review their policies to find out how much their insurance will replace. For a home, the value largely is based on square footage and building materials.

Most policies also have a set value for household items, like collectibles and electronics.

“If you have a $20,000 ring or a coin collection or a bunch of firearms, those need to be listed with most carriers, specifically,” LeBlanc said. “For instance, we’ll pay $2,500 for camera equipment. If you have a $10,000 lens, we need to know about it specifically or the claim can be denied.”

Moore said the insurance companies and clients often don’t see eye to eye about the value of certain items.

“We see it more often on the auto side of things as opposed to the contents” of home, he said. “It’s not always in bad faith. They just think that ’83 Chevy pickup that the grandfather had since it was new is worth more than it is.”

Most policies replace what was lost.

“If you lose your 65-inch TV, they will replace it with a 65-inch TV,” Moore said.

Watson said homeowners shouldn’t panic if they didn’t take a 10-second walkthrough video of their home, which they all recommended.

“If they have pictures from a wedding or a barbecue, those are helpful for an adjuster,” she said, “especially if you’ve had a total loss.”

Homeowners should always keep a list of serial numbers, model numbers and dates they purchased expensive items, she said.

Otherwise, photographs on smartphones are helpful.

“It’s easier to look at a picture to remember everything you had,” she said. “That helps the whole loss process go faster if you have all the information.”