Mississippi Insurance Dispute Lawyers Handling Fire Claims
Strong advocacy when fire, smoke, ash, and soot damage Mississippi properties
In an instant, a fire can ravage your home, business, or any type of structure. The damage from fire, smoke, and related harm requires expensive repairs and often requires complete rebuilding or replacement. At McWherter Scott & Bobbitt, our Mississippi insurance dispute lawyers help individuals, businesses, homeowner associations, churches and other non-profits who have suffered losses due to smoke, ash, soot, and flames. Some of our results in fire insurance claims in Mississippi and the Southwest include:
- $9 million for a business owner for loss of business income and extra expenses
- $1.7 million in supplemental payment on behalf of a condominium complex
- $950,000 for the owners of a restaurant that was damaged by a fire
- $650,000 for a couple whose home was destroyed by a fire
How can we help?
- What should victims do before and after a fire, smoke, and/or ash loss?
- What types of fire and smoke damage do Mississippi insurance policies cover?
- What types of fire insurance claims are contested in Mississippi?
- What immediate help do your fire insurance claim lawyers provide to policyholders?
- How can your Mississippi insurance dispute lawyers help me after a fire-related loss?
- What if the damage is caused by a wildfire in Mississippi?
- Do you have a Mississippi insurance dispute lawyer near me?
What should victims do before and after a fire, smoke, and/or ash loss?
Our Mississippi fire and smoke insurance claims lawyers can only help you if you have fire insurance coverage through one of your policies. We’re happy to review your policy to ensure you have fire coverage. Your policy, inventory of assets, and other documents should be kept in a fireproof safe deposit box, in the computer cloud, or away from your home.
When fire, smoke, soot, or ash damages your home, you should contact your insurance company immediately. We can help you notify them. Prompt action is necessary so the insurance company and our lawyers can review:
- What caused the fire?
- What local officials, such as fire officials and building code officials, need to be notified?
- What steps need to be taken to reduce the possibility of any further damage?
- Evaluate whether your property can be repaired, whether your property should be rebuilt, or whether you’ll need to move to a new location.
- What benefit advancements are owed while your claim is pending and while work is done on your property?
What types of fire and smoke damage are generally covered by Mississippi insurance?
At McWherter Scott & Bobbitt, our insurance loss lawyers work to obtain full compensation for all your damages under the law.
A standard homeowner’s insurance policy should generally compensate you for:
- The damage to your home/dwelling. Your coverage should cover the cost to repair or replace your home. Our Mississippi fire insurance claims lawyers will seek full payment for the repairs or the replacement of your home as provided for in the policy.
- Other structural coverage. This fire insurance coverage covers detached structures such as garages, sheds, and gazebos.
- Personal property coverage. Your personal possessions, including furniture, appliances, jewelry, computer items, and other property, should be covered. You should have a complete inventory of your personal property stored in a safe place away from your home. We often recommend walking through your home and videoing the contents once per year.
- Loss of use. This insurance coverage generally pays for the cost of temporary housing and other living expenses while your home is being repaired or until you can buy a new place to live.
If you own a business, you should also consider purchasing business interruption insurance. This coverage should compensate you if you can’t run your business due to fire, smoke, ash, or soot. Business coverage generally includes loss of income, payroll expenses, overhead costs, and many other operating expenses.
What types of fire insurance claims are contested in Mississippi?
Some of the contentious issues McWherter Scott & Bobbitt handles include:
- Arson defense. We defend against insurance adjuster claims that the fire was set intentionally. Our lawyers have successfully represented policyholders wrongfully accused of arson.
- Rebuilding instead of repairing. We work with builders and fire damage professionals to assess when your property can be repaired – and when, after reviewing all the damage together, rebuilding from scratch is the more reasonable and appropriate option.
- Differences in valuation. Every home, apartment complex, condominium, duplex, and business property has different valuation issues. We can assist Mississippi policyholders in obtaining the proper valuations for their damaged property and contents.
- The amount of structural damage. We defend claims by the insurance carriers that part of your home was already in disrepair. We require that insurance companies rebuild with quality materials and ensure that the rebuild is functionally safe and appealing.
- The value of your personal possessions. We work to ensure you receive the correct value (the replacement value is often much more than the actual cash value) for your personal possessions and that the proper depreciation amounts are applied.
- Negotiating in good faith. At McWherter Scott & Bobbitt, our Mississippi fire loss lawyers hold insurance companies to their duty to negotiate in good faith. Some insurance companies try to pressure claimants into low settlements because they know you’re upset and under pressure to start over as quickly as possible.
What immediate help do your fire insurance claim lawyers provide to policyholders?
Some of the initial steps we help fire victims with include:
- Obtaining advances. Our Mississippi fire insurance claim lawyers help homeowners obtain temporary advances for new lodgings, food, and emergency necessities (such as clothing, food, and furniture) while their claims are being processed. We also help businesses and nonprofits obtain temporary advances for a place to operate and for inventory, notifications to clients, rental equipment, IT recovery, payroll, insurance, and other operating expenses.
- Securing your property. We recommend emergency fire damage professionals who will check electrical conduits and any other utilities, clean up any debris, and protect your property from further harm while your claim is pending.
- Showing your damages. We recommend that you take photos and/or videos of your personal possessions (especially if you replace certain expensive items) so you have a record of your contents inventory. You should store the photos and videos in the cloud, a safe deposit box, or a secure location away from your own property, so you can retrieve them after a fire happens. We also recommend that you take pictures of the inside and outside of your property (once it’s safe to do so, of course) so you can document the extent of the damage. Make sure to take pictures/videos of electrical sockets, the foundation of your home, any missing shingles and siding, and your landscaping. This is in addition to the damage caused by the flames, smoke, soot, ash, and water from the fire hoses.
- Assessing the value of your damaged possessions. We’ll work to determine whether the adjuster assigned to assess your damages for the insurance company is their employee or an independent adjuster. We also work with our own network of damage appraisers to help ensure the damages are properly valued.
We recommend that you keep records and receipts of all your expenses so you can be reimbursed.
How can your Mississippi insurance dispute lawyers help me after a fire-related loss?
Our Mississippi insurance dispute lawyers help policyholders who sustained losses from fires by:
- Helping you identify and document all your damages, including property damage, personal property (contents) damage, business damage, and hidden damages.
- Working with architects, engineers, contractors, appraisers, and other experts to place a proper value on each item of loss.
- If necessary, assisting you in filing a sworn statement as proof of loss.
- Showing that the value that should be used, where applicable, is the replacement cost rather than the “actual cash value,” which is generally less.
- Negotiating with the insurance carrier who will be working to limit the amount you’re paid.
- Filing a formal claim or lawsuit against the insurance carrier.
- Advocating for you before arbitrators, judges, and juries.
What if the damage is caused by a wildfire in Mississippi?
If a wildfire caused the damage, you might be able to recover, depending on your policy. At McWherter Scott & Bobbitt, we can review your insurance policies to find any that could provide coverage for wildfire and smoke damage. These policies include your homeowner’s and commercial property insurance policies. You may also be covered through a separate wildfire and smoke damage policy and through umbrella or excess coverage policies.
According to Forbes Advisor, some exclusions may apply if you live in an area of the country that is known for wildfires. Mississippi is generally not considered a wildfire danger zone.
Homeowners should be covered through their homeowner’s policy in much the same way as they’re covered for any type of fire. The insurance coverage should include:
- Your dwelling. The coverage should pay for the cost of rebuilding or replacing your physical home and any attached structures. The coverage amount is normally the cost of rebuilding the entire house – with quality materials based on local labor expenses. Forbes Advisor recommends buying “extended or guaranteed cost coverage,” which can help if obtaining quality parts is expensive or the local labor costs increase.
- Structures not attached to your house. This coverage for such items as a garage, pool, fence, or shed is normally a percentage (such as 10%) of your structure coverage.
- Personal property. Wildfires will destroy all your possessions unless you’re unusually lucky. You should make a home inventory of your possessions on a regular basis. The inventory should include the estimated cost to replace those items (not what you could sell them for) so you know how much insurance coverage to purchase.
- Temporary living expenses. While your home is being rebuilt, you’ll need a place to live. Your homeowner’s policy should pay the cost of temporary lodging, food, clothing, and other necessities. We also help business owners obtain temporary payments for a new office location.
- Business interruption loss. If you own a business, your business interruption loss insurance should pay fixed costs (such as overhead and payroll) and the other costs of doing business until you can start again in a new building. These costs include marketing, information technology, and many other expenses. Business loss insurance should also compensate you for your lost profits. We work with financial professionals who can verify these damages.
- Landscaping. Your Mississippi homeowner’s insurance policy should also cover the cost of trees, plants, lawns, and bushes.
Our Mississippi wildfire lawyers understand the unique challenges involved in representing condominium complexes, apartment buildings, homeowners’ associations, and other large property owners.
Do you have a Mississippi insurance dispute lawyer near me?
Our Mississippi fire insurance claim lawyers meet policyholders at our offices located at 600 Main St., Suite 301 in Tupelo and 4780 I-55 N, Suite 100 in Jackson. For the convenience of our potential clients, we also discuss claims by phone and through video. At McWherter Scott & Bobbitt, we’re ready to answer all your questions, obtain advance payments, and handle every phase of your insurance loss claim.
Speak with our Mississippi fire damage claims lawyers today
We understand how traumatic it is when a home, complex, business, nonprofit, or other property is destroyed by a fire. At McWherter Scott & Bobbitt, our Mississippi insurance dispute attorneys have the experience and resources to identify all your damages, counter any insurance arguments, and work aggressively to receive full compensation for your damages. We aim to restore your home, possessions, and property quickly – and at the value you deserve. For help now, please call us or use our contact form to schedule a free consultation. We represent insurance claimants throughout Mississippi and the Southeast.