Fire and Smoke Damage

Get legal help with fire and smoke damage insurance claims

Fires cause catastrophic damage to homes and businesses. Even small fires produce smoke damage that spreads through building interiors and air ducts, causing damage throughout and leaving the lasting odor of smoke. A fire that isn’t put out soon enough can burn a building to the ground. But even firefighters’ best efforts to extinguish flames can cause damage as they cut their way into buildings and put out fires with massive amounts of water.

Almost every property insurance policy is designed to insure against the risk of a fire. But that doesn’t mean that insurance companies willingly pay for every fire that occurs. And even when they do pay, it frequently isn’t enough to restore the damaged property to the condition it was in before the fire occurred.

Why are some fire damage claims denied?

We see smoke damage and fire claims denied for a wide range of reasons. Insurance companies will sometimes accuse their insureds of starting the fire intentionally. Other denials are based on “protective safeguard” policy forms, which insurance companies use to deny claims if there was no fire alarm or smoke detector. Denial letters cite to vacancy provisions, insurance application answers, and concealment provisions.

What happens after a claim is denied or underpaid?

Policyholders who have experienced fire losses go through the worst combination of loss to their property and invasive investigation by their insurance company. Insurance companies will ask for financial records and a multitude of other documents. They will demand sworn testimony in the form of an Examination Under Oath. Some insureds are so worn down by the delay and intimidated by the investigation process that they give up their claims.

How to dispute the insurance company’s decision

When someone calls us about a fire loss, we don’t simply accept the insurance company’s position. You shouldn’t either. Insurance companies and the people they hire get things wrong — policy language, the way the law applies, and the facts of the claim. If a claim hasn’t been denied, we make sure the insurance company has good reason to pay it. If the insurance company has already made a wrong decision about a claim, we fight that decision in court.

$185,412 settlement for damaged house caused by fire

We will review our claim for free

If you’ve had a fire insurance claim denied, underpaid or are dealing with aggressive claims investigation, we can help. We don’t charge anything for reviewing your claim with you. If you decide you want to fight your insurance company, we will handle the case on a contingency fee, meaning that nothing will ever be owed for fees unless we win.

Case Results

See More Case Results

Underpaid Fire Loss

A fire caused significant damage to our client’s house. The insurance company delayed paying and then paid much less than the cost of repair. We sued the insurance company and forced the insurance company to pay an additional $185,412.

Initial Position

Underpaid

$185,412.00

Underpaid Fire Loss

Our client’s home was burned in an accidental fire.  The insurance company delayed paying and, when it finally paid, didn’t pay enough to replace the home.  We fought for additional living expense, building coverage, lost rental income, and other available coverage.  After going through an appraisal and then filing a lawsuit, we were able to recover over $450,000 from the insurance company.

Initial Position

Underpaid

$460,000.00