What is Appraisal???
Article by Neal McLoughlin
As an insurance contractor you should know.
Well, sit back here is everything you need to know, for starters.
Appraisal is defined by the International Risk Management Institute Inc out of Dallas, Texas as “Appraisal Clause — property insurance provision allowing either the insurer or the insured to demand a binding appraisal of damaged property in the event of a dispute as to its value and establishing the required appraisal procedure. A few jurisdictions now allow either party to reject the demand for appraisal, as evidenced in state amendatory endorsements for commercial property policies, homeowners policies, or both. Allowing the insurer to reject an insured’s demand for appraisal is disadvantageous for insureds.”
That’s the boring part.
Believe it or not the Appraisal clause was a provision in the policy that was inserted to benefit the insurance company. Guess who wrote the policy with no input from the insured. That’s right the Insurance company! Now it is more common to be used by the insured (the homeowner) in order to avoid costly and lengthy litigation to settle a dispute with their insurance company in a timely manner. Did you not know that you are in an adversarial relationship aka fight with your insurance company once you file a claim? Well, read my other blog posts.
Back to Appraisal. I have been fortunate enough to have been an Appraiser, And Umpire (court appointed Umpire in multiple jurisdictions) for over a hundred claims. And as every claim may have a similar argument or obstacle that led it to Appraisal each one is unique in the facts surrounding the claim.
Each Appraisal is unique and requires more than that it “demands” to have a new set of eyes (both Appraisers) review the merits of the disputed amounts and arrive at a settlement. If hey cannot there is a tie breaker. More about that in another blog post.
Well now you know a general background on Appraisal. I will develop more on Appraisal in future blog posts.
Till then be safe and be happy remember “We are here for a good time not for a long time”
Neal McLoughlin
About the author Mr. Neal McLoughlin is a licensed Public Adjuster in multiple states and has handled claims for over 20 years. He holds several professional designations and certifications from a variety of professional organizations. He is the founder of Property Claims Loss and sits on the Executive Board of the Appraisal and Umpire Association. He can be reached at (773) 497-2856 or via email at LossAssist@gmail.com or Neal@PropertyClaimsLoss.com
References
https://www.irmi.com/term/insurance-definitions/appraisal-clause