Hurricane Damage Tips

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=190 BGCOLOR="#CC9966" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B><IMG SRC="50078550.jpg" border=0 width="120" height="85" ALT="Commercial Buildings" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <bR> <div> More Information</div> <div> below on:</div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="inspection_services.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Inspection Services"><U><B>Inspection Services</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="commercial.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Commercial Inspections"><U><B>Commercial/Condominiums</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="residential.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Residential Inspections"><U><B>Residential</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="qualifications.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Background and Experience"><U><B>Background/Experience</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="qualifications4a.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Resume"><U><B>Resume</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Home"><U><B>Home</B></U></A></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFBF0" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <IMG SRC="11d6d410.jpg" border=0 width="365" height="65" ALT="RealtyInspectPro" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Tips for Hurricanes </B></div> <bR> <div> 1. It is very important for you to DOCUMENT any damage you have at the time of the storm. Use date stamped digital photos and take a picture of the daily newspaper to document the date. Many insurance companies reject damage claims saying the photos cannot be tied to the storm. If you can't get to roof areas or are unsure of the extent of your damage, give us a call. We can help you with this.</div> <bR> <div> 2. If you must make repairs, try to take only temporary measures until adjusters have had an opportunity to assess the damage. Remember, in many cases with extensive storm damage, adjusters for insurance companies are brought in from out of state and may not be familiar with hurricane damage. You should consider hiring an experienced public insurance adjuster to represent your interests and see you get what you deserve for damages.</div> <bR> <div> 3. KEEP receipts for all repair related purchases.</div> <bR> <div> 4. Avoid using unlicensed "handymen" to make repairs, especially for roof damage. They generally don't know what they are doing and can result in doing more damage than good. We have seen many cases where clients were "repaired" out of a legitimate claim, especially for roof damage or roof replacement.</div> <bR> <div> 5. If you have a NAILED TILE ROOF, replacing only broken tiles will not FIX your roof problems. The failure of the roof is the movement of the nails penetrating the underlayment, resulting in leaks into the roof. Do not let an insurance adjuster talk you into this or gluing tiles back down. This repair will NOT WORK and unseen damage is more extensive than the broken tiles. If you have this situation, give us a call to explain your options.</div> <bR> <div> 6. If your insurance adjuster or their consultants tries to convince you  that any roof damage you have is the result of "foot traffic", "wear & tear", "thermal expansion", "old age", and "improper installation", BEWARE. These are generally bogus reasons given to deny your legitimate claim.</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>Tile Roofs and UNSEEN Hurricane  Wilma Damage</B></div> <bR> <div> We have  inspected during the past year over 400  roofs that had damage from Hurricane Wilma that weren't obviously damaged from the ground.  </div> <bR> <div> It is important to inspect your tile roof if you were in a high wind area from Hurricane Wilma because:</div> <bR> <div> 1. You have only <B>FIVE</B> years to make a claim after an event.</div> <bR> <div> 2. Almost ALL insurance policies have a requirement that you <B>"maintain your property in good condition"</B>.</div> <bR> <div> 3. Even if you given an insurance settlement to make "repairs" to your roof, you may still have BIG problems, especially if it is a nailed tile roof. It is virtually impossible to repair this type roof by just replacing broken tiles and "gluing tiles" back. Call us to discuss your options.</div> <bR> <div> 3. If old damage is discovered in the case of a new claim (not hard to do), the insurance company may <B>NOT PAY</B> to repair/replace your roof because of paragraph 2. above.</div> <bR> <div> 4.  You may be out of pocket <B>$30,000</B> or more to replace your roof.</div> <bR> <div> Give me a call to schedule a roof inspection to see if you have any damage.  If your roof has over 25% damage, it most likely is eligible for full replacement by your insurance company.  My fee for the inspection and a engineering report is $400-$1000 depending on size and where located in South Florida.</div> <bR> <div> Don't get caught with these problems.</div> <bR> <div> Best regards,</div> <div> Bruce E. Holmes, PE </div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> Bruce E. Holmes, PE</div> <div> Holmes Enterprises</div> <div> 561 215 8435 cell</div> <div> <A HREF="mailto:BruceEHolmesPE@aol.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:BruceEHolmesPE@aol.com"><U><B>Email for Information</B></U></A></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> Copyright, 2010, Bruce E. Holmes</div> </td> </tr></table></body>