Last month a tree fell on our garage. The tree was the city’s and the city said they’d take care of it. The city’s insurance adjuster came out to assess the damage and make an estimate. We are waiting to here back from them on whether it’s going to go thru or not. My step-father said while we are waiting to hear back, we should also turn it into our homeowners insurance. Won’t we get in trouble if we get money from the city’s insurance company (if they admit guilt) and also from our insurance company? Or is that possible?
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Homeowners Insurance Question?
debijs 9:04 am on March 15, 2010
~~You need to notify your homeowners insurance agent now. They will help through this process and make sure anything the city is responsible for is taken care of.~~
S 9:04 am on March 15, 2010
You should notify your insurance company telling them everything that has happened, including your discussions with the city.
Your company will work with the city and the city’s insurance company directly (along with you) to ensure proper payment.
In the unlikely event that you get double paid, you should notify both parties. Most likely your insurance company will direct you how to handle this. But again, this is unlikely to happen once you notify your insurance company.
Right now you are relying on government bureaucracy, which is often slow, ineffective and ill-informed. Involving your insurance company will expedite and legitimize the matter.
agentbenere 9:04 am on March 15, 2010
you need to inform your insurance company of the damage and let them know that the city is working on an estimate for you. inform them that you just wanted them to understand the circumstances in the case the city does not pay your claim and you need to file one under your insurance. let them know you do not want to file a claim yet, but to have them make a note on your file. this way it ensures that if you do get money from the city you will not also get money from the insurance company
mbrcatz 9:04 am on March 15, 2010
The city might take care of the fallen tree (doubtful), but they will NOT be paying for your garage. You will have to file the claim on your homeowners insurance.
The city isn’t going to "admit guilt" unless their guy knocked the tree down. Just the fact that it was owned by the city, does NOT make the city liable for any damage done by the tree.
Even if they DO "admit guilt" because their guy cut it down with a chainsaw and it hit your garage, their liability is severely limited, to just your deductible, under the governmental immunity laws.
So file the claim with your homeowners.