WHEN YOU’RE LOOKING FOR ASSISTANCE WITH YOUR STORM DAMAGE INSURANCE CLAIM,
EXPERIENCE AND CERTIFICATIONS MATTER!
DURING A STATE OF EMERGENCY, FLORIDA LAW CAPS PUBLIC ADJUSTER FEES AT 10%.
SINCE THE RATE IS THE SAME, CHOOSE THE FERRARI OVER THE FORD.
NO OTHER COMPANY CAN MATCH OUR CERTIFICATIONS OR EXPERIENCE
DON’T SETTLE FOR LESS!
CONTACT US TODAY! (888) 830-BPPA OR BPPA@BPPA.COM
*REDUCED FEE FOR ACTIVE DUTY LAW ENFORCEMENT AND MILITARY*
EXPERTS IN ALL THREE PHASES OF AN INSURANCE CLAIM
CONSTRUCTION
- 30+ years construction experience
- FL Certified Residential Contractor License #CRC1333524
- Former building, general, and restoration contractors in several states throughout the country
- We know exactly what’s involved in repairing your home or business back to the condition it was in before the storm
- Testified as building and construction experts in hundreds of federal and state court cases
- Manufacturer certified master installers: Siding, Millworks, and Roofing
- Trained and certified by IICRC: Applied Structural Drying, Water Restoration, and Smoke/Fire Restoration.
- Tile Roofing Institute Certified High Wind Installer
- Certified Residential Building Code Inspector
INSURANCE
- Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter (CPCU®) designation is the gold standard in the insurance industry. It shows we know insurance inside and out, and it's one of the first signs to the insurance company that they're not dealing with "just another public adjuster."
- Associate in Claims (AIC™) designation makes us industry-leading claims experts
- Associate in National Flood Insurance (ANFI®) designation proves our expertise in National Flood Insurance Program policies
- Associate in General Insurance (AINS®) designation
- Property Claims Law Associate (PCLA) designation
- Senior Professional Public Adjuster® (SPPA™) designation
- Accepted and frequently hired as experts in state and federal courts for homeowners, business-owners, and flood insurance claims
- Windstorm Insurance Network Certified Appraiser
ESTIMATING
- Highest certification (Level 3) for Xactimate, the estimating software more than 85% of insurance companies use
- This means the software developer has designated us as “subject matter experts” in estimating
- Florida has almost 3,000 licensed public adjusters. Only 5 have a Level 3 Xactimate certification (that's 0.2%)
- We are 2 of those 5
Claim Tips and Advice
Public adjusters signing up homeowners before the insurance company’s adjuster comes out is wrong. Charging anything more than 10% is ILLEGAL.
Why is the credibility of your public adjuster important? If they’re as inexperienced as your insurance company’s field adjuster might have been, or they believe in submitting a crazy inflated claim to take a better negotiating position, then here’s some information that may help you.
Questions about your Frontline claim? In this video, I talk about Frontline’s immediate demand for a Sworn Proof of Loss, their Claim Acknowledgement and Reservation of Rights letter, adjusters demanding that you file a flood claim even if your home didn’t flood, and the appraisal process.
If you have State Farm, here’s why you shouldn’t hire a public adjuster for your claim, and instead invoke the appraisal process. It also gives an overview of appraisal for other insurance companies.
We’ve heard People’s Trust has been telling their policyholders NOT to hire a public adjuster. Here’s why People’s Trust saying that is against the law, and then there’s information regarding their “Preferred Contractor Endorsement.”
What is a Public Adjuster?
A Public Insurance Adjuster is a licensed and bonded insurance professional who assists policyholders with the complicated insurance claim process when they suffer an insured loss, such as wind or flood storm damage.
There are three types of insurance adjusters:
- Insurance Company Adjuster - is employed by an insurance company to represent the insurance company in dealing with your claim. The insurance company adjuster’s main responsibility is to protect the interests of the insurance company.
- Independent Adjuster - is hired by insurance companies to represent them in dealing with you, your loss, and your damages. The independent adjuster’s main responsibility is to protect the interests of the insurance company.
- Public Adjuster - is the only Adjuster specifically licensed to represent you, the Insured. The Public Adjuster’s main responsibility is to protect you and your interests in claims against a loss with the Insurance Company.
The first two are LEGALLY OBLIGATED to look out for the insurance company's best interests -- which is to save money! A public adjuster is the ONLY adjuster who advocates for policyholders like you!
How Will Hiring BPPA Help Me?
You just suffered a devastating, unexpected loss after a catastrophic natural disaster, so it's probably not the best time to take a crash course on how to properly prepare your insurance claim. You may be dealing with a multitude of other matters -- such as finding housing or an alternate business location, dealing with the emotional trauma of a loss, or simply going about your daily work and family responsibilities. God forbid you should also be dealing with injuries or the unthinkable in connection with the event. Consider these three points:
IT IS UP TO YOU TO PROVE THE EXTENT OF YOUR LOSS TO THE INSURANCE COMPANY.
- A typical insurance policy is dozens of pages long and contains numerous provisions and stipulations – written in technical and legal terms.
- It contains various "forms" and "endorsements" which are constantly changing from year to year and which add or exclude coverage from your policy.
- Most people have difficulty understanding what can appear to be a lot of legal mumbo jumbo.
- For example, did you know that in order for the insurance company to compensate you for your loss, there are certain conditions with which YOU must comply?
- Did you know that your failure to satisfy these policy requirements could reduce your settlement amount or even cause your claim to be denied?
- Don't feel bad. Most people don't know these things.
- A qualified and experienced public insurance adjuster whom you trust can help make sure you meet all of the policy conditions, document your loss, and ensure you receive the fair claim settlement you deserve.
NO MATTER HOW ORGANIZED YOU AND YOUR DOCUMENTS ARE, FILING AND RECEIVING PAYMENT ON A CLAIM IS A TIME-CONSUMING AND TEDIOUS PROCESS.
- If you are not sufficiently organized and your loss is not properly documented, you may not receive the proper compensation for which you have paid the premium and to which you are entitled.
A LICENSED, INSURED, BONDED, AND QUALIFIED BUILDER'S PERSPECTIVE PUBLIC ADJUSTER HAS THE EXPERIENCE, KNOWLEDGE, AND EXPERTISE TO OBTAIN THE MAXIMUM ENTITLEMENTS UNDER YOUR POLICY.
- Remember that the insurance company's adjuster is representing the insurance company.
- It is not uncommon for the insurance company to misinterpret their own insurance policy or forget to apply case law or Federal Law which supersede their policy.
- BPPA knows current laws as they affect insurance losses, and how to best represent you.
- BPPA has the resources to help you through the maze of estimating, documenting, and filing your insurance claims.
What's The Process?
- If you haven’t advised your insurance carrier of your loss yet, we will contact them for you to initiate the claim
- We will come to your house, business, condo building, or office complex and thoroughly document the damage using moisture meters, thermal imaging equipment, video, and 360-degree photos.
- We will write an itemized estimate detailing the work that will be required to repair your house to its “pre-loss condition.” We use the same estimating software (Xactimate) that more than 85% of insurance companies use, and we have the highest Xactimate certification. (Less than 500 adjusters in the country have a Level 3 certification, and we have the only Level 3 public adjusters in Florida)
- We will work with your general contractor, the remediation company, and the insurance company’s adjuster to ensure everyone is on the same page and you’re paid what you’re owed!
- We will keep in contact with you throughout the claim and update you on the status whenever we have an update.
Past Results
If you do a Google search for public adjusters, you'll find that 9 out of 10 websites reference a study by Florida's Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability (OPPAGA) on how public adjusters can get up to 747% more on their claim by using a public adjuster (that's the actual number used in the report on page 7, which can be found here: https://oppaga.fl.gov/Products/ReportDetail?rn=10-06). There are a few problems with citing this report: the report is 10 years old, it references data obtained from 2004 and 2005, and it only evaluates claims against Citizen's Property Insurance. Each claim should be investigated and prepared on its own unique merits, and each insurance company operates a little bit differently. In two of our Citizen's claims, one had a 2880% increase from $2,147.36 to $65,000 and the other had a 391% increase from $5,810.15 to $28,540.07.
Just about any public adjuster can get you more money than you've already been paid. However, it takes an EXPERIENCED public adjuster to MAXIMIZE YOUR CLAIM and get you every penny you're rightfully owed. No public adjuster can guarantee a 747% increase on your claim. Moreover, it's MUCH easier to get a claim from $2,029 to $17,187. It's more of a challenge to get a claim from $75,000 to $250,000.
The following table shows ACTUAL results achieved by BPPA, and they're randomized each time you load our website so they're not in any particular order.
Insurance Payments Before BPPA | Final Claim Settlement | Additional $ Recovered by BPPA | % Increase |
---|---|---|---|
$8,301.96 | $81,101.96 | $72,800.00 | 877% |
$4,986.86 | $48,945.64 | $43,958.78 | 881% |
$71,930.79 | $225,050.62 | $153,119.83 | 213% |
$14,174.73 | $95,249.13 | $81,074.40 | 572% |
$151,742.84 | $326,742.84 | $175,000.00 | 115% |
$29,947.57 | $100,961.09 | $71,013.52 | 237% |
$36,196.00 | $67,578.22 | $31,382.22 | 87% |
$19,341.26 | $39,759.42 | $20,418.16 | 106% |
$4,139.53 | $19,139.53 | $15,000.00 | 362% |
$49,443.52 | $94,452.98 | $45,009.46 | 91% |
$31,482.06 | $204,381.08 | $172,899.02 | 549% |
$68,015.26 | $170,495.46 | $102,480.20 | 151% |
$4,972.64 | $47,476.65 | $42,504.01 | 855% |
$37,812.25 | $237,004.95 | $199,192.70 | 527% |
$6,304.61 | $56,375.33 | $50,070.72 | 794% |
$26,644.56 | $175,384.40 | $148,739.84 | 558% |
$11,500.77 | $217,185.67 | $205,684.90 | 1788% |
$48,692.71 | $141,508.55 | $92,815.84 | 191% |
$2,147.36 | $64,000.00 | $61,852.64 | 2880% |
$4,464.20 | $50,187.49 | $45,723.29 | 1024% |
Below Deductible | $65,000.00 | $65,000.00 | |
$38,206.62 | $128,206.62 | $90,000.00 | 236% |
$7,788.73 | $104,234.21 | $96,445.48 | 1238% |
$29,837.85 | $45,000.00 | $15,162.15 | 51% |
$32,732.25 | $89,547.76 | $56,815.51 | 174% |
$32,563.86 | $114,825.00 | $82,261.14 | 253% |
$18,079.83 | $157,986.30 | $139,906.47 | 774% |
$13,064.08 | $66,526.75 | $53,462.67 | 409% |
$227,814.79 | $929,177.98 | $701,363.19 | 308% |
$38,932.63 | $214,633.84 | $175,701.21 | 451% |
$5,288.85 | $55,335.25 | $50,046.40 | 946% |
$28,636.99 | $128,636.99 | $100,000.00 | 349% |
$138,950.16 | $316,450.16 | $177,500.00 | 128% |
$18,259.82 | $133,277.11 | $115,017.29 | 630% |
$28,314.65 | $87,572.88 | $59,258.23 | 209% |
$164,632.29 | $344,035.81 | $179,403.52 | 109% |
$24,639.31 | $125,435.71 | $100,796.40 | 409% |
$68,799.35 | $133,918.82 | $65,119.47 | 95% |
$376,410.66 | $2,258,932.06 | $1,882,521.40 | 500% |
$30,052.34 | $131,245.17 | $101,192.83 | 337% |
$35,884.68 | $94,683.52 | $58,798.84 | 164% |
$22,482.50 | $69,296.33 | $46,813.83 | 208% |
$38,755.52 | $128,755.52 | $90,000.00 | 232% |
$53,517.89 | $150,000.00 | $96,482.11 | 180% |
$100,000.00 | $2,000,000.00 | $1,900,000.00 | 1900% |
$76,395.63 | $148,169.75 | $71,774.12 | 94% |
$35,339.16 | $126,022.81 | $90,683.65 | 257% |
$41,154.30 | $131,447.58 | $90,293.28 | 219% |
$1,026,584.29 | $1,502,500.00 | $475,915.71 | 46% |
$117,675.79 | $273,709.90 | $156,034.11 | 133% |
$15,221.58 | $113,972.64 | $98,751.06 | 649% |
$23,570.62 | $127,870.52 | $104,299.90 | 442% |
$19,545.20 | $97,850.77 | $78,305.57 | 401% |
$38,075.51 | $174,155.07 | $136,079.56 | 357% |
$107,044.35 | $258,185.91 | $151,141.56 | 141% |
$47,363.60 | $270,863.60 | $223,500.00 | 472% |
$8,147.95 | $48,147.95 | $40,000.00 | 491% |
$66,782.63 | $241,782.63 | $175,000.00 | 262% |
$23,767.20 | $296,188.17 | $272,420.97 | 1146% |
$44,789.98 | $211,417.41 | $166,627.43 | 372% |
$51,656.30 | $158,075.26 | $106,418.96 | 206% |
$55,681.13 | $266,031.90 | $210,350.77 | 378% |
$5,335.60 | $104,856.62 | $99,521.02 | 1865% |
$152,274.30 | $310,213.95 | $157,939.65 | 104% |
$123,536.15 | $377,963.75 | $254,427.60 | 206% |
$6,250.78 | $105,398.87 | $99,148.09 | 1586% |
$64,028.43 | $112,364.80 | $48,336.37 | 75% |
$124,569.14 | $286,576.03 | $162,006.89 | 130% |
$4,902.88 | $77,348.24 | $72,445.36 | 1478% |
$31,275.68 | $147,304.40 | $116,028.72 | 371% |
$93,939.28 | $412,728.84 | $318,789.56 | 339% |
$5,810.15 | $28,540.07 | $22,729.92 | 391% |
$25,209.65 | $109,449.84 | $84,240.19 | 334% |
$11,361.18 | $101,000.00 | $89,638.82 | 789% |
$43,650.52 | $78,420.37 | $34,769.85 | 80% |
$27,818.19 | $117,818.19 | $90,000.00 | 324% |
$29,931.27 | $85,837.57 | $55,906.30 | 187% |
$6,291.12 | $76,922.75 | $70,631.63 | 1123% |
$48,506.04 | $298,270.74 | $249,764.70 | 515% |
Below Deductible | $92,178.10 | $92,178.10 | |
$22,122.21 | $74,636.49 | $52,514.28 | 237% |
$82,489.04 | $178,236.66 | $95,747.62 | 116% |
CERTIFICATIONS
Industry-leading CPCU, AIC, AINS, ANFI, and SPPA designations
Xactimate Level 3 Mastery Certification (“Subject Matter Experts” in the estimating software over 85% of insurance companies use)
Certified Applied Structural Drying and Water Restoration Technician
B1 Certified Building Code Inspector [Same certification that government code inspectors must maintain]
Certified Roof Inspector
Windstorm Network Certified Appraiser
Former NFIP Certified Flood Adjuster
Manufacturer Certified Master Installers of Siding, Millworks, and Roofing
Tile Roof Institute Certified High Wind Installer
Matterport certification for property damage claims
Our Team
Andy Baker, ANFI
Managing Partner
After serving our country for six years in the Navy, Andy remained in the Pensacola area upon an honorable discharge from his final assignment at NAS Whiting Field. He became a master framing carpenter where he specialized in framing custom beachfront piling homes along Perdido Key, Pensacola Beach, Navarre Beach, and Destin.
After Hurricane Katrina, he became a general contractor focusing on post-disaster restoration. Because of his vast construction background, he knows firsthand where hidden damage may be located following a natural disaster and the cost to properly restore a building back to its pre-storm condition. That's why many attorneys throughout the country hire him to testify as a construction and estimating expert for claims in litigation.
Michael Vitale, CPCU, AIC, AINS, SPPA
Managing Partner
Prior to becoming a public adjuster, Michael spent most of his life in law enforcement serving his community. As a law enforcement officer, he took an active interest in impaired driving enforcement to keep fellow motorists safe and received an award from Florida Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) for Outstanding Dedication to DUI Enforcement.
He transitioned into public insurance adjusting to help prevent victims of natural disasters from becoming further victimized by their insurance companies. Since becoming a public adjuster, he has achieved numerous certifications and designations -- including the insurance industry's gold standard designation of Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter (CPCU). He is also a licensed non-affiliated insurance agent which allows him to advise policyholders on their coverages. He is the second and only other public adjuster in Florida certified as an expert in Xactimate.
Andy Waltrip
Public Adjuster
Prior to joining BPPA, Andy spent time adjusting claims for a major insurance company after Hurricane Irma. It was shortly after joining the BPPA family that he realized just how undertrained he was by the insurance company. He now works relentlessly to ensure his clients receive the fair claim settlement they deserve. Andy is a Florida certified contractor, an energy consultant and building envelope specialist, and a Windstorm Insurance Network Certified Appraiser. He previously spent years as a building superintendent for a custom home builder, and he was also a construction liaison to the Army Corps of Engineers at Hurlburt Field Air Force Base on multiple projects over two years.
Andy is also extremely active in the community and always has some great stories to share (like being in Germany the night the Berlin wall came down ). He has been a Boy Scout Assistant Scoutmaster for five years and a Perdido Bay Recreational Soccer coach and board member for 13 years.
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Edwin Kaiser
Public Adjuster
Chris Halter
Public Adjuster
Brian Smith
Estimator
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