TIMBER!!!....Damn It!

[OverlandXJ]

I was awoken around 10am this morning (working nights this week) by a loud bang. Sounded like thunder at first till i awoke enough to realize that the house shook. Get up and start walking around the house, find the dog pacing with his tail tucked and started thinking of what the hell he did now....

So i walk thru most of the house feeling better by not seeing anything obviously done by the dog....TILL i looked thru the window, or what's left of it.

Fawking 80' tree came crashing down on the house, breaking several windows, punching several holes thru a new roof, tree limb punctured thru the kitchen cabinet and broken dishes, and it's Fawkin raining!

So, i call my insurance company telling them what happened, she takes my insurance information and states "someone will contact you within 24-48 hours"...your F'n kiddin me right? Tell her i have holes in the roof, water (which turns to snow) coming in and i need to speak with someone immediately who can authorize the immediate removal of this tree and i can then get the house watertight. Not happening she says...i have to wait 24-48hrs till a claims rep calls and comes to inspect. WTF...

So, i end up calling a public adjustor. He comes over and surveys the damage. He has dealt with this particular insurance carrier in the past and stated that they are real slow at loss inspections and even slower with authorizing a claim/cutting a check. He also tells me i really should leave the damage as is till he can bully a claims rep into coming out.

It absolutely baffles me that today's insurance company's would rather allow a home to incur more damage vs getting a claims rep out to survey the damage in a timely manner!

In the mean time i have leaks and broken windows in my kitchen, laundry room and newly renovated bathroom! :rattle:

On the bright side....it missed my XJ and new YJ project by about 10'!!!!

[NitroDuck]

I would remove anything of value from the rooms that wasnt damaged, and then somewhere in the house between the part that was damaged and wasnt I would put a tarp up to keep the drafts out, and only go into the other damaged parts when needed. The more damaged thats done by water is just more $ you get in repairs, its thier fault for not comeing sooner.

Sorry to hear about it all, good luck.

[ChiXJeff]

Heh.....take pictures. LOTS of pictures. Especially get before and afters of stuff that gets damaged because the house isn't sealed up. And document each and every contact you make with the insurance company.

[Lawn Cher']

Aw shite, John! I'm sorry to hear that, after all the work you put into that house. Good luck with the insurance jackoffs... that whole industry (and I use the term loosely) is F'ed up.

[XJEEPER]

JB, this thread is WWP!!

[OverlandXJ]

Pictures have been taken. I got lucky with the public adjustor, he's a good friends neighbor who cut his commission in 1/2. Best part is he's been in the biz since the early 70's. So i'm feeling pretty comfortable leaving this in his hands.

Mark, remember the 60+ acres out back? It's been sold to a developer who is building come spring. Kinda wish the tree caused a total loss and i could move on...

[Lawn Cher']

Maybe the fallen tree will have caused a gas leak in the kitchen, and an electrical fire to spark it...

[OverlandXJ]

JB, this thread is WWP!!


Sick Fawk!

Have digitals, i'll download at work and post them up tomorrow or so.

[OverlandXJ]

Maybe the fallen tree will have caused a gas leak in the kitchen...

That'd be a trick! Whole house is electric. :rattle:

[nitrogt101]

Gee.. I hope the tree is ok!

LOL, that can't be fun. I hope that insurance company catches on after there is water damage. Good luck with it! :D

[RichP]

Make sure no expensive items you were NOT planning on replacing are not in the aread being damaged, like that 27" console TV that you were NOT planning on replacing with a 52" plasma :D or that old computer that you were NOT planning on replacing with a new one.... J/K

Check out Erie, they have been a great company for us for the past 20 years but also your local agent has alot to do with it.

[jeeppowermj]

The same thing happened to my house(well I'm 17, so my parents house) like 5 years ago. Except luckily it was just windy and it wasn't raining. Also all it did was tear a few shingles off and give the foundation a nice shake. Another 10 ft to the left and it would have crushed the oil tank for the furnace. Like 10 years ago a tree fell on our spring house(if ya know what that is). Damn PA trees must be weak.

[94XJ4x4]

Daaaaaamn.... gotta hate it when that happens. fawking trees... duct tape, lots of tarps, and blankets for insulation. thats all i have to say. Good luck to you. Look on the bright side... it didnt land on the jeep did it?

[OverlandXJ]

24hrs after the incident and no call from my insurance rep. However my hired public adjustor has been here twice....

Their calling for rain on friday, i will be cutting this tree away from the house starting 8am thursday morning. I'll be taking photo's as i reveal each area of damage for the records.

I crawled into the attic yesterday and stuffed old towels/an old comforter and etc into and around the holes in roof, was still drafty and cold in the house last night.

Had a few neigbors stop in, they'll be here to help me cut this away.

Feel bad for my wife, the broken dishes in the cabinet were her deceased mothers favorite china. :mad:

Thanks for all the kind words...

[North Rome Redneck]

I feel for ya, I just pulled up to the door to unload some flooring and a storm came out of nowhere. As I closed the door I watched the tree falling from the window. Much rather damage the Jeep than the house though, Jeeps are meant to bounce off trees. Worst part was I left it there for 3 days waiting for an adjuster and nobody paid! It was a neighbor's tree so my homeowner's wouldn't pay, and the neighbor's insurance company just called it an act of God. I claimed it on auto, but I've got a huge deductible.

Oh well, sorry to hear about your house, that really sucks! Good luck with the contractors.

http://home.twcny.rr.com/rfa1989/Jeep.htm

[Boatwrench]

What insurance company shuld we all avoid?

Sorry about your loss.

[Kejtar]

I feel for ya, I just pulled up to the door to unload some flooring and a storm came out of nowhere. As I closed the door I watched the tree falling from the window. Much rather damage the Jeep than the house though, Jeeps are meant to bounce off trees. Worst part was I left it there for 3 days waiting for an adjuster and nobody paid! It was a neighbor's tree so my homeowner's wouldn't pay, and the neighbor's insurance company just called it an act of God. I claimed it on auto, but I've got a huge deductible.

Oh well, sorry to hear about your house, that really sucks! Good luck with the contractors.

http://home.twcny.rr.com/rfa1989/Jeep.htm

I wonder if one could claim to be an atheist and say that "act of God" is not a valid explanation.

[Lawn Cher']

I wonder if one could claim to be an atheist and say that "act of God" is not a valid explanation.

For once, I agree with you. A of G is a copout IMHO. I hate insurance companies.

[woody]

Sorry to hear that John B... but glad you and the family are OK.

[Yellow XJNJ]

Im right across the river in Trenton if ya need help cleanin up over the weekend...

Mike

[Overdriven]

Hate to throw this out. I feel like I'm adding salt to the wound but with the insurance process today you may have a very hard time securing another home insurance policy if you move. Most companies nowadays will drop someone if they have just one "Major" or a few "minor" claims.

They have been losing money like crazy the last five years with all the destruction from the hurricanes and floods in florida to the fires out west. The latest consumer reports had a big writeup about it. I also have a buddy that works for State Farm and he said the same thing. Home owners insurance is a complete scam nowadays with companies not willing to cover someone for no fault of thier own.

I've got two tree's next two my house. I think I'm going to go drop them before they drop on me.

[biscuitboy87]

somebody said insurance companies are losing money...but i bet insurance companies are just saying that, to hide the sick profits they actually make by low balling or just not paying claims.
as for "act of god"... isn't that what insurance is for? accidents happen. trees fall the earth quakes and things will burn...
a friend of mine is an accountant at a very large firm in S.F. and is really into what companies make... he says 1st place goes to casinos (they count profit not by the year but by the hour) and not far down the list is insurance companies...if they didn't make money they wouldn't be in business right?
2%
BTW john... sorry about the tree, i hope everythign turns out well for you...
document everything and if possible record conversations.