In the Spring of 2021, severe winds and hail storms swept through Shelby County, Kentucky. The storm did severe damage to the roofs on a local resident’s property. The homeowner acted responsibly. They held a valid policy and paid all of their premiums right on time. Like anyone else would in this situation, the homeowner filed a claim as soon as the storm passed.
An independent roofing contractor inspected the property. The contractor found extensive hail and wind damage totaling tens of thousands of dollars. The homeowner sent this detailed report straight to the insurance company and waited. Like many Kentuckians who pay for insurance, our client expected aid with this unforeseen natural disaster.
The Flawed Engineering Report
Instead of taking the independent roofing contractors word, the insurer went its own way. Our client’s insurer hired its own engineering firm to evaluate the damage. The insurer’s engineering report contained a major contradiction. NOAA weather data confirmed 1.75-inch hail fell less than a mile from the property.
The insurer’s engineering report claimed only small, non-damaging hail hit the home. Based on this flawed report, the insurance company denied the claim. This denial left our client holding the sizable bill with little recourse on their own. Scenarios such as these occur across the country and can threaten the economic stability of individuals trying to repair naturally occurring damages without their insurer’s aid.
Uncovering The Hail Truth
The homeowners hired a private professional engineer to re-examine the roofs. They also made sure to source and re-verify additional weather records proving large, damaging hail struck their property. We presented this evidence to the insurer asking them to reconsider. Yet still, the insurance company refused. They stood by their denial and their engineer’s report falsely claiming the damage was minimal.
What looked to be a back and forth of “he said, she said” was flipped on its head after months of concern. Our client’s neighbor revealed a critical piece of information. A separate insurance company had replaced their neighbor’s entire roof due to the damage from the exact same storm.
Bringing The Storm To The Insurer
The insurance company left the homeowner with no choice. After repeated denials and evidence showing the damaging impact of the storm, we filed a lawsuit in Circuit Court to demand justice. Our lawsuit targeted the company on several fronts. The first was breach of contract as the insurance company had broken its promise to cover storm damage which the client paid for.
Then came the bad-faith claim practices. Kentucky law prohibits insurers from ignoring clear evidence. The company knew its own engineer relied on flawed weather data. Yet, officials refused to fix the mistake. They forced a paying customer to bear the heavy financial burden alone. By taking the fight to them in court, we exposed how the insurance company ignored NOAA weather records, independent engineering reports, and evidence from neighborhood homes.
The company fought hard to deny the claim and pulled every corporate legal tactic in the book. In the end, the insurance company broke. They paid the full amount owed to our client.
Stand Up For Your Rights
Insurance companies expect policyholders to accept a denial without a fight. You do not have to accept an unfair answer. If an insurer denied, delayed, or underpaid your legitimate storm damage claim, you have options. We hold insurance companies accountable.
Feel free to call us at 502-771-0588 or email aaronkemper@lawhelplouisville.com.