News & Resources

Most people have heard of loss mitigation but do not understand what it is and how it affects them. In a nutshell, mitigating a loss means that when you suffer some sort of loss, you take appropriate steps to prevent that loss from becoming even greater. When you address mitigating a loss in terms of property insurance, this means that a policyholder has a responsibility under the terms of their insurance policy to take reasonable actions to prevent any additional losses after the initial event of loss occurs. Our Miami property insurance lawyer explains below.   Examples of How a Property Owner Can Mitigate Loss Below are some examples of property damage and the reasonable actions that the property owner should take to prevent additional damage.  Pipes Bursting: Should the pipes burst in a home or business, and the owner takes no reasonable steps to stop the water flow, they may not be able to collect from their insurance policy. A reasonable step could include shutting off the water line.  Roof Leaks: If a storm creates a hole in the roof and rain seeps in, reasonable actions to keep damages to a minimum may include placing a tarp over the hole as well as placing a bucket in the home or business to collect any water that seeps through.  Removal of Wet Items: If a property has been damaged by excessive water caused by a storm, a pipe leak, or other causes, the property owner should take appropriate and reasonable steps to […]

Life is full of surprises and not all of them are pleasant, which is why many people depend upon their insurance policies to provide additional support when extra help is needed. Unfortunately, many insurance companies can make collection difficult at a time when the compensation is needed most. Because of this, there are things that policyholders should bear in mind when communicating with the insurance company’s representatives.  Our Miami Insurance Law Firm Shares The Do’s & Don’ts of Communicating With an Insurance Company Many policyholders are unclear on what they should and should not say when speaking with an insurance company representative. The following helps clarify this matter.  Things You Should Do Or Say When Communicating With An Insurance Company Keep a written log of all communication you have with any representative from the insurance company, including who you spoke with, the date and time of the conversation, and what was said. Make sure that any mailed document is sent via certified mail so that you retain proof of mailing. It can also be a good idea to require that the document be signed for when it is delivered so you have proof that it was received by the insurance company.  Maintain a polite and professional tone in all communications. Acting in a confrontational or threatening manner will only serve to hinder your progress. Stick to the facts of what happened without embellishment. Insurance company representatives seek a way to reduce the amount they are responsible for paying. By saying […]

Let Our Miami Insurance Claim Lawyer Help If you’ve been injured in a car accident and are in the process of submitting a damage claim to your auto insurance company, then you may be concerned that the insurer will deny your claim for some reason or another — this is a reasonable concern. Most insurers will look for any justification to deny coverage, even if they have to scrape the bottom of the barrel for arguments supporting the denial.  After all, insurers maximize their profit by denying legitimate claims.  When policyholders fail to pursue those claims and resign themselves to the decision-making of the insurer, then the insurer secures a profit that they would otherwise have lost. Here at Ver Ploeg & Marino, P.A., our team of experienced attorneys has worked with countless policyholders in Miami and throughout the state of Florida, helping them challenge insurance denials and obtain the damages they need to make a full recovery.  Contact us today to schedule a consultation with a Miami insurance claim lawyer at our firm. For now, let’s briefly explore five reasons that auto insurers use to deny a policyholder’s claim. Incorrect Insurance Information Insurers are entitled to deny a claim — even a legitimate one — if the policyholder included incorrect information in their original insurance application (so long as that information is relevant).  This is applicable due to the fact that the insurer could have rejected the application for insurance coverage to begin with, had they known the “correct” […]

Choose an Experienced Miami Insurance Law Firm In today’s digital-centric economy, the threat of disruptive cyberattacks and data breaches has become increasingly dangerous — and common.  On a regular basis, company websites, databases, and networks have been hacked by third parties, and for a wide variety of reasons: to “ransom” the data, to frustrate/punish the company, or even simply for the challenge of it. These cyberattacks can cause lasting damage to businesses that are unprepared.  Without insurance, the business may not be able to defend itself and cover the losses suffered by its customers.  It may also not have the funds necessary to cover its own business interruption losses, to investigate and correct the “hack,” and to repair its public image.  As such, it’s critical that digital-oriented businesses obtain comprehensive cyber liability coverage. Unfortunately, simply having cyber liability coverage is not a guarantee that the insurance company will payout or stand in to defend you in the event of a third-party lawsuit.  As with other insurance disputes, the insurer will do whatever it can to redefine the issues so as to avoid liability (i.e., by arguing that an exclusion applies). If you’ve been subjected to a cyberattack, we encourage you to contact Ver Ploeg & Marino, P.A. for further assistance — we are an experienced Miami insurance law firm, with a deep understanding of how best to navigate such disputes. For now, let’s briefly explore some common cyber liability insurance claim issues. First-Party vs. Third-Party Claims Cyber liability claims can […]

Hire an Experienced Miami Insurance Claim Lawyer  If you’ve sustained damage to your home and have submitted a claim to your insurer, you may be surprised to discover that your insurer is taking a “hostile” position towards this legitimate claim. Insurers — particularly home insurers — often market themselves as friendly allies who will step up to support you in the worst of circumstances.  In truth, however, they are incentivized to undercut your claims, and potentially even deny your legitimate claims, to the degree that the facts allow them to do so. If your insurer has denied your home insurance claim or has undercut your claim (by valuing the damages much lower than the claimed amount), then you could be put in a rather vulnerable financial position.  It’s important to understand your rights and how best to navigate such a dispute. Here at Ver Ploeg & Marino, P.A., we encourage you to get in touch with an experienced Miami insurance claim lawyer at our firm for guidance on how to proceed.  We will identify strategic options and work with you to secure the damages to which you’re entitled. For now, however, let’s take a closer look at home insurance denials and settlements. Common Justifications for Denial Insurers will often outright deny legitimate home insurance claims so long as there is some factual basis (even if that factual basis is vague and weak) to do so.  Some common justifications for denying a home insurance claim include, but are not limited to: […]

Our Miami Insurance Claim Lawyer Can Answer Your Questions If you’ve had your insurance claim denied or undervalued by your insurer, it’s possible that your expectations for coverage are not aligned with your “actual” coverage.  These expectations may have been set by an insurance agent who lied, cheated, or otherwise manipulated you into believing that you had broader and more comprehensive coverage than the reality.  In some cases, they may have simply been ignorant as to the coverage granted by an insurance contract, and thereby misled you into signing on. Though you may be feeling hurt, betrayed, and vulnerable, it’s important to understand that insurance agent malpractice is not necessarily uncommon — and you may have a right of action to sue and recover damages under Florida law. Our Miami insurance claim lawyer is here to help. Ver Ploeg & Marino, P.A. is a Miami-based insurance litigation firm, with a focus on providing efficient, client-oriented legal representation and achieving positive results.  We handle a wide range of insurance-related disputes, including those that center around insurance agent malpractice.  Our team is more than capable of obtaining positive results at every phase of litigation, whether in initial settlement negotiations or at trial. Over the years, our team has developed a trial-ready approach to navigating insurance disputes. Unfortunately, insurance agents often take advantage of policyholders by making false promises and other overtures that are intended to mislead the prospective policyholder into signing onto a contract that does not actually contain the protections that […]

Hire an Experienced Miami Insurance Claim Lawyer   If you’ve submitted an insurance claim and been denied by your insurer or had your claim undervalued, then you may be able to challenge this adverse decision and secure a favorable outcome. Let a Miami insurance claim lawyer help. Insurance companies generally write their contracts in such a way as to give themselves an advantage.  They may write provisions that help them circumvent having to provide coverage (except in highly specific, limited scenarios), or may otherwise write ambiguous provisions intended to confuse policyholders and to justify the denial of a legitimate claim. Fortunately, Florida lawmakers are well aware of these tactics and have — to at least some extent — enshrined protections that enable policyholders to “fight back” and get put on an even playing field. Given the complexities of insurance contract interpretation and the challenges of a related dispute, we encourage you to get in touch with an experienced Miami insurance claim lawyer here at Ver Ploeg & Marino, P.A.  We are standing by to help you identify the next steps.  Contact us today. Let’s explore some of these basic issues, and how you (the policyholder) can secure a favorable outcome despite the manipulations of the insurance company. Ambiguity and the Policyholder Advantage Ambiguous provisions in insurance contracts seemingly give the insurance company an advantage — the insurer may attempt to justify their denial of your claim by pointing to ambiguous language in the insurance contract and by arguing that their […]

Our Miami Insurance Claim Lawyer Is Here to Assist If you’re the beneficiary of a life insurance policy and have had your life insurance claim denied by the insurer, then you may be entitled to challenge that denial by resubmitting a claim or by pursuing a lawsuit to secure compensation. Life insurance claim denials are infrequent, but when they do occur, they can cause a great deal of anxiety. After all, the beneficiary might have been expecting to receive a payout, and the denial can put them in an incredibly vulnerable position from a financial perspective. It’s important to understand that you need not accept the adverse decision of the life insurance company.  Though the insurer may have denied the application on one of several different bases, these justifications are not always supported by the facts of the case. If you’d like to speak to an experienced Miami insurance claim lawyer (about the denial of what you believe to be a legitimate life insurance claim), we encourage you to contact our team here at Ver Ploeg & Marino, P.A.  We look forward to speaking to you about what you can do to obtain the benefits you deserve. For now, let’s take a closer look at some of the reasons used by insurers to deny a life insurance claim.  Consider the following. 1) Misrepresentations on the Insurance Application If the life insurance policyholder misrepresented the facts on their insurance application, the insurer could deny a claim made by the beneficiaries.  It’s […]

Work With an Experienced Miami Insurance Claim Lawyer   Insurers often deny or undervalue claims on the basis of provisions in the insurance contract that are written ambiguously, or that are written in a way that significantly advantages the insurance company.  As the policyholder, it may feel as though you have been put in an incredibly vulnerable position due to the way that the contract was written. Fortunately, all is not lost.  Under Florida law, there are a number of mechanisms through which unfair or ambiguous insurance contracts can be interpreted in your favor (as the policyholder). If you believe that your insurer is incorrectly interpreting the policy, or has created a fundamentally unfair policy, then you may be entitled to challenge that — but you’ll need the assistance of an experienced attorney to navigate the dispute effectively and put forth an effective legal argument.  Here at Ver Ploeg & Marino, P.A., we encourage you to contact a skilled Miami insurance claim lawyer at our firm for guidance on how to proceed. Let’s take a closer look. Ambiguity is Interpreted in Favor of the Policyholder In Florida, ambiguous contract provisions — including provisions in insurance contracts — are interpreted in favor of the policyholder. How does this work? Suppose that you have signed onto health insurance coverage that has an extremely vague definition of “medically necessary.”  If your insurer refuses to cover a particular treatment on the basis that your treatment was not medically necessary, you might be able to […]

Let an Experienced Miami Insurance Claim Lawyer Help Oftentimes, people acquire health insurance coverage thinking that they can rest easy knowing that they won’t have to worry about their insurer “paying out” in the event of serious illness or injury.  This is unfortunately not the case in reality, however — insurers are incentivized to avoid acknowledging coverage in borderline cases, and they may write in ambiguous terms and provisions to give themselves the opportunity to deny otherwise legitimate claims. Nowhere is this more of an obvious problem than with alternative medicine and experimental medicine treatment options. Simply put, health insurance policies do not cover every possible type of treatment that you could receive.  Instead, they define the borders of coverage with a term: “medical necessity.”  If treatment is not medically necessary, then it will not be covered by the policy. This can lead to some adverse results.  Even if you receive alternative medicine treatment that significantly benefits you and improves your quality of life, your insurer might decide that it was not “medically necessary” and may deny coverage, putting you in a financially vulnerable position. Here at Ver Ploeg & Marino, P.A., our team is experienced in handling these nuanced coverage issues in the healthcare context.  We understand just how frustrating it can be to not have your insurer be an ally during such a vulnerable time — and we’re ready and willing to hold them to their promises.  Contact an experienced Miami insurance claim lawyer at our firm for […]